The Senate is 32-30, with the Republicans officially no longer in the majority. The “Gang of Three” who had the public shouting match with Senate Democratic Caucus Leader Malcolm Smith buckled and officially voted for him as Majority Leader of the Senate. Each of them were handed some powerful chairmanships or vice chairmanships in the Senate. Same-sex marriage, the issue “Gang of Three” member and Democratic State Senator Ruben Diaz actively opposes, was discussed in secret, but not publicly. Majority Leader Smith denied these discussions occurred.
2010 will be the chance for the Republicans to recapture the majority in the upper chamber. Outgoing Deputy Senate Majority Leader Thomas Libous said that his caucus is committed to recapturing the chamber in 2010. This is very important considering New York may be losing a Congressional seat in the next census and redistribution needs to be done fairly.
In related news, recently arrested Democratic Senator Hiram Monserrate may be convicted of assault after all. Officials claim to have have him on a security camera stabbing his girlfriend with the broken glass. The incident, which led to 20 stiches near her eye, is being called an “accident” according to Monserrate. According to Monserrate, the tape will exonerate him. According to local law enforcement, the recording will show Monserrate assaulting his girlfriend and dragging her around while she clings to her eye with a towel, him tossing her handbag down a garbage chute, and an instance where his girlfriend knocks on a neighbor’s door asking for help. A neighbor said that she “…heard a lot of crying and then she ran down the stairs screaming and rang on my bell frantically, three times.” The neighbor found a bloody towell on the stairs when she went out into the hallway. If convicted, Monserrate will be automatically removed from office and change the Senate numbers to 31 Democrats to 30 Republicans, possibly leading to a special election to replace him and possibly changing the leadership in the Senate. If Monserrate is replaced by a Republican due to backlash from his actions, the count changes to 31 to 31 and negotiations can start all over again for Senate control. There is currently a standing motion to have Monserrate dismissed until the charges are cleared.
