Tom Duane Schools Ruben Diaz For Trying To Be A Bully

This isn't a schoolyard fight we're talking about, this is between two grown men in the New York State Senate with two very different views about marriage equality. Senator Duane, being the only openly gay member has been outspoken on the issue and with a Democratic Senate, is poised to help deliver equality in the state. As a current renegade Democrat, Diaz doesn't particularly like teh gay and wants potential Majority Leader Smith not to bring such a bill to the floor for a vote. Too bad he doesn't know that things, they are a changin' in Albany.

From The Daily Politics:

Sen. Tom Duane today accused Gang of Three member Sen. Ruben Diaz Sr. of being "a little bit of a bully" on same-sex marriage and said the Bronx Democrat is mistakenly working under an old model of how the Senate works by casting this as a make-or-break issue in the leadership battle.

"It's absurd that Sen. Diaz thinks he can bully his way on this issue," Duane said. "That is just not the way the government is going to be in the new Senate."

"I guess he thinks he hasn't been getting enough attention, so he feels need to bully his way to the forefront, but that's not going to fly in the Senate anymore. He'll get used to things running in a more democratic way."

"Sen. (Malcolm) Smith is going to be the leader of the Senate differently than Sen. (Joe) Bruno or even Sen. (Dean) Skelos," Duane continued. "It's a whole new way to operate. It's not just going to be up to Sen. Smith...on what comes to the floor."

Smith said something along the same lines in a Times interview just before Election Day, promising to provide more power to rank-and-file lawmakers and even share power, to some degree, with the Republican minority (assuming they lose the leadership fight).

Aww poor Ruben, just because you want to exclude the gay community from rights that heterosexuals have doesn't mean you'll get your way if you threaten the balance of power in the Senate. If anything, the longer you wait to fall in line behind Smith, the more momentum a challenger has to take you out in two years. With the tide of power swaying back to our side, no one needs a backstabber around while we try and clear up some of the muck that has brought progress to a halt in New York. Duane can bring the bill down by himself and no one will care how loud you scream and shout.