It's official: Treadwells leaving North Country

There have been rumors for weeks that Sandy Treadwell from Essex County -- once the chair of New York's Republican Party, a major ally of Governor George Pataki, and a mainstay of North Country politics -- is leaving NY state.

The Daily Politics website confirms it today:

Treadwell, who mounted an unsuccessful campaign to oust then-Rep. Kirsten Gillibrand last fall, has maintained a home in California because his children and grandchildren are there, according to longtime Treadwell associate Bill McGahay.
McGahay said Treadwell, who is independently wealthy (he spent a total of $11.5 million on his unsuccessful congressional bid, $6 million of which was his own money) , is...leaving New York...because he wants to spend more time with his family.

Treadwell and his wife Libby have been major players in the political and cultural life in the Champlain Valley and Lake Placid.
They won't be pulling up stakes entirely. They still have family in the North Country and Libby has a book on hiking with dogs in the Adirondacks coming out soon.

Another NY kid dies on an ATV

The Albany Times-Union is reporting today that another child -- in Knox, NY -- has died after crashing on a 4-wheel All-terrain vehicle.

The crash reportedly happened just hours after the vehicle was delivered to the family. 13-year-old James Wyatt Spencer wasn't wearing a helmet or a chest-protector.

(Many of the children killed by these machines die when their lungs are crushed, or when they are suffocated under the weight of an overturned machine.)

I've reported a lot about ATV safety over the years and I have to admit: I just don't get.

There are plenty of recreational activities available for our children. Some actually require physical exercise. And they're not deadly dangerous.

So here's my question to parents: Why buy these machines for kids? Why not a bicycle? A skateboard?

Even if you love 4-wheeling as an adult -- and are willing to making informed decisions about the risks -- why put your kid on one?

What possible advantage or fun could outweigh the risk that your beautiful, cherished child will be killed or permanently crippled?

In 2007, 40,000 children were treated in emergency rooms nationwide for ATV injuries; 107 died.

Remember: respectful posts only.

I know some of our readers aren't big 4-wheeler fans, but no flaming, no nastiness. I'd especially like to hear from parents who allow their kids to ride ATVs.

Silence from GOP on Murphy challenge

I know, you'll think I'm obsessing -- Let it go, Brian; let it go... -- but I have to point out that there's very little talk out there of a Republican challenger for Democratic Rep. Scott Murphy from Glens Falls.

None, in fact, unless I'm missing something...

In competitive districts across the U.S., the GOP is already lining up top candidates. In many contests, there are already primary campaigns underway.

But State Senator Betty Little, who was brushed aside by Republican leaders for the special election bid, has said that she won't run against Murphy next year.

She would have been the natural choice, but the two are distantly related by marriage.
This from the Adirondack Daily Enterprise:

"She anticipates running for New York state Senate in 2010," her spokesman, Dan Mac Entee, said Monday afternoon. "She enjoys being senator. It's a tremendous honor. She would like to continue having the privilege of representing the voters of the 45th District."

Murphy will be a tough nut to crack: He's centrist, he's wealthy enough to make outspending him well nigh impossible, and he proved to be a natural on the stump.

There's also talk that the district might be redrawn after the 2010 Census, which means that a Republican politician could be fighting for an ephemeral prize.

But in a part of New York state that still has deep conservative roots, surely someone will step forward and mount a credible challenge?

Bloomberg's coronation

New York City Michael Bloomberg is walking an increasingly fine line. First, he used his massive political and economic clout to leverage a change in the city's election rules.

The move allowed Bloomberg to run for a third term -- a thing that former Mayor Rudy Giuliani was excoriated for suggesting after the 9/11 attacks.

In public comments in the last couple of days, Bloomberg called a reporter "a disgrace" for questioning the need for a third term.

Bloomberg also showed a glowering temper when a handicapped journalist had trouble turning off a noisy cell phone at a press conference. (Bloomberg later apologized.)

By any measure this is the wrong time for the Mayor to show his L'Etat c'est Moi side.

One of the reasons it's sometimes a good thing for politicians to move on is because even the best leaders begin to drink the Coolaid of their own importance.

(Hard to imagine Bloomberg drinking Coolaid, but there you go...)

He's asking voters to give him an extroardinary dispensation, allowing him more time to carry out his agenda.

The least he can do in return is bring a little humor and humility.

