Last Tuesday morning the phrase being uttered around New York was, “Not a good day for the governor†– if only. A week later and the story continues to garner news ink. Now, whether you are down on Wall Street reveling in the governor’s reversal of fortune or a supporter left grasping for words to explain what seems to be well, unexplainable – stop for a moment and contemplate the larger picture.
Just seven short months ago New Yorkers were poised to begin a new era for the Empire State – that is, a return to its place as a leader for the nation. Specifically, a state with two high profile and powerful members of the U.S. Senate (not to mention a front runner for the Democratic nomination for president), a congressional delegation with the chairman of the House Ways & Means Committee and a legitimate contender for the Democratic New York City mayoral nomination in ’09 (to name a couple), a New York City mayor who – despite a setback on the West Side stadium and a recent stumble on congestion pricing – is a legitimate independent candidate for president, an attorney general who – along with being a former cabinet member – is possibly one of the great political comeback stories of ’06 and a truly rising star in the Democratic party as governor.
Not since a former New York governor named Roosevelt occupied the White House and gave the nation an epic public policy experiment incubated in the Empire State (i.e., the New Deal) has New York been such a “star.†Now, in the blink of an eye we are at a crossroads that was unimaginable seven months ago. Say it isn’t so.
Say it isn’t so Joe Bruno that your call for an investigation of the governor is not another classic Albany political ploy to deflect attention away from an on-going FBI investigation into your campaign finance dealings. Say that a call for an independent investigator – outside of the ethics commission – is a true attempt at finding the truth so that the system can be made better rather than perpetuated by “Page Six†style gossip and innuendo.
Say it isn’t so Eliot Spitzer that you are going to stonewall and drag the investigation of this mess out into some protracted legal game. Say that your apology on Sunday is the turning point in making the “whole thing†about the results and not the messenger. That is, less about you and Joe Bruno and more about public policy and reforms – after they are in place, then it can be about you and the job you did as messenger and facilitator. Say that you will come back stronger from this and be a help to Democrats in their quest to take back the senate next fall.
Say it isn’t so Andrew Cuomo that releasing your report on Monday of last week was not a cynical attempt to position yourself into a weeklong news cycle. Say that rumors of your political ambition to turn this matter into a personal triumph for your future career are unfounded. Say that your part in this matter is based on a motivation to strengthen the system and an attempt to show New York and the nation that Democrats can lead without resorting to ends justifying the means (i.e., “a culture of corruptionâ€).
Please - each of you - tell us that the euphoria we felt seven months ago and the window through which we gazed in wonderment at the once in three generations opportunity for change and vision is not over and shut in the blink of an eye. Say it isn’t so. If you tell us and show us – we’ll believe you.
