The bipartisan coalition governing the Senate has held together. This coalition faces a major test as we head toward the close of the Legislature’s session in June; therefore, now is a good time to assess how it has worked so far. Back in January, I wrote that a coalition government is easier to form than it is to maintain, and that the key to the success of this one would be legislative productivity. The gun control debate was divisive in… [More]

Gov. Andrew Cuomo will have the final say over whether hydraulic fracturing is allowed in New York—but some hydrofracking opponents are shifting their focus to lawmakers to pass a two-year moratorium on the controversial method of drilling for natural gas. Drilling foes see a potential for a breakthrough in the state Senate, which has traditionally been more supportive of hydrofracking but where state Sen. Jeff Klein and his breakaway Independent Democratic Conference could be in a position to play a… [More]

Legislators returned to Albany on Monday  and booted state Sen. Malcolm Smith from the Independent Democratic Conference two weeks after federal agents arrested him on bribery charges. “If [the Democrats] are willing to take him on, if they want to make him a part of their conference, they’re free to do so,” IDC spokesman Eric Soufer said. But the Democrats didn’t seem to want him either. “I don’t foresee that happening,” Senate Democratic Conference Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins said at a… [More]

  It’s not ABSCAM, but the bad old days are back. Albany was shaken up by a slew of shakedowns, filling up our losers list faster than Malcolm Smith making a deposit into his checking account. We couldn’t include everyone this week, but it sounds like more indictments could be coming thanks to Preet Bharara’s perspicacious prosecutions. The real loser in all of this is the public, but hey, you at least get to vote for our Winners and Losers:… [More]

When I asked Malcolm Smith nine months ago whether, despite the years of accusations against him, he could say unequivocally that he had never done anything dishonest as an elected official, he replied without hesitation: “Absolutely. 100 percent. Never.” At the time I wrote in response, “So there you have it. Either Malcolm Smith is one of the most misunderstood and unfairly maligned politicians in New York State or he’s a bald-faced liar.” The sensational developments of late appear to… [More]

State Sen. Malcolm Smith can add a new title to his illustrious career – chairman of the Independent Democratic Conference. He quietly picked up the position on Tuesday now that state Sen. Jeff Klein has assumed the role of co-leader of the Senate with state Sen. Dean Skelos as temporary president. “[Malcolm] is a great senator,” said IDC spokesman Eric Soufer, who did not divulge details about Smith’s new responsibilities. Conference chairman is the latest title for the man who… [More]

By Gerald Benjamin   The brief dustup in the Judiciary Committee regarding the nomination of Jenny Rivera for the Court of Appeals is just the latest piece of evidence that Republicans, with their Independent Democrat coalition partners, are presiding in the Senate but not governing through it. The Committee is comprised of 12 Republicans, 9 Democrats and 2 Independent Democrats; unlike the Senate as a whole, it has a Republican majority. The committee chair, John Bonacic, and some GOP members… [More]

Andrea Stewart-Cousins has already made history, but can she rescue the Democrats from themselves? … [More]

You wouldn’t expect such a hopeful smile from state Sen. Tony Avella, but there it is. The Democrat from Queens is animated as he discusses hydrofracking in his office next to the state Capitol. Avella is one of 33 Senate Democrats in a house with 63 members. But because of a deal worked out between five Democrats known as the Independent Democratic Conference (IDC) and the Republicans, his fellow “traditional” Democrats remain in the minority, without the perks of their… [More]

For the past two years Gov. Andrew Cuomo has done a fantastic job of threading the legislative needle. To date, his success is based on having a strong partnership with Sen. Dean Skelos, the Republican leader, and the political astuteness to make sure his base never felt left behind—a complete inverse of what we have seen down in Washington, D.C. The governor’s strong favorability numbers, sometimes topping 70 per-cent, are not just due to progressive legislative successes like the recent… [More]