DEC scraps brush from burn ban

The DEC has released its revised plan to ban garbage burning and other polluting forms of open burning. A DEC official told me the only significant difference from the original rule is people will be allowed to burn brush, branches, and small trees in rural areas. Here's that revision:

(a) On-site burning in any town with a total population less than 20,000 of downed limbs and branches (including branches with attached leaves or needles) less than six inches in diameter and eight feet in length between May 15th and the following March 15th.

For the purposes of this subdivision, the "total population" of a town shall include the population of any village or portion thereof located within the town. However, this subdivision shall not be construed to allow burning within any village.

The DEC received thousands of comments last summer at public hearings and in writing. Many complained because the original rule would have banned burning downed tree limbs and brush. (We here in the North Country know how many of those are lying around!)

The revised rule still bans burning plastics, including agricultural plastics, and it would, in effect, make the ubiquitous burn barrel illegal.

The agency is taking public comment in writing through June 26th. Read the revised regs and comment here.

Coolest small towns

I came across this article about a Budget Traveler list of the ten coolest small towns in America. First of all, the Sun-Times' article has an entirely different list than Budget Traveler itself. Second, it's worth noting that the BT list includes two communities in New York (both downstate) and one in Vermont; the S-T article puts darkhorse Owego (near Binghamton along the Susquehanna) in the top spot.

The bigger question is, of course, what makes a small town cool? Architecture? Its natural surroundings? Arts? Dining options? A Lifesaver sculpture in its town park? here's how Budget Traveler puts it:

First, your town must have a population under 10,000—we're talking small towns, not big cities. It's also got to be on the upswing, a place that's beginning to draw attention—and new residents—because of the quality of life, arts and restaurant scene, or proximity to nature. And cool doesn't mean quaint. We want towns with an edge, so think avant-garde galleries, not country stores.

So quibble away. By those standards, what's the North Country's coolest town? Or do you throw out those standards and pick others? What's your top 10 list for coolest towns in the North Country?

Tops on my list right now? Brasher Falls.

Press-Republican: Jewish cemetery vandalized in Saranac Lake

Kim Smith Dedam is reporting this afternoon that the Jewish section of the Pine Ridge Cemetery in Saranac Lake was vandalized over the Memorial Day weekend. A dozen graves, some historic, were toppled.

Saranac Lake police are investigating, according to Kim's report:

Some of the memorials in Hebrew Memorial Cemetery are historic, including one stone placed by Lake Placid residents Dr. and Mrs. Bartholomew Ring that is dedicated to 25 of their relatives who died in Nazi concentration camps during the Holocaust.

The Ring stone was among those vandalized.

Questioning the property tax "circuit breaker"

A couple of years ago I was talking informally to a local politician, a conservative Republican, from a rural county in the Adirondacks.
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He was lamenting the fact that he was constantly being harassed by people wanting the government to pay for the care of their elderly parents.

They were looking for ways to hide the parents' assets, so that they wouldn't have to spend their private wealth for essentials like medicine, housing and nursing home care.

Instead, taxpayers would be forced to step in with Medicare and Medicaid payments.

These are exactly the kind of costs that are kicking a huge hole in county budgets and driving up property taxes.

(Health care is the single biggest chunk of every North Country county's budget.)

It was a private conversation, but it stayed with me as a kind of microcosm of our current dilemma.

Americans want the government to do far more for them and their families. And we don't want to pay taxes to fund those services.

We want government to provide jobs, health care, safe roads, inspected meat, farm subsidies, plowed roads, great schools, and on and on.

But we want someone else (foreign lenders? our children? fatcat millionaires in New York City?) to pick up the tab.

In the past, this kind of freeloading -- let's call it what it is -- was enabled by massive Wall Street bonuses, which translated into outsized tax revenues for New York state.

Those revenues were passed along to local governments and school districts -- and to property tax payers via the STAR program.

And now, despite the massive fiscal crisis, the hunt for the free lunch continues in Albany.

The legislature is working to create a "circuit breaker" provision for property taxes that would allow people under a certain income level to pay far less for local government and local services.

On the face of it, it sounds fair and progressive: Only those with the ability to pay are forced to pay.

The danger here isn't that the property tax burden will be shifted to fewer and fewer wealthy New Yorkers. (Though I think we are approaching a breaking point there.)

