Hein's plan to make more plans

Mike Hein has released his task force report for Economic Development.

It seems to be a plan to make more plans, mostly likely with more task forces.

1) Create a PLAN to take advantage of federal funds.
Wasn't that the whole idea of the last task force... to write the damn plan? Not to recommend to write another plan? I wonder if we'll need a plan to appoint a new task force to write this plan.

2) Create a Council of Economic Advisors to help restructure economic development? Really? What kind of BS is this? Doesn't Mike have enough "advisors" already? Really.... what are all of these Deputy Executives, Assistant Deputy Executives and March Gallagher doing? Now we need another task force for this? More advisors to surround Mike to deflect any blame for anything not done.

3) Analyze the Operations of the IDA? Really? What could possibly be wrong with the IDA? Newly appointed 6th floor Planning Goddess and former IDA Chairman March Gallager, most certainly left that Agency in top shape when she left. Why else would she get such a plum job in Planning on the 6th floor (that's an oxymoron isn't it? the planning dept on the 6th floor?) reporting to Mike Hein? There couldn't possibly be anything wrong there.

4) Direct the planning department to make a guide for municipalities. Really? Now that's a disaster in the making. Our anti-development planning department is going to make a guide for our anti-development town planning boards. Now that's a winner Mike. I'd move that one up to #1 on your list and put March "I got no applications at the IDA when I was chair" Gallagher in charge of that plan. That will be a winner. Put the lady (and I use that term lightly) who failed miserably at attracting any jobs to our county when she was the IDA Chair in charge of telling our towns how to fail miserably at attracting business. Here's a clue. The Town Planning Boards do a great job all by themselves of discouraging any businesses of relocating to Ulster County. Ask anyone who has been in front of a Planning Board. They don't need any help from the County. If you want to attract business to this county - throw out the UCDC, IDA, Planning Department and Town Planning Boards and then contract out all planning and economic development work to Greene County.

5) And the best one of all.... focus on redeveloping Tech City. Really. All of those really smart people in one room, and that's the plan? Really? No one had thought of that one before? Develop Tech City? Really Mike, that's your plan? Boy, I'm really glad we elected you. NOT


Read the article from the Times Herald Record Here

Unions stay Neutral in Senate Fight

The New York State Senate will decide on Wednesday who their leader will be. We don't know who the Majority Leader will be until the vote, but what we do know is that neither side will be getting any help from the unions.

While the Democrats technically won a majority of the seats in November, the so called "Gang of Three" Democrats, Senator Pedro Espada, Jr, Carl Kruger, and Senator Ruben Diaz, Sr. have threatened to side with the Republicans after some very public disputes over gay marriage and general disagreements with the Senate Minority Leader Malcolm "You should get in early because then it doesn't cost as much. The longer you wait to get in, the more it will cost you and if you don't get in at all, then it will be painful after November" Smith.

With obnoxious comments like that from Smith, it is easy to see why the gang of three has a problem with Smith. At the time, everyone seemed to give Smith a pass on his comments, but after the problem that the Governor in Illinois has had, one can only wonder in retrospect if Smith should have been given a free pass for those comments.

It's too late to investigate his comments now, but it's not to late to make sure that Smith is NOT elected Majority Leader of the Senate.

Elizabeth Benjamin, NY Daily News

AFL-CIO Stays Neutral In Senate Fight

January 5, 2009

The AFL-CIO is staying out of the state Senate leadership battle and will work with "whomever ends up running" the chamber, according to Mario Cilento, spokesman for the 2.5 million-member umbrella labor organization.

"The AFL has said from the very beginning that we would never get involved in the internal politics of the Senate," Cilento said.

Republican Leader Dean Skelos had been hoping to set up a meeting or conference call today with leaders of the erstwhile majority's longstanding organized labor allies, including the AFL-CIO and 1199 SEIU, and the Gang of Three in hopes of convincing the renegade trio to side with him against Democratic Leader Malcolm Smith.

