Albany circus maximus

For those not familiar with the issue, the New York State Senate is having a collective hissy fit because two of it’s Democratic members, Pedro Espada Jr. (“R for hire”, “Bronx on alternate Tuesdays”) and Hiram Monserrate (“Who’s got more money and power to wave at me?”, Queens), both respectively under investigation for dalliances outside the law have jumped the aisle, sold what’s left of their tattered souls and become Republicans.

The reason outlined by the NY Times is apparently that Tom Golisano, a billionaire who supposedly financed State Majority Leader Smith and several other Democrats into office “wasn’t getting what he paid for”, so in turn he worked to woo these two turncoats across the aisle.

While news comes out that Monserrate apparently hit his female partner in the face with a broken bottle, the Times details Espada’s issues as somewhat more serious:

Mr. Espada has been fined more than $60,000 for ignoring state law requiring disclosure of campaign contributions. A nonprofit organization that he ran for decades, Soundview HealthCare Network, is being investigated by the attorney general on suspicion of having misappropriated funds. And the Bronx district attorney is investigating whether he lives in the Bronx district he represents.

The dismissive term being applied to this situation by most of the press is “the circus in Albany”, with the New York Post even sending a person dressed as a clown. The rest of the story is a bit more insidious and concerns end game machinations which will attempt to put Republicans back in power state wide.

With his fragile coalition, Sen. Dean Skelos (R-Rockville Centre) is positioning his party for the 2010 State Senate races that could make or break it in New York for the foreseeable future.

The reason: Whoever controls the legislature after 2010 will help draw the boundaries of congressional and legislative districts. And with the Democratic enrollment edge growing fast, Republicans need to help draw those district lines to have any chance of remaining a relevant statewide force.

One reason many observers say that Rep. Peter King (R-Seaford) is seriously looking at a run for the U.S. Senate, Levy said, is the fear that if Democrats control redistricting after 2010, it may be easier for him to win election statewide than in his own district.

More here…

Since I live in that fearmongering creep’s district, currently suffering under the weight of his cack-handed misappropriation of our tax dollars away from local interests and into the hands of corrupt DoD contractors and their cronies, that is a very, very real fear for him to have. Next to Bush himself, Peter King is mostly responsible for the continued existence of the completely useless Department of Homeland Security – an organization that was pushed into existence by the Bush regime after 9/11 and packed chock full of compliant Bush cronies and boondogglers to circumvent the legitimate operations of the other intelligence agencies, and to otherwise be yet another flea sucking blood out of the asses of Bush’s dogs of war.

King’s current district, NY-3, has been carefully carved out of Nassau County to include some of the richest neighborhoods IN THE NATION. He panders exclusively to the interests – and carefully cultivated fears – of the nation’s New York based right wing power elite. He ignores everyone else, and the ONLY reason he can because of the way his district is structured.

I’ve never voted for the man in my life and I never will. I went to directly lobby him in DC as a member of CodePink and he didn’t even have the guts to meet with me face to face, but as a Bush enabler he’s sent many a far better man and woman than he will ever be to their deaths across the sea.

We don’t need any more Bush dinosaurs, and they are not yet gone nor forgotten. They may be dying the death of the cornered rat, but you don’t want to be getting to close to the corners they’re in unless you’re prepared to deal with lots of fang and claw. That’s how it is in Nassau County, and that’s how it is in Albany, and indeed that’s how it is in other select corners of the nation.

Not a circus. A circus maximus – and we’re running short on bread around here, too.

Hey Albany Rethuglicans: have some Pollice Verso, on me.