The real risk is that more people will grow complacent with the idea that their government services should be provided free-of-charge.

What incentive do we have to keep costs down if someone else keeps picking up the tab?

The solution to New York's soaring property tax problem is really very simple:

Local people have to force their own governments to cut costs. Yes, that includes limiting mandates from Albany and Washington.

But the biggest challenge will be ending our small-town addiction to public sector (i.e. taxpayer supported) jobs.

We'll also have to wean ourselves from all the freebies. Heck, we may even have to use our own money to pay for our own parents' care.

What a radical idea. Families caring for their own.

The bottom line? We've been living beyond our means. Far beyond our means. And the only honest way to get to lower taxes is to demand fewer services.

(Sounds kind of weird doesn't it? Demanding less.)

So it's time to get involved. Go to local government meetings. Show up during budget review sessions. Ask questions.

And be sure to volunteer some things that you are willing to sacrifice.

Steep climb for GOP in state Senate

A couple of recent polls are highlighting the challenges for Republicans hoping to retake their traditional majority in the state Senate.

The GOP has been handed plenty of openings: a clumsy freshman year for Democratic majority leader Malcolm Smith; rebellions within the Democratic caucus; the drag of an unpopular Dem governor; soaring property taxes...some fairly spectacular scandals and criminal probes.

The Democrats have also waded into wedge-issue territory by pushing a bill that would legalize same-sex marriage. That might have been expected to dislodge some social-conservative Dems.

But polls show that only around 35% of New Yorkers want Republicans to regain control of the state Senate.

Even independent voters break for the Dems on a 55-33% split, according to Siena.

A Quinippiac poll released a couple of weeks ago found much the same, with 55% of New Yorkers preferring that Dems hold power in the Senate.

The numbers indicate that Democratic leaders have won astonishing loyalty (topping 90%) from core voters; and they've also managed to hold more than 50% of Independents.

(According to Quinippiac, twice as many Republicans prefer that the Dems hold power, when compared with Dems wanting a GOP takeover.)

If Republicans aren't careful, they may hit a point-of-no-return after 2010.

By most accounts, the state Senate's district boundaries were gerrymandered aggressively to protect a lot of GOP seats.

After the next Census, if Democrats still control Albany and hold a decisive voter-enrollment advantage, they could very well go in for a little gerrymandering of their own.

If that happens, a Republican implosion is possible.

It's unlikely that Senators Joe Griffo and Betty Little would be dislodged, but they could well find themselves part of a crippled caucus.

First take on Sotomayor: Brilliant politics

President Barack Obama will articulate strong reasons today for naming Judge Sonia Sotomayor to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Conservatives will rally to push back hard. Here's a first salvo, in the New York Times:

“Judge Sotomayor is a liberal judicial activist of the first order who thinks her own personal political agenda is more important than the law as written,” said Wendy E. Long, counsel to the Judicial Confirmation Network. “She thinks that judges should dictate policy, and that one’s sex, race, and ethnicity ought to affect the decisions one renders from the bench.”

What's certain is that Mr. Obama has used the power of his office to regain control of the discussion, shifting away from national security and terrorism questions toward the Supreme Court.

Also, he's placed Republicans in a dangerous spot:

Do they fight tooth-and-nail against a nominee that they oppose ideologically, even if it means further infuriating Hispanics?

Or do they concede the ground to the first Hispanic Justice in U.S. history, thereby enraging their conservative-traditionalist base?

One final thought:

Sotomayor's nomination will further clarify the political trajectory of the Hispanic community, which is increasingly Democratic but also conservative on social issues such as abortion and same-sex marriage.

Do Hispanic leaders whole-heartedly embrace this judge, despite her left-of-center positions?

Or do they push for someone more in line with the community's core Roman Catholic identity?

The next soldier President?

President Barack Obama is the latest in a line 0f Commanders-in-Chief stretching back to 1993 who never served in the U.S. military during an armed conflict.

That means a new crop of Americans are about to reach voting age without ever seeing a service-member in the White House.

(George W. Bush was a reservist in the Texas Air National Guard; but he avoided fighting in Vietnam.)

But on this Memorial Day, I wonder if Obama may also be the last non-vet President for a while.

Assuming he serves two terms, Obama will leave office in 2016. By that time, a generation of Iraq-and-Afghanistan-era service-members will have come of age politically.

