I have mixed feelings about Governor Cuomo. One one hand, after the Spitzer/Paterson disaster, he has gone a long way towards restoring the credibility of the Governor as an institution. He also forced Gay Marriage through the legislature, which was no small feat. And his approval ratings remain sky-high, which bodes well for Democrats trying to recapture the Senate chamber in next year’s elections.
On the other hand, his fiscal and economic policies sometimes leave me wondering what exactly he is trying to accomplish. Don’t get me wrong, there is a lot of government spending in New York that is wasteful and unjustified. A recent audit found astonishing levels of wasted funds. Please, cut that waste. But don’t cut education or infrastructure.
And in the same vein, I can’t understand what Cuomo is thinking regarding his opposition to renewing the millionaires’ tax. Keeping the tax is incredibly popular, so much so that even a Republican Senator supports it. Furthermore, keeping the tax would add $2.8 billion to the state’s treasury next year. To put that in perspective, the budget deficit next year is predicted to be $2.4 billion. That means just by keeping the tax and doing nothing else, the state would run a $400 million surplus next year. There are a lot of needs for that money, like putting a vital rail extension on the Tappan Zee Bridge, plans for which have recently been cancelled in an extreme case of shortsightedness.
Cuomo’s rationale for scrapping the tax is that it should be implemented at the federal level,
“Because then it wouldn’t put any state, and I’m concerned about this state, at a competitive disadvantage,” Cuomo said.
Cuomo says extending the tax only in New York would hurt business and cause the rich to flee the state.
Why is Cuomo speaking in the future tense about the wealthy fleeing New York? The tax already exists. The wealthy have not fled New York. Cuomo, who has always tried to paint himself as a nonpartisan pragmatist is doing exactly what true pragmatists don’t do: they don’t make up facts to serve political ends. It seems that Cuomo wants to be able to say in a 2016 presidential race that he never raised taxes as Governor. Well, I have a better suggestion for him: having a budget surplus would help more.
Bill Clinton raised taxes but will always have the legacy of a fiscal hawk because he created surpluses. So I’m not even asking Governor Cuomo to be a liberal. Just be Bill Clinton.
Rich, You’re too kind. Cuomo campaigned with wwealthy people’s and corporations’ special interest funds, promising to break pubic sector unions and kill the millionaire’s tax. He failed to help legislation to protect affordable housing, and his efforts at legislative ethics, while admirable, are barely a beginning.
Let’s see what he really does about electoral districts drawn by the legislators. If he settles for districts that favor incumbents, the expected result of the legislative task force, we’ll know where his loyalties really lie.
Allison
I’m with Allison. I think even his support for gay marriage can be viewed as a cynical attempt to ingratiate himself to wealthy conservatives, even if, in this particular instance, doing so happened to land him on the right side of an issue:
NY Times: Gay Marriage gets a boost from Wall Street
Cuomo basically ran as a Republican on the Democratic ticket in one of the deepest blue states. I wish everyone would stop thinking about how awesome his dad was and pay attention to this guy’s horrible politics.
I’m with you, Rich. It’s amazing that the Democrats hung on to the governorship after the last two administrations. But I thought we spent too much time being entertained by people like the Madame and the Rent’s Too High guy, who weren’t serious candidates, and voters and the media didn’t scrutinize Cuomo carefully enough. He’s obviously tight with some one percenters.
Further, I’m nervous that he’s going to sign off on the fracking proposed by big oil and gas which could contaminate our ground water. Once that’s poisoned, it can’t be reversed any more than an oil spill can be “cleaned up.”
It all goes back, of course, to campaign financing and why we need to shine the light of day on all contributions. The mayor offers the same argument as Cuomo for not raising city taxes on the rich. I say if they can’t be taxed, let ‘em move.
Yeah, I pretty much agree with all your comments. I can’t understand why he is doing this.
How much does Cuomo depend on the rich and financial industry types for his political fund raising? Seems to me that is likely his motivation with this tax issue, as much as any plans for 2016. When will Democrats stop playing the Republicans’ strategy about taxes?