February 28, 2009 - 5:00 AM | Comment
South Council Member Mickey Kearns was slated to gather friends and supporters together in the Irish Center in South Buffalo Friday night, and it won't be practice for St. Patrick's Day.
The prospective mayoral candidate will hold a $25-per-person fund raiser with an eye toward mounting a full-fledged campaign later this year.
"It's sponsored by some supporters who wanted to put on an event for me," Kearns said before the gathering. "It's to show some level of support.
"It's the next step," he added.
Indeed, Kearns is taking several steps toward what is expected to culminate in a challenge to incumbent Democratic Mayor Byron Brown. Kearns has little money, and even his South Buffalo Democratic allies are firmly behind the mayor's re-election effort.
But if he is to have any chance at all in a very uphill battle, the 39-year-old Council member must begin building support at events like this one. He must rally the troops of his South Buffalo base, attract a diverse core of support from all sections of the city -- and most of all -- start raising some money.
That's because Brown is expected to enter the campaign later this year with well over $1 million in hand.
At this point, however, there seems to be no doubt that Kearns is in it, and the Friday event is visible proof.
And so the 2009 campaign for mayor begins.
Do you think challenger Kearns has a chance against an entrenched incumbent like Brown?
-- Robert J. McCarthy
February 20, 2009 - 5:00 AM | Comment
Just about everyone who observes Erie County politics is asking the same question: What will Tom Reynolds do after retiring from a 35-year elective career?
At 58, the former Concord councilman, county legislator, assemblyman and congressman has lots of years ahead to participate in the political process. And those who know him and his passion for politics expect he will be involved in some way.
Read the story here.
Reynolds' name is absent from the area's political roster for the first time in decades. And it wasn't just as an elected official that he earned his reputation -- he also helped shape the local political scene as Erie County Republican chairman.
Following stints as Assembly minority leader and a member of Congress, the Clarence resident also carved out a role as one of the statewide Republican Party's most influential members.
Reynolds doesn't worry about paying the rent as a retired congressman. He has a nice pension and health insurance, and he'll collect a Tier 1 state pension when the time comes.
But most people see him remaining in the political arena as a strategist, lobbyist or in some other capacity that sees him firmly planted in the process.
After such a long tenure in partisan politics, Reynolds has earned his share of enemies. But even his Democratic counterparts acknowledge him as a worthy opponent; one they expect to face again in some way.
What is your assessment of one of the most dominant figures of our time in local politics? Is there still a place for what he brings to the table?
Or is he part of a system that should be replaced by a new kind of politics?
-- Robert J. McCarthy
February 10, 2009 - 5:00 AM | Comment
WASHINGTON — In the U.S. Senate, for Western New York, this is what bipartisanship looks like:
— The elimination of $242 million in federal stimulus aid for the University at Buffalo.
— The elimination of $130.5 million in school construction funding for Western New York and the Southern Tier.
— The elimination of $25 billion for states, and a $7.5 billion reduction for school districts, to help balance their budgets.
Those are among the changes Democrats in the Senate accepted in order to lure a handful of Republican votes for a gigantic stimulus package aimed at boosting the struggling economy.
Republicans simply said the government was spending too much, and universities, schools and states took a big hit when they started cutting.
So what do you think — is bipartisanship such a good thing?
— Jerry Zremski
February 4, 2009 - 6:30 PM | Comment
Gov. David Paterson has now said that one of his campaign staffers leaked the catty and unsubstantiated reasons about why Caroline Kennedy dropped her bid for becoming New York's next senator.
Now, the leaks may prompt more investigations, to see if the information came from confidential questionnaires that the Senate hopefuls filled out for the governor.
Paterson has refused to share his questions to the candidates, which some experts say violates freedom of Information laws. Meanwhile, the governor maintains he is personally responsible for the behavior of his staff, and so far no one has lost a job over the leaks.
And, as our fiscal ship of state drifts down to the ocean floor, New York politics continue, as usual.