Service has always been a big plus for American presidential candidates. It's not difficult to imagine both parties searching their ranks for Vet standard-bearers.

Already, a first generation of soldiers from our latest wars have been elected to the House of Representatives -- Patrick Murphy, Joe Sestak, Tim Walz, and Chris Carney won office in the Democratic landslide of 2006.

And last year, the Wall Street Journal reported that no fewer than seventeen Iraq vets were running for Congress as Republicans.

If this trend continues -- if these wars continue -- we could reverse or at least moderate a shift toward leadership by non-service members that dates back to the end of the Vietnam War.

(It's worth noting that no Vietnam vet ever managed to reach the White House. John Kerry and John McCain came closest...)

What would that mean for American politics? For our foreign policy?

How would George Bush, Dick Cheney, Barack Obama and Joe Biden view our current entanglements had they faced hostile fire?

Torture and its aftermath

Two things are clear from yesterday's speeches by President Barack Obama and former Vice President Dick Cheney.

1. There are wide differences in our understanding of the facts surrounding America's policy of torturing detainees. Were these practices necessary or effective? If so, why did President George Bush stop using them after 2004? Were they legal or moral? If so, should they be used going forward to protect our nation?

2. To sort out these questions, the U.S. needs a formal investigation, conducted by an independent panel or prosecutor with full subpoena power and the highest security clearances. It should be made clear from the outset that if Americans violated our own laws, they may be subject to prosecution or other sanctions.

It's now clear that President Obama's "don't look back" approach is wrong-headed, given the gravity of this situation.

Anyone who believed that the Monica Lewinsky/Whitewater matter -- or Iran-Contra -- deserved a full investigation can hardly feel otherwise about these allegations.

A word about language: I've become convinced that waterboarding is torture.

But even if one quibbles about waterboarding, it's also been proved beyond any doubt that America deliberately handed detainees into the custody of third-party countries when we knew that they would be tortured.

America's intelligence community -- with Bush Administration sanction -- clearly decided that
torture was a necessary strategy to keep the country safe.

The question now is what do we as a democratic society do about that fact?

An American consensus on healthcare?

Pew's new political survey is out today and it's chock full of interesting plot lines.

More bad news for Republicans: "the lowest level of professed affiliation with the GOP in at least a quarter century".

More signs that the GOP has missed America's demographic revolution: "Its constituents are aging and do not reflect the growing ethnic and racial diversity of the general public."

On most issues, the survey finds that Americans are more divided ideologically than ever, with Democrats and Republicans far apart on most issues.

The one bit outlier her is health care, where we seem to have reached something like a bipartisan consensus.

Despite the partisan rancor, a stunning 86% of respondents believe that government needs to do more "to make health care affordable and accessible."

A shocking 74% of Republicans share that view, along with 85% of Independents. (Dems are at 97%!)

By contrast, only 46% of Americans are concerned that government could overreach, "becoming too involved in health care."

The health care debate will be fierce and bitter, with a lot of special interest money washing around buying media spots.

So those numbers are sure to change.

But the Pew baseline should be a wake-up call to insurance companies, hospital and doctor lobbies, and conservatives hoping to derail sweeping reform.

Landmark legal case could open Adk trails & roads to motorized recreation

Jim McCulley has been battling the DEC for years over their attempt to ticket him for driving a truck on part of the Jackrabbit Ski Trail between Lake Placid and Keene.

The DEC threw in the towel today, dismissing the ticket against McCulley and acknowledging that the road was never properly condemned.

McCulley has been a proponent of increased motorized recreation in the forest preserve and this case may give his side a big stick to wield in future battles.

The DEC appears to be conceding that hundreds of miles of town-owned roads through the Adirondacks could be legally open.

Translation: Wilderness and primitive areas may now have motorized routes punched deep into their remotest valleys.

The ramifications of this are still being sorted out. Chris Knight will have a full report tomorrow morning during the 8 O'clock Hour.

A good week for conservatives

Conservatives -- including center-right members of the Democratic Party -- won some significant victories this week.

They pushed through gun rules that allow people to carry loaded firearms in national parks; they scuttled President Obama's quick-closure plan for Gitmo.

They threw Nancy Pelosi on the defensive about the CIA.

Obama himself sided with conservatives on several issues, including the decision not to release new torture photos and maintaining military tribunals.

