Some foot soldiers in the state Assembly are whispering about something that hasn't been tried in 10 years -- a long-shot attempt to dethrone Sheldon Silver as speaker.
A few rank-and-file legislators -- some of whom have Andrew Cuomo's ear -- have mused about a move against Silver if he becomes an obstacle to the governor-elect's agenda.
"Some are monitoring the situation, but aren't prepared to move forward without Cuomo," said one Democratic assemblyman from the city. "The question is whether Cuomo is willing to go nuclear or not."
Cuomo has told some lawmakers he's concerned Silver will block the governor-elect's push for financial and ethics reform, and his property-tax cap.
Assembly Dems will hold an informal vote in December.
No clear candidate has emerged, but the likeliest scenario for a coup, insiders say, is that the 31-member Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic and Asian caucus would join with an outer-borough delegation and a few upstate Democrats to plot an ouster.
Sources close to Cuomo said he's not willing to back any coup against Silver and actually wants to keep him around -- as long as the veteran pol stays cooperative.
For one thing, Albany insiders say, Silver is widely viewed as the most competent leader in the dysfunctional legislature.
"Silver's word is solid in terms of delivering votes, whereas the Senate can't even speak for its Democratic conference or deliver its votes," said a veteran Albany watcher.
Anybody wanna bet the "foot soldiers in the state Assembly" doing all this "whispering" about a coup against Silver are a) on Cuomo's payroll b) doing this at the behest of Cuomo.
Cuomo clearly sees Silver as the one person who can stand in the way of Auotcratic Andy's rule.
So the "whispers" have started - there's a coup against Silver, Silver's corrupt, etc.
None of this is REALLY meant to dump Silver.
Not yet, at any rate.
It's meant to let Silver know he better play ball or Little Andy will make life difficult for him.
But as the Post notes, the last person to try and make life difficult for Shelly had his head handed to him:
Little Andy - flush with victory against a pathetic challenger - is strutting his stuff post-election.
Let's see how Silver responds.
A successful coup against Silver woud mean utter catastrophe for the UFT: it has Silver alone who has kept the dikes from collapsing and washing the UFT away.
ReplyDeleteWhatever his shortcomings, NYC teachers should pray for Silver's continued physical and political health.
Someone told me that Cuomo vowed to convene a Constitutional Convention to roll back pensions , etc. Can they reduce pensions from teachers already retired?
ReplyDeleteMichael, I agree with you totally about Shelly. The only thing standing between the DFER's, Cuomo and Bloomberg getting EVERYTHING they want is Shelly.
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