By The TimesLedger
It is possible for honorable men to disagree about the war in Iraq. Only time will tell whether this was an act of political courage or an abuse of power. In the last two months it was nearly impossible to turn on the television or radio without hearing some expert offer his or her opinion on how to deal with Saddam Hussein. With so many opinions, we see no reason to offer ours and, more to the point, we see no reason for the City Council to offer its opinion.
Earlier this month in a vote split 31-17, the Council resolved to oppose “a pre-emptive military attack on Iraq unless it is demonstrated that Iraq poses a real and imminent threat to the security and safety of the United States or its allies or unless all other options for achieving compliance with United Nations resolutions calling for the elimination of weapons of mass destruction and the means for their development have failed.”
The Queens delegation voted 9 to 5 against the resolution.
Thus far no one can explain why the Council felt compelled to speak out on this issue. Certainly with the city on the brink of a fiscal crisis, they have more important work to do.
Councilman Dennis Gallagher (R-Middle Village), the lone Republican from Queens in the Council, hit the nail on the head when he said “when it came to an 18.5 percent property tax increase, we had no such hearings on the floor of the City Council, and that’s something that is under our jurisdiction and should have been debated.”
The Council should also have considered the impact of this nonbinding resolution on the hundreds of families from Queens whose sons and daughters are fighting this war.
A reporter for New York 1 covering the state budget talks said last week that nobody in Albany expects the budget to be ready for the April 1 deadline. While this admission is not the least bit shocking, it is nonetheless appalling.
In truth, the real budget talks haven’t even begun. They never do until after the deadline has passed. At some point in April, the assembly members and senators will be sent home and the leadership will meet behind closed doors. Then the legislators will rubber stamp the deal when they return. Some legislators will read the budget before they pass it, others won’t even bother to do that.
This is what passes for democracy in state government. It is the same scenario year after year. You should let the people who represent you in Albany know that this inexcusable. Year after year the city gets its budget passed on time. There is nothing that the leaders will discuss two weeks from now that they couldn’t have debated two months ago.
Meanwhile, nonprofit organizations that rely on state funding are left dangling in the wind. The same is true for New York City, which must have its budget approved by July 1. The city will be hampered by not knowing what level of support will be coming from the state.
Being late year after year is annoying. But actually planning to be late is inexcusable.
