What You Should Know

By Senator Rev. Rubén Díaz
32nd Senatorial District, Bronx County, New York

Governor Andrew Cuomo: The Macho Man


You should know that there are two very well known and important Biblical passages that deal with the way in which we should recognize the merit, good or bad, of our fellow human beings. One is located in the Gospel of Mark and says: “Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and to God, what belongs to God.” You will find the other Biblical passage in the Epistle written by the Apostle Paul to the Romans, Chapter 13, verse 7: “Render therefore to all their dues:  tribute to whom tribute is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honor to whom honor.” (King James Version)

Following these biblical ordinances, I have to write this “What You Should Know” to give New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo credit for three very important and courageous acts in the last few weeks.

You should know that since the Honorable Andrew Cuomo came to be the New York State Governor, I have been his number one critic, due to a few things he has done that he imposed on us which I believe are wrong and negative. He started with his budgets being balanced on the backs of the poor and the needy of the State, and then he imposed homosexual marriage on us, now he is promoting abortion on demand with the possibility of giving carte blanche to late term abortions, and he is selling New York to the committee
called the Committee to Save New York.

The same way that I have been prone to criticize the Governor, I cannot be blind to the following three courageous acts that he has done in the last few weeks.

First, Governor Cuomo openly and publicly refused to allow the Bronx Democratic County Organization to conduct a special election to fill the vacant seat created by the resignation of Assemblyman Nelson Castro. This was practically a slap in the face to the Bronx Democratic Organization and its leaders.

As you know, it is very common for Governors to call for a special election giving local political organizations the advantage in electing the new person. By not calling for a special election, this means that the vacancy has to be filled during the Democratic Primary, making the Bronx Democratic Organization work harder, spend more money and raising the possibility of losing the seat.

Second, Governor Cuomo took on Senator Jeff Klein and Assemblyman Denny Farrell by personally and publicly coming out in opposition to a piece of legislation that they were promoting. According to the New York Daily News Editorial of Tuesday April 30, 2013, Senator Jeff Klein and Assemblyman Denny Farrell were sponsoring legislation favoring the lending companies that according to the Daily News “would let low income New Yorkers…be victimized by interest rates of up to 200%.” The News used words like “loan-sharking,” “usury,” and “horrendous” in its description of this legislation. It also states that Senator Klein has received $50,000 and Assemblyman Farrell $30,000 from the loan companies that will benefit if such legislation ever becomes law.

You should know that to Governor Cuomo’s credit he came out against this legislation claiming that “it will roll back longstanding and effective consumer protections.”

Lastly, our Governor wrote a letter to Mr. Kevin Burke the Chairman and CEO of Con Edison opposing a recent decision by Con Edison to award bonuses to its executives.

In the letter dated April 23 to Mr. Burke, the Governor wrote: “I write to express concern regarding Con Edison’s (Con Ed) recent decision to award bonuses to its senior executives. These bonuses come at a particularly sensitive time. Six months ago today, Superstorm Sandy hit New York and in its aftermath, we witnessed a complete failure by many of our State’s utilities to provide adequate service to the ratepayers they serve. In impacted areas across our State, many New Yorkers were left without heat or light for weeks.”

The Governor ended his letter to Con Edison saying “In order to ensure that the terms of the approved rate plan and that ratepayers are not wrongly put on the hook for bonuses to Con Ed’s senior executives, I am directing the PSC to conduct a review of the bonuses. This will include reviewing Con Ed documents associated with the approval of the bonuses, the accounting treatments of these costs, and what steps Con Ed has taken to ensure that no costs have passed on to rate payers.” Bravo Mr. Governor! Te la comistes.

You should know that like Don Quixote De La Mancha, our Governor has taken out his sword and on this occasion, with courage and precision, has come out fighting the windmills on behalf of the residents of the New York City, knowing that they could have been the most affected by these draconian, blood sucking windmills. In these three situations, the Governor has proved to be a macho man.

I am Senator Rubén Díaz, and this is what you should know.

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