Search Results
NY: Governor Paterson Appoints Lt. Gov.
Last Updated on Thursday, 9 July 2009 01:52 Written by rslcpol Thursday, 9 July 2009 01:41
Despite warnings from the Attorney General, Governor Paterson has appointed a Lieutenant Governor:
Mr. Paterson said he hoped the appointment of Mr. Ravitch, a lifelong public servant who was chairman of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority during the late 1970s and early 1980s, would break a tie between Democrats and Republicans in the Senate and send them back into session after a month of no work. The lieutenant governor presides over the senate and can break voting ties.
But Senate Republicans denounced the selection as illegal. Political watchers say they assume that there soon will be a constitutional challenge to the appointment, as well as any laws on which Mr. Ravitch casts a vote.
The governor said that if there is a legal challenge, he wanted it to be made “expeditiously.”
Posted under Lieutenant Governor News | No Comments
NY: Gov. Paterson Aide Meets With “Political Hitman”
Last Updated on Monday, 29 June 2009 12:29 Written by rslcpol Monday, 29 June 2009 12:29
From MSNBC:
Stone helping Paterson defeat Cuomo is weirdly logical, in that he has said that the GOP would rather run a gubernatorial candidate against the incumbent than Cuomo.
But O’Byrne reaching out to Stone for help with gay marriage makes much more sense. Stone, who calls himself “a total Republican” not a “Christian-right conservative,” knows a thing or two about being ostracized for sexual tastes that run counter the delicate sensibilities that often dictate politics.
In 1996, Stone was forced to remove himself from Bob Dole’s presidential campaign after it was discovered that he and his wife had placed ads in a publication called Local Swing Fever that read, in part, “Hot, insatiable lady and her handsome body builder husband, experienced swingers, seek similar couples or exceptional muscular . . . single men.”
Posted under State Legislature News | No Comments
NY: Poll – Governor Paterson Deeply Unpopular
Last Updated on Wednesday, 10 June 2009 02:05 Written by rslcpol Wednesday, 10 June 2009 12:48
Incumbent Democrat A.G. Andrew Cuomo has a 68% job approval rating. The state’s Democrat Governor David Paterson has a 21/50 fav/unfav rating. That makes disgraced former A.G. and Governor Eliot Spitzer look angelic with his 26/44 fav/unfav rating. Couple of real political lions out on the prowl aren’t they? From The New York Times:
With layoffs hitting close to home, those surveyed expressed little confidence that Mr. Paterson could bring new jobs to the state, reduce property taxes or deal with a serious crisis.
Mr. Paterson is now less popular in the state than his predecessor, Eliot Spitzer, who resigned in disgrace after being identified as the client of a prostitution ring. Only 21 percent of New York voters say they have a favorable view of Mr. Paterson; 26 percent have a favorable view of Mr. Spitzer.
Seven in 10 respondents said Mr. Paterson did not deserve to be elected in 2010.
In a worrisome sign for Mr. Paterson, the poll found overwhelming approval of the way Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo was handling his job.
NY: Rangel Warns of “Racial Polarization” if Governor Paterson has Primary Challenge
Last Updated on Monday, 8 June 2009 09:42 Written by rslcpol Monday, 8 June 2009 09:42
From CQ Politics Political Wire:
In an interview with NY1, Rep. Charles Rangel (D-NY) warned New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo (D) not to challenge Gov. David Paterson (D) in a Democratic primary next year, saying it could create “racial polarization” in the state and be “devastating” to New York Democrats.
Said Rangel: “You cannot support the governor, prepare for re-election, and at the same time say that you’re keeping your options open for a primary. I think that there might be an inclination for racial polarization in a primary in the state of New York. And since we have most African-Americans registered as Democrats, and since you would be making an appeal for Democrats, it would be devastating in my opinion.”
At the same time, Rangel also said he was “surprised” the White House pushed Rep. Steve Israel (D-NY) out of a potential challenge to Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) in a primary next year.
Posted under Attorney General News | No Comments
NY Dem Governor Paterson Still Heavily Unpopular
Last Updated on Wednesday, 27 May 2009 10:28 Written by rslcpol Wednesday, 27 May 2009 10:28
From CapitalNews9:
It’s the same bad news for Governor Paterson. A new Siena Research Institute poll released Tuesday shows his favorability and job performance ratings remain at record lows.
For two months straight, only 18 percent of voters approve of the job Paterson is doing in office, while only 27 percent still like him.
In the meantime, voters are continuing to support Attorney General Andrew Cuomo. The poll shows that more New Yorkers would like to see him run for governor rather than re-election for his current position.