February 3, 2009 - 5:00 AM | Comment
These are not exactly happy days for New York State's Republican Party.
The once-vibrant GOP is not immune to the troubles plaguing the national party, as it has watched Democrats assume the jobs of governor, comptroller, attorney general, Assembly speaker, Senate majority leader and both U.S. senator posts in recent years.
Some observers say state GOP Chairman Joe Mondello would look good in a Maytag repairman's uniform. Nobody calls him anymore.
But the first rays of hope may be shining on state Republican Headquarters. Democratic Gov. David A. Paterson has stumbled in recent weeks, mainly in how he handled the appointment of Kirsten Gillibrand to the Senate vacancy caused by the elevation of Hillary Rodham Clinton to secretary of state. And the governor faces nothing but tough days ahead as he tries to fill a $15 billion budget gap with new taxes and slashed programs.
In addition, Gillibrand's upstate base all but invites a Senate primary from some New York City Democrat who will recognize that the overwhelming concentration of New York Democrats stems from the five boroughs and their suburbs. Many observers say that all but guarantees a primary challenge in 2010, potentially weakening Democrats for a Republican like Rep. Peter King of Long Island.
All of this means the Republicans recognize an opportunity when they see it, even if Democrats count about 2.4 million more voters on the rolls. It causes well known Republicans like former Rep. Rick Lazio, who unsuccessfully challenged Clinton for the Senate in 2000, to explore a gubernatorial run in 2010.
Republicans in New York still know they can pick off an office or two when they are healthy, especially on the executive level. Republican County Executive Chris Collins showed that as recently as 2007, winning in heavily Democratic Erie County.
As New York gears up for statewide elections in 2010, is it realistic to think the GOP can resurrect itself and win top offices again?
--Robert J. McCarthy
February 1, 2009 - 5:00 AM | Comment
Told that FBI officials admitted they had a hard time unlocking the secret codes of how the New York state Legislature does business, a longtime legislative lawyer burst out laughing.
"No kidding?" the lawyer said, before boasting of the legal abilities of legislative staffs that have made impenetrable how Albany operates … from the state budget to redistricting to the strange twists and turns of the state's election laws.
In short, the walls surrounding the Capitol are well built and maintained with reinforced mortar every generation by an army of state lawyers whose jobs depend on protecting and preserving incumbent lawmakers.
For 12 years, David Grandeau headed the state's lobbying agency for a dozen years, and made
many enemies among legislators and lobbyists for his investigations of the cozy conflicts and other ills at the Capitol. Other watchdog groups rushed to his side to defend him during his many probes and ensuing push-backs.
To Grandeau, the tools are all in place.
"The first solution is that you're not going to change human behavior, so stop trying to place cures in the structure of the ethics agencies or changing the laws. There are plenty of laws to deal with what's going on," said Grandeau, who is now in private practice and advises companies on how to comply with ethics rules in Albany.
It starts at the top, Grandeau believes.
"We've got lots of recipes. We need to change the chef. We've got to put people in charge of agencies willing to rattle the cages, willing to be criticized," he said.
And willing to lose their jobs if need be.
But now, those who run the ethics agencies report to the very people they are supposed to be monitoring. This week, watchdog groups will step up efforts to make the ethics agencies independent from those they are charged with regulating.
Grandeau is among those keenly interested in where the federal corruption case against former Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno goes. It was Grandeau's original investigation into free private jet flights given Bruno by a friend who had business dealings before the state that eventually led to the federal probe.
Bruno said he welcomes taking his case to a public trial, where he is convinced he will be exonerated. For Grandeau and others, the notion of a trial of one of Albany's onetime power elites could be one of the most eye-opening experiences to hit this town in generations.
"Part of the indictment says he checked and got pre-approved from the legislative ethics committee," Grandeau said. "In a trial, we'll find out who he checked with, what he said to them, what they said to him. We'll find out how the actual system of legislative ethics works."
And that will be a courtroom session worth attending.
--Tom Precious
