The Democratic county Leaders of Manhattan, Brooklyn, and the Bronx sat down at a restaurant in Puerto Rico, where they are attending the annual
Somos conference, to discuss the issue of the next City Council speaker,
not Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver each said in a Daily News political blog story here. While Speaker Silver has been under fire lately for several different items including the Vito Lopez deal the three county leaders all said they back Silver all the way, that is as long as Shelly wants to continue to be speaker.
The News quotes the three Democratic County leaders. Brooklyn Democratic Chairman Frank Seddio as saying, "there's never been a discussion. It's not being considered in any way, shape or form. Silver is doing a "fabulous job with the Assembly."
Bronx County Democratic Chairman Carl Heastie as saying, "Shelly is our speaker and as far as I'm concerned, I want Shelly to be
speaker as long as he wants to continue, I've had no
discussions with any of the county chairs (about Silver's future)."
Manhattan County Democratic Chairman Keith Wright as saying, “That’s emphatically untrue, We are having dinner that’s it.”
The News ends with Silver spokesman Michael Whyland saying the speaker has not intention of stepping down and plans to seek re-election next year. However also in the story it is reported that one lawmaker said there has been talk about Silver being replaced by
Assemblyman Joseph Lentol of Brooklyn with Heastie, considered a future
speaker himself, taking over the powerful Ways and Means Committee.
About the rumor of replacing Silver with Lentol as Speaker of the Assembly and him getting the chair of the Ways & Means Committee the News has Heastie saying, "I've heard nothing about this, I believe that Shelly has the confidence of the entire conference.
People want to speculate that there's been discussions. None of that
stuff is true."
