Albany Invasion

"And they departed, and went through the towns…”Luke 9:6.

As the Lord once commanded, the political Lord of Rensselaer County Republicans, Senator Joseph Bruno, has apparently now commanded his minions of Senate notaries to go forth to our humble town of North Greenbush. The purpose: to gather signatures of unsuspecting Republican faithful on petitions containing the future Democratic candidates for Supervisor and Town Board, Mark Evers and Lou Desso. What? The future Democratic candidates you say?

Well, that’s likely to be the reaction of town Republican voters who will be asked by these invaders from across the pearly blue waters to sign designating petitions for these two Conservatives who are also being supported by Democratic Chairman Jeff Spain and his “reform” Democrats. The reason for the invasion is simple. The town Republican Committee has refused to carry the petitions, preferring instead to carry a petition for Republican candidates. My, what a novel concept. Republicans preferring to support Republicans instead of the opposition party slate which is little more than a Division of Casale Excavating and their effort to take control of town government by first taking charge of the local political committees.
(It’s also cute to hear from reform Democrats complaining that town Republicans should obey the edicts of their County Committee while they ignored the edicts of their own County Chair and Committee by proceeding with a purge trial of “disloyal” committee members.)

The Senator apparently wants control of North Greenbush and he has in Mark Evers and his Conservative allies from Casale Excavating which run the Conservative Party and most of the Democratic Party, willing allies that will remove barriers to wide open development in North Greenbush and get those checks rolling again for Water District 14 to Casale Excavating. Everybody wins, right? Everybody except the taxpayers.

So as it was a few years ago when the Senator sent forth the minions of Senate notaries to gather signatures from the flocks of unsuspecting members if the Independence Party in order to take charge of it’s endorsements, yesterday the minions were commanded to go forth into North Greenbush and gather signatures from unsuspecting flocks of Republicans.

Trouble is, many were thought to be on the Senate clock for this caper which may subject their time cards to FOIL requests. Once the petitions are filed with the Board of Elections it is not difficult to FOIL the correct time cards and check with signatories of the petition to find out the time of day they signed the petitions.

In the end, the notaries will not secure the nomination for the Democratic slate, but rather a primary for the Republican nominations. Time will tell how Republican voters feel about Mr’s. Evers, Desso and their Casale Excavating slate.