The practice of political back-scratching has been going on for many years now. It should come as no surprise to see it going on in 2007 up in Albany. Governor Spitzer's quest for reform strikes fear into the hearts of legislators that are used to doing business as usual for quite sometime. So when a corrupt Republican gets together with a Democrat who have both been comfortable in the New York State Senate for many years, the motivation for such a move isn't hard to find.
Senator Carl Kruger of Brooklyn was recently appointed to head the Social Service Committee. The position pays Kruger an additional $12,500 a year and affords him the power that a chairman naturally acquires. The question is, why would Joe Bruno appoint a Democrat while the Republicans still hold the majority (albeit a slim one) in the Senate? Let's take a look, shall we?
Newsday reports:
Bruno and Spitzer have been in a political war since late last year when the governor-elect picked one of Bruno's GOP Senate colleagues, Michael Balboni of Long Island, to become the state's homeland security czar. Spitzer then called a special election for Balboni's Senate seat that was won on Feb. 6 by Democrats. That cut the size of Bruno's GOP majority in the 62-member Senate to just 33 members.
Bruno insisted Wednesday that Kruger's selection to become chairman of the Senate's Committee on Social Services, Children and Families was not about politics.
"The politics is over," Bruno said. "We're governing."
Even so, Bruno's move made it clear he was reaching out to potentially sympathetic Democrats who might prove valuable if a fight develops soon over the leadership of the Senate. Spitzer and Smith have indicated they are looking for Republican senators who might like to switch parties or take jobs in the new administration, thus creating more open seats Democrats could go after.
Despite Bruno's plea that this isn't about politics, everything is about politics in Albany and it is safe to say that Kruger is not immune to the game as well. Carl Kruger is certainly sympathetic to the causes that Joe Bruno holds close to his heart. Important issues such as self-enrichment, political power playing and avoiding the scrutiny of the law have been at the forefront of Bruno's agenda.
Kruger has apparently been quite the friend of Joe Bruno, even going so far as to vouch for the decency of the good Senator and the values that Carl claims Bruno stands for.
From the New York Observer's Politicker:
Kruger, as you may recall, released a statement in support of Bruno after the majority leader revealed late last year that his outside business interests are the subject of an FBI probe. Kruger said questions about Bruno's integrity were "appalling and ironic," given his commitment to "openness and fairness."
Kruger also has local ties to Bruno: Tom Connolly, vice chairman of the state Independence Party and chair of the Indy Party in Rensselaer County - Bruno's home base - is on Kruger's payroll. Connolly is a Bruno ally from way, way back.
I'm not sure what it is about these guys, but something in their ego-laden heads prevents them from seeing the tracks that they leave in their wake. It isn't hard for astute political observers to see through the games that people like Bruno and Kruger play in front of their constituents and the state of New York.
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