There were also growing signs that the White House has little interest in challenging the Don't-Ask-Don't-Tell policy that bans openly homosexual Americans from serving in the military.

Two interesting points here:

First, a lot of these debates are now happening within the Democratic Party.

The Dems have elected so many members from conservative states and "red" congressional districts that fault lines on culture issues and national defense are more visible within their ranks.

Second, we're getting a first chance to see the President in a news cycle where he's not controlling the message.

He'll speak about foreign policy and the terror fight this evening, followed by former Vice President Dick Cheney.

This match-up represents a key moment for conservatives.

To keep the week's momentum going, they desperately need Cheney to look like a reasoned and mature alternative to a popular, progressive but still untested President.

For all his many blunders over the last decade, and his abysmal popularity numbers, Cheney plays this role well.

We'll see if Americans have an appetite for more of his brand of foreign policy -- or if Obama can offer a new doctrine for his first term.

Murphy win still getting national ink

That is, as it's come to represent larger failures of the Republican Party and its national chairman, Michael Steele.
The conservative columnist Kathleen Parker invokes the special election in a piece in The Washington Post today called "GOP Disorder: Binge or Purge?"

Insiders feel that the GOP should have won the New York special election to replace Kirsten E. Gillibrand, the Democrat who succeeded Hillary Clinton in the Senate. And internal polling showed that the contest, lost by just 700 votes, was winnable. Although Steele directed some money to New York, his critics say that it wasn't spent strategically enough to draw out soft Republicans -- the GOP's real target demographic.

Even the most empathetic judge perusing Steele's record would be forced to wonder: What's up with that?

The Party of McCain, Palin or Cheney?

No, I don't mean Dick Cheney, Sarah Palin and John McCain. I mean their daughters: Liz Cheney, Bristol Palin and Meghan McCain.

It's take-your-daughter-to-work season for the Republican Party.

The three women have emerged as hugely influential voices for the GOP and its agenda; and each anchors very different wings of a fractured political movement.

Liz Cheney is everywhere these days on cable and network television, defending the Bush Administration's national defense and torture policies.

"[I]t's, you know, fundamentally un- American, frankly, for one administration to come into office and then threaten legal action and criminal prosecution against the predecessor over policy differences."

Cheney essentially reflects future of the neo-con, national defense wing of the GOP.

Bristol Palin -- the 19 year old unwed mother of a 4-month-old baby -- has embarked on an abstinence tour, and has been embraced by the pro-life, traditionalist wing of the party.

"Regardless of what I did personally," Palin told Chris Cuomo on Good Morning America, "abstinence is the only ... 100% foolproof way you can prevent pregnancy."

Meghan McCain (who described herself on a recent Colbert Report interview as a "pro-sex" Republican) is pushing what she describes as a far more moderate, centrist agenda.

"Bristol Palin's new abstinence campaign shines a light on the Republican Party's unhealthy attitude about sex and desire," she wrote, in her Daily Beast blog.

(McCain grandmother has also spoken fiercely and publicly against "radical" conservatives such as Rush Limbaugh.)

What does it mean that three daughters have emerged as leading voices and figureheads of the GOP and its agenda? And what does it mean that these women seem to have very little time or love for one-another?

And which faction do you think will control the future GOP. Is there a way that the Party of Bristol, Meghan and Liz can find common ground?

How bad is the mortgage crisis?

They're making horror movies about it. Yes. That's right.

"Drag Me To Hell" is a new monster-movie-haunted-house-slasher picture directed by Sam Raimi (the guy who reinvented "Spider Man").

This time around, the victim is a young woman who also happens to be a loan officer.

In the old days, you knew a woman was in trouble in these movies if she had sex: Sex=death in the parlance of gore-fests.

This woman's big mistake? She refuses to grant a mortgage extension to the wrong customer and draws the evil eye.

"Soon it will be you who comes begging to me!" cackles the witch who exacts a supernatural revenge over her foreclosure.

Horror movies have always been one peculiar lens on the American zeitgeist, from the conformity pods of Invasion of the Body Snatchers to the mall-zombies of the Night of the Living Dead series.

In this flick, the dastardly witch cries out, "Where will I live? Never have I begged for anything!"

Then she dooms the loan officer to hell for eternity. Maybe she'll take out Bernie Madoff next?

