Taking a shot at reform
Our opinion: The state Senate has yet to agree on an ethics reform package. Republicans have an opportunity to lead the way to a more comprehensive law. In Albany’s version of March Madness - the...
View ArticleDemocracy this is not
New York state can’t raise wages for its lowest-paid workers or help struggling homeowners. It rushes budget bills through without giving the public time to read them. Yet state leaders have the time...
View ArticleStep one: Mr. Skelos goes
In one of those rare moments of bipartisanship that political embarrassment can produce, voices on both sides of the aisle were calling Monday for Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos to step down. Mr....
View ArticleLet’s not relive the coup
Our opinion: Facing criminal charges, and with signs that his support is weakening, Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos clings to power. Will the Senate again plunge into dysfunction? There was an...
View ArticleCrying out for reform
The name of a man mostly otherwise forgotten arises in moments such as this because of a single quotation we easily recall: “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely,” wrote Lord...
View ArticleBusiness as usual: Guilty
Former Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos, guilty on all counts of corruption. Former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, guilty on all counts of corruption. This is not an indictment of the New York...
View ArticleSecret deals, public tab
For a glaring example of how corruption is not a victimless crime, and how money in politics can hurt ordinary citizens, look no further than Physicians’ Reciprocal Insurers. PRI is a medical...
View ArticleA looser rein for NYRA
The New York Racing Association has worked so well the last few years under state oversight, one might almost wonder why it should return to being a private organization. But NYRA wants to control its...
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