Posted under State Legislature News | No Comments
Poll: New York Governor Paterson Looks Doomed
Last Updated on Wednesday, 13 May 2009 03:06 Written by rslcpol Wednesday, 13 May 2009 10:11
Care to guess what the worst kept secret in Albany will be? We’d like to a poll that compares Spitzer/Cuomo/Paterson. We’ve seen the Spitzer/Paterson head to head – now how about all 3 to see just how bad it really is! From Real Clear Politics:
It’s hard to imagine things looking any worse for New York Governor David Paterson. According to a new survey from Quinnipiac University, Paterson has a record-low 28% approval rating with only two in ten voters say he deserves to be re-elected.
As a result, Paterson trails fellow Democratic Andrew Cuomo by whopping 45 percent in a potential primary match-up and runs 22-points behind Rudy Giuliani in a hypothetical general election match up.
Posted under Attorney General News, State Legislature News | No Comments
NY: Democrat Governor Paterson Burned by Racial “Fire”
Last Updated on Friday, 1 May 2009 02:12 Written by rslcpol Friday, 1 May 2009 12:35
This is far from a good thing for Governor Paterson as he works to rehab his image with New York voters. But, we’re sure we can think of at least one person who’s happy with the outcome here. From New York Post:
Gov. Paterson, who raised state taxes by $8 billion last month, just cost state taxpayers $300,000 more.
The state has secretly settled an embarrassing federal racial-discrimination lawsuit, The Post has learned. The suit accused Paterson, back when he was Senate minority leader in 2003, of firing a white Senate photographer in order to replace him with an African-American.
The lawsuit had been scheduled to go to trial in federal court Monday in Syracuse, with Paterson, the state’s first black governor, as a key witness. The case was settled earlier in the week, although a few glitches delayed the final deal until yesterday, legislative sources said.
Posted under Dems Behaving Badly, State Legislature News | No Comments
NY: Majority Says Democrat Paterson Should Not Run for Re-Election
Last Updated on Tuesday, 7 April 2009 12:24 Written by rslcpol Tuesday, 7 April 2009 12:06
Pack it up, pack it in. It’s time for Paterson to begin…not running for re-election – according to Empire State voters. From The Record:
For months, Gov. David Paterson’s approval rating has been plummeting among New York state voters. On Monday, a newly released poll indicated that, not only do state residents deem Paterson unworthy of another term in the Governor’s Mansion, but that he should remove his name from the 2010 election altogether.
According to a poll by the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute, 60 percent of registered New York voters disapprove of Paterson’s performance, with 63 percent claiming that he does not deserve to be re-elected at the end of his term.
Posted under Lieutenant Governor News, State Legislature News | No Comments
NY: Senate GOP Wants $1.2 Billion More Cut; Governor Paterson to Cut his pay 10%
Last Updated on Friday, 6 March 2009 10:52 Written by rslcpol Friday, 6 March 2009 10:52
From the Times Union:
State Senate Republicans on Thursday offered up an alternate plan to Gov. David Paterson’s 2009-2010 budget which would cut an additional $1.2 billion from the $4.2 billion the governor would trim.
The plan, which represents the new Senate minority’s debut as a loyal opposition since losing their majority last November, would also abandon scores of new taxes and fee hikes proposed by the governor, including those on digital music downloads, sugared soda and auto rentals.
Meanwhile, Democrat Governor David Paterson, harsh criticism the last few weeks, got a nudge from a cash strapped retiree and decided to cut his own pay 10%.
Faced with criticism that he is aloof from the hardships of New Yorkers who are losing their jobs and trimming their household budgets, the governor has agreed to reduce his $179,000 salary by 10 percent.The suggestion that Mr. Paterson should accept a pay cut surfaced at a town hall meeting Wednesday evening in Niagara Falls, where he was heckled at times and faced pointed accusations of not living by the principle of shared sacrifice that he has promoted. One retired woman on a fixed income asked him why he could not cut the pay of legislators.
Posted under State Legislature News | No Comments
NY: Gov Paterson Wants To Charge $10 to File Taxes on Paper
Last Updated on Thursday, 19 February 2009 11:45 Written by rslcpol Thursday, 19 February 2009 11:45
From the Times Union:
Tucked into the governor’s 2009-2010 budget proposal is a plan to levy a $10 fee for income taxes that are filed on paper rather than electronically. State budget officials believe the paper filing fee could generate $6.8 million during the next fiscal year.
In addition to the almost absurdist aspect of a tax on taxation, the proposal has led critics to wonder if the state has taken liberties in the way it promotes the move to electronic filing as a way to save on paper and processing costs.
Posted under Dems Behaving Badly | No Comments