North Country school budgets breeze through

When I spoke with NYSUT union president Richard Iannuzzi yesterday, he predicted that 90% of school budgets would pass. He was right.

In most districts across the North Country, voters approved the new spending plans by wide margins.

St. Regis falls was the one outlier, going down 187-88. Here's the treatment in the Press-Republican.

Murphy, Gillibrand...Paterson?

When Governor David Paterson appointed Kirsten Gillibrand to fill out Hillary Clinton's Senate term, it seemed to a lot of observers like the worst kind of hat trick.

It was an odds-on bet that Democrats would lose Gillibrand's House seat. Gillibrand seemed a shaky bet to hold the Senate seat against a wave of irate primary challengers.

And then the whole folderol with Caroline Kennedy contributed to Paterson's own vulnerability.

But now Scott Murphy has held the 20th House district in an upset win over Jim Tedisco.

And Kirsten Gillibrand is systematically building what looks to be an insuperable campaign advantage.

Two potential challengers dropped out this week; she's garnered powerful endorsements from same-sex marriage and pro-choice groups; and she's raising money like a champ.

Even Barack Obama has made some political reach-outs on her behalf.

So the question now is: Will the architect of all this surprising good fortune survive?

It's still hard to see how. But if Paterson somehow manages to win re-election in 2010, he'll have turned a train-wreck into a trifecta.

When the mob ruled upstate...and newspapers cracked the case

The Utica-Observer dispatch has a great series on-line about the Utica-region's mob history.

It reads one part like a William Kennedy novel, one part like The Godfather...from the Sicilian crime bosses to the the car-bombings and the crooked public officials.

It's great reading and it's also an opportunity to hammer again on this point:

A coalition of Utica journalists won a Pulitzer back in 1959 for courageously uncovering the city's crooked network of bent cops and gangsters.

Who does that kind of civic journalism once newspapers are gone? Who will serve as the watchdogs on complicated issues like this?

If the police are crooked, the politicians are on the take, and your local newspaper went bankrupt years ago -- where will you turn?

Is our current public education system sustainable?

We've had a lively debate here on the In Box over teacher compensation. What about the broader question:

Is the current public education model sustainable, given declining support from Albany? Can property taxpayers contribute more?

If not, what should go? Fewer teachers? Fewer programs for special-needs kids? Willsboro is cutting its music program -- is that a good idea?

How about consolidation? The North Country's "micro" districts -- places like Newcomb, Westport and Keene Valley -- offer great, intimate education value to their kids.

But can they survive in the new New York economic climate?

Check out my conversation this morning with Richard Iannuzzi, head of the teachers' union NYSUT, then share your thoughts below.

Golisano voting with his feet

Billionaire Tom Golisano says he's leaving New York State for good. He blames Gov. Paterson...says he's not coming back, even if when income tax hikes in this year's budget sunset. We'll have more on this, and the governor's response, this afternoon on All Before 5 and tomorrow morning at 8.
There's more, including video, here.

Is Governor Paterson getting a bum rap?

Our Albany correspondent Karen DeWitt reports this morning on Governor David Paterson's persistently stagnant poll numbers.

Stagnant doesn't do his popularity justice. People really dislike this governor. Polls show that even African Americans -- once his most loyal constituents -- have soured on his leadership.

So here's my question: How come? What has Paterson done that New Yorkers don't like?

Yes, he's raising taxes and cutting services. The state is deep in debt.

Yes, he's laying off union workers and mothballing prisons. Did I mention that the state is really, really deep in debt?

Are we voters guilty of shooting the messenger? Are we dising a courageous leader who's making the hard but necessary choices?

And if you think Paterson really is a bum, what would you have a new governor -- Cuomo? Giuliani? -- do differently?

Comments welcome...

The CIA and Speaker Pelosi

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has leveled some extraordinary charges at the CIA, claiming that America's primary intelligence agency is lying to the nation's democratically-elected leaders.

Here's the LA Times treatment of her comments:

"The CIA was misleading the Congress" as part of a broader Bush administration pattern of deception about its activities, said Pelosi (D-San Francisco).

"The only mention of waterboarding at that briefing was that it was not being employed," she said, adding, "We now know that earlier, they were."

The accusation has made her the target of conservative critics, some of whom have demanded that she step down.

