Paterson 's State of the State Was Not New or Inspiring,
But He Recognizes That With His Usual Brio
Note: This is a long column about a disappointing subject. We don’t mind if you skip it. But if you read it you will learn about some nuances of state government and the unfiltered opinions of columnists that we found interesting. You will find that Governor Paterson’s unscripted words are particularly perceptive.
We held this column over until today (Thursday) because we wanted to comment on the Governor’s State of the State message, delivered yesterday, (Jan. 7th). The speech is usually a major policy declaration of the governor’s priorities for the state for the new year. If importance was the yardstick, yesterday’s speech was a disappointment.
Governor Paterson did say that “the state of the state is perilous”, which, without doubt, it is. But he didn’t say much as to what he and the legislature should do about it. There were a collection of minor initiatives, and we like the emphasis on public health, particularly the sugar tax for sodas. We wonder what will be the tax consequences if and when saccharine, aspartame and sucralose are shown to have adverse effects on one’s health. If we are entering a new era of taxation of toxicity, it will be very important to get the science right.
One of the older taxes in history is the salt tax, which was imposed in France in the 18th century. Known as the gabelle, it was highly unpopular, as was the salt tax that the British Empire imposed when India was their colony over a century ago. The Indian salt tax was not repealed until the advent of the interim government under Jawaharlal Nehru in 1946. The effect of salt on blood pressure was not a factor when these taxes were imposed; their purpose was to raise revenue for the monarch. The Boston Tea Party comes to mind as another occasion where the taxation of basic foodstuffs was not well regarded by the populace.
There was press coverage of the governor’s alleged 60 hours of preparation (a figure that was later disputed) to memorize the 62-minute speech, a feat which shows his extraordinary ability and diligence in overcoming physical challenges. It might have been wiser, however, for him to have given a shorter speech but included more substantive recommendations for dealing with the $15.4 billion budget deficit.
Perhaps the painful financial decisions that lie ahead are being left for the governor’s budget, which is due to be submitted to the legislature on January 15. It is also possible that Albany is waiting for financial rescue by the Obama administration. It will probably take some time, however, to learn what resources New York State will receive from Washington, and for what purposes it may be used. The state’s fiscal year begins April 1, which is the deadline for the Legislature to adopt the budget for FY 2010.
Whatever restrictions are placed on spending are often avoided by switching accounts and other budget legerdemain. For example, with a lottery intended to benefit education, even if all the profits are given to schools, the state will have to spend less of its general fund for that worthy purpose. The marketing reason for the allocation to education is to induce bettors to believe that they are helping children learn while they gamble away their dollars to pursue a dream.
Financially, many of the states are in bad way, with most facing declining revenues as part of the national recession. California, the largest state in population, has the largest deficit, even per capita. Governor Schwarzenegger, now in his 7th year in office, is ineligible to run for re-election, unless he can manipulate the suspension of Constitutional term limits. He showed remarkable powers in his previous two careers, so who knows? However, it is as unlikely that he will make an assault on the California Constitution as it is that he would get the United States Constitution amended to make him eligible to run for President despite his Austrian nativity, odd as that provision may appear today.
Arnold is the pre-eminent Republican candidate in 2010 for the Senate seat now held by Barbara Boxer. 2010 is also the year that incumbent Senator Dianne Feinstein may run for governor, which will then be an open seat because of term limits, which are the law in part or all of 36 of the 50 states, including New York City, which held two referenda on the subject in 1993 and 1996. You may have known that
For the most part, the media were unimpressed by the State of the State message. Bill Hammond wrote in the News: “Gov. Paterson’s state of the state speech was a lot like that sugary soda he wants to tax – too much fizzy sweet stuff and practically zero nutritional value. Rarely in the history of political rhetoric has there been such high-flying rhetoric to pitch such a humdrum agenda.”
The governor zeroed in on a now familiar target, saying “We must aggressively address the most serious threat to the young people of New York State right now: the epidemic of childhood obesity.” The Post treated those remarks from a different point of view in an editorial titled PATTERSON PUNTS AGAIN: “[Paterson] rambled on about what he termed an ‘epidemic’ of childhood obesity – scarcely noting that New York’s fundamental problem is its scandalously obese government.”