But Cilento insisted AFL-CIO President Denis Hughes had not been asked to participate in that effort, although he did confirm that Skelos had called the union big to inquire whether members of the Gang of Three would be penalized if they turned their backs on the Democratic Party when it comes time for 2010 endorsements.

The response?

"The answer was 'No,'" Cilento said. "Our endorsements are made based solely on members' voting records."

As you'll recall, the AFL-CIO delayed its endorsements in the fall elections due to its upset over legislators' support of a property tax cap, which was vehemently opposed by a number of labor unions.

After that brief upset, the AFL-CIO relented and awarded its support to a number of lawmakers on both sides of the aisle. All of its endorsements went to incumbents, which means it sided with the GOP in key contested Senate races.

Two members of the Gang of Three - Sen. Carl Kruger and Sen. Ruben Diaz Sr. - ran with AFL-CIO support.

The third, Sen. Pedro Espada Jr., did not. In fact, the AFL-CIO endorsed the incumbent Democrat Espada successfully sought to unseat in the September primary, ex-Sen. Efrain Gonzalez, and declined to endorse Espada in the general election.

The Senate Democrats are getting some help in the leadership fight from their own labor allies, including the Working Families Party, 32BJ, RWDSU, the Hotel Trades Council, and the CWA, along with others with a vested interest in seeing the Senate pushed into Democratic hands for the first time since 1962 such as the Empire State Pride Agenda.

The outcome of the Senate battle will be interesting for the labor community, as it has clearly already split unions into Democrat and GOP camps.

A number of labor heavyweights - even 1199, which was long allied to the Republicans while they were led by ex-Majority Leader Joe Bruno - have been hedging their bets with campaign contributions for some time. But the public employees unions have largely remained loyal to the GOP, which could prove troublesome at a time when Gov. David Paterson is calling for them to re-open their contracts and forgo raises.

Noonan gets it RIGHT

Independent Ulster was very pleased to see Glenn Noonan front and center this morning making the effort to rid Ulster County of a Rockland County Sex Offender.

As reported in the Times Herald Record today, Noonan is leading the effort and boy is he right. Keep the perves out of Ulster. http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081231/NEWS/812310328

Noonan is also dead right that the County Legislature should propose legislation to prohibit out of county sex offenders from being put into Ulster County. Noonan’s sponsorship of such a law would be a great thing and we hope he moves on it quickly as it sounds like he is planning on doing.

We also hope that the Majority Democrats (we’re looking at you Susan Zimet) do not co-opt this into one of their own proposals as they are famous for doing.

We urge the legislators to move quickly to adopt Noonan’s proposal.

Noonan Blows It

photo credit: Clark Richters

Left: Jeremy Blaber ---------- Right: Glenn Noonan

NOONAN BLOWS IT:

"ALL I’LL NEED IS TWO DEMOCRATS TO SIDE WITH US,
AND THEN – GRIDLOCK.”

Independent Ulster was very disappointed to see Republican Legislative “leader” Glenn Noonan promise “gridlock” if two more Republicans are elected to the County Legislature. Noonan’s comments were printed in today’s Times Herald Record: http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081227/NEWS/812270326/-1/NEWS

Independent Ulster hardly backed Mike Hein. Hein is everything that is wrong with politics in Ulster County: a party switching political insider owned lock, stock, and barrel by the good old boys. But look, the guy won and deserves a chance to be the County Executive he promised he could be – “leading the way” to a better Ulster County.

So far, the results are not promising – in fact another “p” word – pathetic comes to mind. Hein had formed a secret economic development task force, essentially repudiating the work of Ulster Tomorrow. That task force is led by an out of county resident and is meeting in secret.

Amateur mistakes by an amateur but Hein can only get better.

Noonan on the other hand is a seasoned politician and should know better than to promise “gridlock.” Ulster County has a lot of problems. Taxes are out of control, jobs are not being created, the county IDA is a complete joke and the far left has taken over the Democratic Party. BUT, gridlock is not needed.

