This means the party will have the opportunity, however dominated by the coronavirus public health and socioeconomic crises the state faces, to build on its long list of liberal legislative action from the 2019-2020 session, the first with full Democratic control of state government in a decade.
Though they appear set to continue intra-party bickering and more substantive debate between moderates and those further to the left, the continued dominance of state government may embolden Democrats to pursue additional legislative priorities. And a new crop of progressive legislators, some members of the Demcoratic Socialists of America, will join both the Assembly and Senate, with plans to pull those majorities further left.
One of my hope with the Biden administration is⦠smaller government, lower deficits
I have observed over the years that Democratic presidents tend to be much better at cutting the deficit and reducing government spending then Republican presidents.
While the GOP is quite happy to flood the military, defense contractors and the police with unneeded new funding when they are in charge of the White House they donβt like funding social or community programs and will make the deficit spending a major issue in the Biden presidency.
A strong post pandemic economy might even mean the federal government is running in the black and could lead to significant investments in infrastructure and climate resilience which is going to be all the more important in coming years.
And I think thatβs a good thing because it will lead to a more affordable and better government.
The transition to the Biden administration may be going, let us say, a bit slower than transitions have in the past. But the rumbles of the age-old, post-election shift in Washington can still be heard. Thousands of victorious campaign staffers, donors, glory seekers, and hangers-ons will soon be swarming the capital in search of jobs in the new administration. And, in a few weeks, there will be a convenient guidebook published for them.
The book is officially called United States Government Policy and Supporting Positions, but it's better known as the Plum Book because of its purple cover β and also probably because it's filled with plum jobs, many of which are appointed by the winning presidential candidate. The book is published every four years after presidential elections. It's a long list of positions around the federal government, typically providing information on who last held them and what their salary was.
The NYPD has used tens of thousands of questionable subpoenas over the last decade to intimidate private companies into handing over the personal information of cops and civilians alike β all with no oversight from the city or the courts, The Post has found.
While the vast majority of subpoenas in New York State β and across the country β require the signature of a judge or the blessing of a grand jury, the New York City Council empowered the department nearly a century ago to issue such commands to force unwilling cops to produce internal records or appear at disciplinary hearings
Apparently my bank knows I've been downloading and talking about COVID-19 data, so ever so helpfully they sent me an email with all the precautions they're taking. Thank you creeps!
Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed a new law Tuesday making it harder for the rich and powerful to file nuisance lawsuits to stifle free speech and intimidate critics.
The new law targets βstrategic lawsuits against public participation,β known as SLAPPs, usually brought forth by wealthy plaintiffs to hamper free speech.
Typically expensive and time consuming, these filings have been wielded by individuals seeking to oppress free speech, like Harvey Weinstein β who threatened to sue the New York Times for defamation after the newspaper published an expose on the disgraced movie tycoonβs history of sexual harassment.
