When Parties Merge, Voters Lose

The foundation of democracy is voter choice. It provides checks and balances while ensuring that no one can blindly accumulate too much power and abuse it to the point of corrupting the system.

There are undoubtedly many examples of so called Democrats or those endorsed by Democrats backing Republicans and vice versa. But we found it more than amusing, almost a "we told you so" to find the entire slate of candidates endorsed by so called Democratic Party Chairman Jeff Spain endorsing the Republican candidate for State Senate, Joe Bruno.

Posted on the Times Union Blog last week were many Democrats and those endorsed by Democrats like Jeff Spain who publicly endorsed Republican Bruno rather than the presumed Democratic opponent Brian Premo.

From Lou Desso, the Conservative Spain endorsed along with the County Republicans for the town board comes this endorsement: “Joe Bruno has done wonders for this area – helping create new jobs and economic opportunity and providing needed support to the organizations that make a difference in the community. We need Joe Bruno to continue his good work.” Translation, "don't worry about that FBI and Grand Jury investigation folks. It's not a big deal if you get charged with felonies or even get convicted of one." Lou ought to know!

From Mark Evers, another of Jeff Spain's Republican endorsed candidates supported by Spain, “We appreciate Senator Bruno’s support for North Greenbush and the region. His work to bring about progress and prosperity has truly been historic.” Good Mark! Now did you get around to asking where the money is that the Senator was said to have promised for all that town land given to Rensselaer, you know, we were going to get a new public safety building and such?

And of course there is brother Al Spain, a Democrat who works for the GOP administration in Troy whose job literally is controlled by Republicans who said, “Sen. Bruno has done a tremendous amount for North Greenbush and the Capital Region and we need to keep him working for us.” Now that's party loyalty for you as an elected Democrat and it makes Al Spain stand out from his Conservative counterparts on the town board who were merely endorsed by the Democratic Chairman Jeff Spain.

Now there are several other Democrats both elected and non elected on this blog so feel free to peruse them, but those who hold an elected or party post in an organization shoulder a different responsibility to that organization to remain true to their faith. To be fair, we can let Mr. Desso and Evers off the hook because after accepting the endorsements of all 4 county parties they have no political identity or loyalty to be bound to. But elected Democrats in this case have a responsibility to their party in the public realm to promote its faith and candidates as part of a healthy two party system which provides voters with a choice at the polls. It's similar to an officer of a large corporation, say General Motors, telling customers and stockholders to buy Fords.

What Mr. Evers and Mr. Spain drive will likely change with the wind, but Mr. Spain, an enrolled and elected Democrat should keep his endorsement out of the public realm or change his enrollment to support the party that he truly identifies with, the one that provides him his pay check.

Unspoken here is that all of these endorsements depend on something not likely to happen. They rest on Senator Bruno continuing to deliver money to this area that comes with his leadership position as Majority Leader in the State Senate. That position and the money that comes with it depend on continued Republican control of the State Senate. This year, most observers agree, that with an historic Presidential year in the offing, is not likely that the GOP, with only a two seat majority, will keep Joe in the driver's seat.

So we close by telling all that Democratic Chairman Jeff Spain and his supporters, the town clerk Kathryn Connolly, a Democrat and others, are refusing to carry petitions for the Democratic candidate for State Senate. When will Chairman Jeff stand up and add his name to the list of Democrats supporting the Republican candidate for State Senate? Right after he conducts another purge trial of his brother Al and those "disloyal" Democrats who refused to maintain party loyalty. Then again, Jeff's definition of loyalty has nothing to do with the Democratic Party. It never did.