By Madina Toure
State Sen. James Sanders (D-South Ozone Park) and state Sen. Leroy Comrie (D-Hollis) were among Senate Democrats who walked off the Senate floor Monday after Republicans refused to call a vote on whether the recently arrested state Sen. Dean Skelos should remain their majority leader.
Skelos, 67, was charged with using his position to shift more than $200,000 in payments to his son Adam, 32, according to the criminal complaint filed by the office of U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara.
The Senate Democratic Conference introduced a motion from Sen. Daniel Squadron (D-Lower Manhattan) that would have had the full Senate consider stripping Skelos of his roles as majority leader and temporary president. The motion also called for the salaries attached to the two positions to be relinquished as well.
Sanders said the Republicans’ refusal to hold a vote demonstrated divisions within the Republican Conference as they would not publicly vote to support Skelos nor would they ask him to step down. All the Senate Democrats left the chamber, he said.
“We’re not calling for the end of Republican leaders … however, we are saying that we must have a leader who is above reproach, a leader who may not be led out in cuffs,” Sanders said.
Comrie called the Republicans’ behavior an “embarrassment.”
“After today’s debacle, the need for reform is more clear than ever before,” he said.
Kelly Cummings, a Republican Conference spokeswoman, accused the Democrats of playing politics..
“The liberal, progressive Democrats no longer believe in the presumption of innocence, and that is dangerous to all of our freedoms, including their own,” Cummings said.
Skelos and his son were each charged with extortion, soliciting bribes in connection with a federal program and conspiracy to commit honest services fraud, according to Bharara and the FBI.
They face up to 20 years for the extortion and honest services, and 10 years for soliciting bribes if convicted, they said.
State Sen. Tony Avella (D-Bayside), a member of the Independent Democratic Conference, a group of rogue Democrats, said the group was not asked to walk out with the Senates and would not have anyway.
“You can’t just deliver a piece of paper to the desk and expect the Senate to talk about it, debate it,” he said.
Whether Skelos loses his leadership positions is up to the Republican conference, he said.
“They’re in charge. They’re in the majority,” Avella said. “I’m a Democrat. I have no say over what they choose to do.”
The Democrats plan to bring back the motion, Sanders said.
Reach reporter Madina Toure by e-mail at mtour
