While Gov. David Paterson has certainly made public efforts to demonstrate his commitment to upstate New York, there's at least one habit he's forming that should trouble residents north of the Tappan Zee Bridge - he's spending most of his time in the metropolitan New York area.
An Associated Press analysis of Paterson's schedule over the past five weeks found that the governor has scheduled about five times more public events in Manhattan than in Albany. More importantly, he's been holding some key press conferences in New York City, such as his announcement about proposed mid-year budget cuts earlier this fall and his plan regarding the selection of the state's top judge.
Granted, the governor is from Harlem, so he may naturally gravitate toward his hometown. And there's certainly a great deal of power and money concentrated in New York City. He clearly needs to spend some time in that part of the state.
But being so often removed from Albany is not an effective way to govern all of New York, and to communicate with the rest of the state.
Perhaps first and foremost in today's economy, operating out of New York City takes extra funding. There are transportation and lodging costs that the governor's staff racks up that far exceed what it takes to do business in Albany. And for other state officials to have access to the governor, they also have to spend taxpayer dollars to get down to the city.
There's also a legitimate concern about New York City being an escape for the governor. In Manhattan, state government is not always a huge priority for the local press corps. In Albany, there's a large group of journalists whose sole focus is covering the state.
“There would certainly be more informed coverage of the government's actions in Albany because the press corps has a much better handle on how government works,” said Blair Horner, an Albany watchdog with the New York Public Interest Research Group. “It does mean there is less scrutiny of what the governor is doing.”
And less scrutiny is not good government, especially in New York state.
Granted, the governor is from Harlem, so he may naturally gravitate toward his hometown. And there's certainly a great deal of power and money concentrated in New York City. He clearly needs to spend some time in that part of the state.
But being so often removed from Albany is not an effective way to govern all of New York, and to communicate with the rest of the state.
Perhaps first and foremost in today's economy, operating out of New York City takes extra funding. There are transportation and lodging costs that the governor's staff racks up that far exceed what it takes to do business in Albany. And for other state officials to have access to the governor, they also have to spend taxpayer dollars to get down to the city.
There's also a legitimate concern about New York City being an escape for the governor. In Manhattan, state government is not always a huge priority for the local press corps. In Albany, there's a large group of journalists whose sole focus is covering the state.
“There would certainly be more informed coverage of the government's actions in Albany because the press corps has a much better handle on how government works,” said Blair Horner, an Albany watchdog with the New York Public Interest Research Group. “It does mean there is less scrutiny of what the governor is doing.”
And less scrutiny is not good government, especially in New York state.
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horseradish wrote on Dec 7, 2008 7:19 PM: