Four years ago, when then-Governor Eliot Spitzer won a sweeping mandate to change politics in New York state, the Democratic Party was a juggernaut.<\/p>\n
Republicans couldn’t manage to win a single statewide office. <\/p>\n
Joe Bruno, the Republican Senate majority leader was already under investigation by Federal authorities. (He was later convicted.)<\/p>\n
GOP control of the Senate — their last bastion of power in the Empire state — was crumbling.<\/p>\n
As we slouch toward the Novembe 2010 midterms, all that has changed. <\/p>\n
Not because of a Republican resurgence, but because the Democratic Party has proven itself to be almost unbelievably inept and corrupt.<\/p>\n
Consider the track record of these four years:<\/p>\n
-Eliot Spitzer resigned after admitting to liaisons with prostitutes, and after the lingering scandal of Troopergate.<\/p>\n
-Hiram Monserrate, a Democrat from New York City, was drummed out of the state Senate after attacking his girlfriend and dragging her through an apartment building lobby. (Twelve Democrats voted against expelling him.)<\/p>\n
-Senate majority leader Malcolm Smith was dethroned after failing to form a functioning Democratic majority. (Two years after winning a majority, Democrats still don’t have a fully functioning caucus.)<\/p>\n
-The House ethics committee has admonished Rep. Charlie Rangel — the leader of New York’s Democratic delegation in Washington — for accepting corporate-sponsored travel as gifts. <\/p>\n
-Governor David Paterson’s career is in shambles after he and his state police security detail allegedly meddled in a domestic violence case involving one of his senior aides. <\/p>\n
The debacle of the last four years is particularly galling when contrasted with the sky-high expectations.<\/p>\n
Even many of my Republican friends were optimistic that the Spitzer-era would bring needed reforms and budget discipline in Albany.<\/p>\n
Instead, we face the terrifying prospect of navigating the next ten months without clear leadership, as the state flounders under an $8.2 billion budget deficit.<\/p>\n
As the current Paterson scandal unfolds, Democrats have one reason for optimism.<\/p>\n
Andrew Cuomo waits in the wings and so far he appears untainted and undamaged by all the fall-out. <\/p>\n
New Yorkers can only hope and pray that Cuomo’s behavior — public and private — will offer a fresh start. <\/p>\n
While we wait for elections in November, more pressure will fall on Sheldon Silver, the sphinx-like Democratic Assembly leader — arguably the most powerful man in state politics — to help keep the ship of state afloat.<\/p>\n
Frankly, it’s hard to imagine Silver filling this role. <\/p>\n
He has built a very successful career watching other politicians and their agendas disintegrate.<\/p>\n
That patience and inscrutability served him — and Democratic special interests — well for decades.<\/p>\n
But the budget crisis has changed the rules. And the humbling of Silver’s party has also shifted the political landscape. <\/p>\n
In the weeks ahead, we’ll see if Silver and his fellow Democrats can begin to adapt.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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