Bottom line: Paterson did not once speak to the harsh discipline needed to pull New York out of its mess. A pity. Now he’ll have to work that much harder to get out of the hole.”
Mike Goodwin laid it on the line in yesterday’s News. In a column headed GOV, SHAKE THE RAFTERS, he wrote what he felt Paterson should say. A few excerpts:
“New York is a mess, certified and otherwise. Not only is it going broke financially, it’s morally bankrupt as well. Government of the people has become government of the few. Corruption is so routine that it is hardly noticed. A roll call in the legislature could be a lineup at the local precinct. And Albany shrugs.
“Too many insiders increasingly feel no obligation to the greater good. Government has become a pot of gold for special interests, with meager leftovers parsed out to those without connections. Formerly the Empire State, it is now derided as the Vampire State. The numbers suggest the dimensions of the theft. Even as spending and borrowing rise, so does the deficit. How is it possible the state could have a deficit of $15 billion? Where does the money go?
“Headlines from recent days provide infuriating examples. A bipartisan roster of political fixers got whopping payouts for guiding investment firms to their buddies who run the state’s pension funds. The firms got cash to invest and flipped a cut to the fixers. Taxpayers got screwed.
“Ditto for the alleged scam where seven hospitals are accused of ripping off $50 million from Medicaid. The hospitals trolled the streets to bring in warm bodies, then billed Medicaid for detox ‘services’ that in some cases included beer and cigs.”
As reported today by the Daily Politics’ Elizabeth Benjamin, Paterson himself weighed in on the generally critical reviews of his speech. The lede of PATERSON CRITIQUES HIS STATE OF THE STATE PERFORMANCE: “Gov. Paterson, who is not exactly receiving rave reviews for his State of the State address, admitted today that he wasn’t at the top of his game while delivering the 62-minute speech yesterday.”
Benjamin quotes the governor as saying, “When you’re just hammering away at people and you never give them any hope, after a while, people start to just get tired of your rhetoric, even if you’re right.”
And later, “I think the legislators did respond that they’re being asked to do something that’s tough but they weren’t asked in a tough way. If I was writing for an editorial board, I wouldn’t have done it that way. But I’m the one who has to go in and work with them.”
Newsday gave favorable coverage to the speech. PATERSON CALLS FOR COURAGE, NOT FEAR, read the headline across pages 6 and 7. Can you imagine any politician calling for fear and not courage in address? A sidebar story hit the local angle, GUV BARELY MENTIONS LONG ISLAND.
The Times noted that “thousands of union members gathered in freezing rain outside the Capitol to protest…proposed budget cuts. The governor’s speech contained little in the way of new policy initiatives, partly because there is scant money available ….and partly because Mr. Paterson already rolled out his budget plan in mid-December.”
In our view, memorizing and delivering the speech was a tour de force. Its substance was mediocre. The governor has been up with the curve, ahead of other officials, when it came to foreseeing fiscal disaster and speaking out. But he has fallen behind when it comes to solutions.
This is particularly the fact when fiscal reality would affect the personal wealth and benefits of over two hundred thousand state employees, some of whom believe that it is for their benefit that state and local governments are constituted. That belief is nurtured by the bipartisan coterie of elected officials who routinely support the benefit bubble in exchange for contributions, phone banks for campaigns and endorsements, generally of incumbents who have shown their fealty.
“Rock a bye baby, on the tree top
When the wind blows, the cradle will rock,
When the bough breaks, the cradle will fall.
And down will come baby, cradle and all.”
There are different accounts of the origin of this 17th century lullaby or nursery rhyme. You can find them in Wikipedia. We cite the lines to indicate that too many burdens will eventually overwhelm any system of balances. This is in the same concept expressed by the phrase, ‘the last straw,’ also known as ‘the straw that broke the camel’s back.’
Henry J. Stern writes as StarQuest. Direct email to him at StarQuest@nycivic.org. Peruse Mr. Stern’s writing at New York Civic.
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