Independent Ulster calls upon Noonan to work in a nonpartisan fashion to bring people the results taxpayers want: lower taxes, better jobs, and a government that serves the people not the special interests.

We hope Noonan was just caught up in the moment, because if he truly is seeking gridlock, his fellow GOP legislators need to replace him – now or they will not win the seats they are otherwise capable of winning.

Ulster County Should Sue Peter Kraft

OK, Legislator Peter Kraft has resigned at the end of this year. Who cares. The reality is if the County Legislature had any of those spherical objects that one bounces in the game of basketball, they would be suing Peter Kraft in Kingston Small Claims Court for his $10,000 County Legislature salary for 2008 (or for the last 6 – 8 months he hasn’t been around). We don’t know if he gets health insurance, but add the value of that to the lawsuit.

It is NOT ok that government officials get elected to a term of office, don’t bother showing up, but continue to take our hard earned dollars.

Where is Josh Koplovitz, the erstwhile County Attorney? How come David Donaldson or Michael Hein have not demanded that Mr. Koplovitz seek to recover the money paid to Kraft in salary and benefits that he has not earned by his prolonged absence.

Once again, taxpayers get fleeced and our government officials do nothing. By the way, and not for nothing, where are the Republican minority members? Come on folks, we know Mr. Kraft is one of your own – that special part of the insiders club that is the County Legislature, but if a Republican walked away months ago, you can bet the Democrats, who are much better politicians than the GOP, would have the political brain power to be calling for his immediate resignation . . . and if that did not work trying to recover the salary wrongfully paid to him.

Independent Ulster has hired people before. You wouldn’t pay an employee not to show up, so why should we the people pay a public official not to show up. One more taxpayer outrage in Ulster County.

PS - INDEPENDENT ULSTER PROPOSES THAT MARCH GALLAGHER INVESTIGATE THIS . . . oh yeah, sorry, we forgot, she only investigates allegations of wrongdoing when it comes to Republicans, not her fellow Democrats.

What would Ulster County do?

What would Ulster County do if they found this sort of evidence?

According to Federal Prosceutor Patrick Fitzgerald, Governor Blagojevich had put a "for sale" sign on his administration.

“The breadth of corruption laid out in these charges is staggering,” Patrick Fitzgerald said. Blagojevich “involved himself personally in pay-to-play schemes with the urgency of a salesman meeting his annual sales target; and corruptly used his office in an effort to trample editorial voices of criticism.”

As I watch this story develop, I can't help but ask myself, what would we do in Ulster County if we found this sort of evidence? It's never convenient to investigate and proscute politicians or government employees, particularly when the ones doing the investigating and prosceuting are politicians themselves.

Do our leaders in this County and State possess the fortitude necessary to deal with a problem like this if it confronted them. In my opinion, no, they don't.

Consider the "evidence" that Fitzgerald must have had to trigger this investigation. In the beginning it is usually word of mouth. You have to be able to put politics aside and purse the investigation. I believe that it's easier to overlook issues such as this, rather than investigate and confront issues.

I give Patrick Fitzgerald kudos for putting politics aside and prosceuting both Republicans and Democrats. There are bad guys on both sides - EVERYWHERE.

I wish Mr. Fitzgerald would come to New York State, I think we could keep him busy for a while.

Devastating and Severe Budget Cuts

Our Ulster County budget has been released.

$346 million budgeted for next year, along with a 2.7 percent tax levy increase.

Governor Paterson's budget for New York State that is getting ready to be released was described in broad terms as "devastating" and "severe" to state services.

How is it that our County finds it OK to increase our taxes and not change the way we do business now, when we know what is coming down the road?

Governor Paterson knows that we need to make some cuts.

Where are the the "devastating" and "severe" cuts in Ulster County?

It's time to change. Isn't that what we voted for with the charter?

So far it looks like more of the same old same to me.