Thursday’s Briefing: Changing Of The Guard

by Contributor | June 26, 2008 12:01 pm

The Joe Bruno era is over. And with the Senate Majority Leader’s departure goes most, if not all, of the state legislative season. Also, the Darrel Aubertine job flap remains a concern among his fellow Democrats.

Who is this Dean Skelos fellow, anyway?

• The Senate’s new GOP leader’s called a tough infighter[1], who will move the caucus more to the right than the moderate Bruno.
• Will it help the Republicans keep control of the chamber[2]?
• He’s heading out on a “listening tour”[3].

And don’t expect Battlin’ Joe Bruno to go out quietly. He may have a job lined up with what the press likes to call a “close friend”[4]. And the feds may step up[5] the criminal investigation of Bruno.

Wait. You mean there was still work to do in Albany while all of this personal stuff was happening? How’d it turn out?

Mixed[6], says the NY Times. Mixed[7], says the Daily News.

What They Did And Didn’t Do:

Didn’t:

• Help dentists, install red-light cameras, stop tax breaks for condos[8]
• Help IDAs keep on building schools, nursing homes[9], etc.
• Reduce teen driving deaths[10]

And of course, they didn’t agree on school property tax caps.

Did:

• Limit brownfields cleanup costs[11]
• Unbundled CD-ROMs from textbooks, to save kids money[12]
• And made the world just a little bit safer, by outlawing plastic knuckles[13]. We hear wax lips are next.

Darrel’s Day:

It’s not making much news, but Darrel Aubertine’s willingness to fall on his sword for the Gov. continues to be the talk of Albany Democrats. They wonder whether the Gov’s on their side or not[14].

Elsewhere:

• Recognizing gay marriage in New York, like the Devil, is in the details[15].
• Panel asks “haves” how to help the “have nots”[16].
• A record number of complaints against judges, but few were worth investigating[17].
• Climate change is the topic in the Adirondacks[18] for experts this week.

Apropos Of Not Very Much:

• Would you believe some folks would claim benefits they weren’t eligible for[19]?
• Would driving on the rims[20] improve my gas mileage?
• If I’m a knowledgeable traveler with a family, which line do I get in[21]?
• And speaking of travel, you’d better pack a lot for the sixth step of this journey[22].

Happy trails to you, and if we’ve missed something, drop a comment.

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