It only took Assembly Democrats about four days to realize that it’s probably not a great idea for an alleged felon to be their leader going into budget season. That’s right, Sheldon Silver, the man who was hoping to be the longest-serving Assembly Speaker in New York State history, will soon be out of power. Somewhere, a man named Oswald Heck is grinning.

The rest of us should probably adopt a Mona Lisa smile and hold our breath about what comes next. It’s less than encouraging that the man who’s been tapped temporarily to replace Silver – Joe Morrelle – was one of the loudest voices defending him last Thursday. The fact that Morrelle hadn’t even read the criminal complaint against Silver before jumping to his defense isn’t exactly a profile in courage or intelligence.

The bottom line is that Silver wasn’t the cause of Albany’s dysfunction – but merely its biggest symptom. There’s nothing stopping the next Speaker from launching a law practice or a political consulting firm and then covering his client list with a legal veil of secrecy that might only be lifted if an investigator with subpoena powers comes along.

True change in Albany won’t come with a switch of the name plates on an office door. Meaningful ethics and rules changes would be a smart first step to at least keep future lawmakers from stealing in plain sight. Meanwhile, keep that grin going.

 


Bob Hardt