2010
By: Alan Bedenko
Date: November 10, 2006
That’s when Spitzer’s up for re-election.
I read this very thoughtful post over at NYCO’s blog and I, too, thought throughout 2005 that this year’s election would be a watershed moment for upstate and western New York. I set up a whole separate category for those posts as soon as I switched to Wordpress in April 2005, and had already endorsed Spitzer when I was still on my blogger site.
I started focusing on local and state issues soon after the first Brennan Center report on state government was released(pdf), outlining Albany’s dysfunction. When I discovered other upstate bloggers also posting about their frustration with Albany and its ill effect on the upstate economy, I was heartened by it because I learned that while the details of upstate’s problems may differ, Albany always came back as being a significant factor in bringing those problems about. Our legislators were mostly emasculated rubber stampers. Three men in a room act as the politburo, with lobbyists and unions as the party cadres.
So, was the election of 2006 the watershed moment I’d hoped it’d be? Time will tell.
People are very skeptical about Eliot Spitzer, which is understandable in a place that has an absolute right to its cynicism. I’m setting aside my skepticism for hope. As early as March 2005 I had attended my first local Spitzer event, and when he spoke about upstate, he got it. He understood that the old way of doing things was the problem. That “day one, everything changes” line was custom-designed for upstate New York.
Because the people downstate don’t generally give two thoughts about Albany and its politics. New York City is the political and economic engine driving everything south of Poughkeepsie where most of the state’s population lives. New York’s local news channels focus on tri-state goings on, not Albany. Upstate is different. Since government is the chief employer now in most of the big upstate cities, people are more keenly aware of what goes on in Albany and local politics.
I have not once heard someone say that Spitzer was a poor or ineffective Attorney General. I have never heard a criticism of him except that he has sometimes bullied Wall Street firms to pony up a settlement rather than take them to court. Given that 90% or more of most litigation is resolved prior to trial, that’s hardly surprising. What Spitzer did, though, is enforce regulations and statutes when the federal government wouldn’t. That enforcement inured to the benefit of consumers over powerful entities that were playing fast and loose with the law.
We’ve traded in a feckless windvane of a Governor for one who is not afraid to make waves and take on entrenched, powerful interests.
Skeptics point to Spitzer’s collection of endorsements and contributions from unions and scoff at the notion that Spitzer would bite the hands that fed him. But he got out of the gate so fast and so far ahead, that one could argue that he didn’t need them as much as they need him. Had it been a close race where he would have required heavy union turnout efforts to pull it over the top, that’d be a different story. But it wasn’t, and he didn’t.
Spitzer’s mandate is strong enough that he can wield it effectively against Albany legislators who are stuck in the muddy status quo and refuse to reform. Strengthening committees. Conference committees. Bringing bills to the floor for votes. Equal funding for all legislators. Loosening the Assembly speaker’s and Senate president’s grip on legislation. This is Albany’s unfinished business.
I am hopeful that Spitzer can push through the sorts of desperately needed reforms which would finally restore democracy to New York State government. With that restoration, along with comprehensive reform of state authorities, upstate New York could finally be on the path towards economic prosperity. If the cost of government is lowered and policies are fair and our interests are given a voice, we can make great strides in the coming years. If government is no longer the only local growth industry, but we can instead encourage the growth, advent, and an influx of private industry, we can then attain that Buffalo renaissance for which we all strive.
By 2010, we’ll know if that restoration has arrived, is on its way, or hasn’t even left the station.
Let’s make sure that all are aboard that train as we speak.
Alan Bedenko is the author of the website BuffaloPundit.com and a contributing author to many other blogs. He is the president of the WNY Coalition for Progress. This column originally was posted on BuffaloPundit.com
© Alan Bedenko, 2006.
The opinions expressed herein are solely those of the author and do not represent those of the WNY Coalition for Progress.
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