Judge for yourself whether this new Democratic verbal tack makes any sense.
The rationale for keeping the state Senate in the control of the Republicans next fall is the patently American goal of checks and balances. In NYS, the offices of the governor, the comptroller, the attorney general and the state Assembly are all Democratic territory these days. So the GOP majority is supposedly a check on that concentration of party power.
But at today's spring business meeting of the state Democratic committee, chairwoman June O'Neill and Senate Minority Leader Malcolm Smith (D-Queens) countered from the podium that the Senate has been uninterruptedly in Republican hands for more than 40 years, and so with so many challenges ahead the people should "try" a Democratic Senate "for two years," with the implicit message that they go back if they don't like it. O'Neill even led a quick chant of "Give us Two!"
Smith said afterward that GOP control has really lasted more like 70 years -- since the last, tumultuous Democratic tenure was very brief in the mid-1960's.
"We've had people make us believe we were separate states," said Smith. "The 62 Senators all have good ideas...it's one New York." Both Smith and O'Neill tied the Democratic rationale to dissatisfaction with the status quo.
Dan Janison
Comments (1)
Maybe Dan Janison should go back to 10th grade civics class before he posts on politics.
Checks and Balances, also known as separation of powers, are achieved by having 3 different branches of government - the executive, the legislative and the judicial, NOT by having different parties in power.
It baffles me how you can just swallow Bruno's premises hook, line and sinker, and report it like it's fact. Your bias is so blatantly obvious in your reporting, it's sad.
Here's a social studies website to help junior high school students:
http://www.socialstudieshelp.com/Lesson_13_Notes.htm
There could be a pop quiz next week Dan.