And they're right in a way: Pelosi has some explaining to do.

But the broader truth is that the CIA has performed abysmally in recent years. In a democratic society, a secretive institution with this kind of track record must be the target of new scrutiny.

It's not simply about human rights, morality, or ethics; it's also about defending America. Consider this track record:

Our intelligence services had no idea that the Soviet Union was about to disintegrate.

A great deal of detailed information about the 9/11 plot was acquired by the CIA in the months before the attack. Because of inter-agency politicking, the hijackers weren't arrested.

The CIA was catastrophically wrong about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. CIA director George Tenet told President Bush that finding WMDs would be a "slam dunk."

The Agency also aided and abetted the Bush Administration in the establishment of a shadow system of secret prisons, kidnappings and torture.

Some have quibbled about water-boarding. Is it torture? Is it something else?

What is certain is that US agents kidnapped civilians -- some from U.S. soil -- for the express purpose of delivering them to foreign governments who torture detainees as a matter of course.

We now know that in at least some instances, our agents abducted individuals who were entirely innocent.

A Canadian named Maher Arar was arrested at JFK airport and shipped to a prison in Syria where he was tortured under our "extraordinary rendition" program.

Arar was later released without being charged and completely cleared by Canadian authorities.

Which brings us back to Speaker Pelosi's claims.

Her branch of Congress holds primary oversight over America's secret intelligence-gathering agencies.

Some of her Democratic colleagues seem to agree that the CIA has been less than truthful. Here again from the LA Times.

"You have to play 20 questions with them," said Rep. Anna G. Eshoo (D-Menlo Park). "They are not forthcoming with information."

Rep. Silvestre Reyes (D-Texas), the chairman of the [intelligence] panel, said he intended to introduce legislation that would impose new standards on what the CIA is required to report to Congress.

That's not good enough. Nor is it enough to appoint a "truth commission," as Speaker Pelosi has suggested.

If the House leadership has reason to believe that the CIA was torturing detainees and then lying about their activities, it is their clear duty to demand a full investigation.

At the very least, we need Congressional hearings, with subpoena power and the potential for criminal prosecutions.

There is no principle more important than civilian control of our military and intelligence agencies.

If the CIA broke the law to conceal heinous behavior, the perpetrators should go to jail.

Speaker Pelosi's credibility has already been strained by this controversy.

It will be strained to the breaking point if she levels such grave charges and then does nothing about them.

Rep. Israel Steps Back from Intended Challenge of Gillibrand

From the Associated Press:

Rep. Steve Israel says he will not challenge Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand in New York's Democratic primary next year. The Long Island congressman says he made the decision after speaking with President Barack Obama, who asked him not to run. Israel says he wants New York to have a united front for change. He also thanked New York Sen. Chuck Schumer for his guidance. Israel had been considered a possible contender for an appointment to the Senate seat when former Sen. Hillary Clinton became secretary of state. Instead, Gov. David Paterson appointed Gillibrand from upstate New York.

Israel's announcement elicited this statement from Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ), chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee:

Steve Israel is a terrific Congressman, and the people of Long Island are lucky to have him as their fierce advocate in Washington. New Yorkers have one of the strongest Congressional delegations in the country and clearly Senator Gillibrand is making them proud as their new Senator. She’s working around the clock, traveling the state, delivering for New York, and given her strong track record thus far, looks to be well-positioned for 2010. The DSCC looks forward to continuing working with her to make sure she is well-prepared for her race.

H1N1 Virus in Clinton County

The Clinton County Health Department sent out a press release saying a child in the county tested positive for the H1N1 virus, also referred to as swine flu. According to the press release, the child has an underlying medical condition, but is recovering.

Clinton County officials say the child recently traveled to a part of New York State where other H1N1 cases were confirmed. And, according to the press release "appropriate steps are being taken to identify close contacts to monitor for illness."

Organic farmers need apply

While I'm covering agriculture stories in the North Country, a lot of farmers say they'd like to go organic, but the costs of organic certification are an obstacle. According to Senator Darrel Aubertine's office, the USDA is offering $50 million for new organic projects.

"That Jew" Schumer

A Republican running for the U.S. Senate in Arkansas is apologizing for referring to NY Senator Chuck Schumer as "that Jew" during a GOP event.

State Senator Kim Hendren has since apologized and made this statement to the Associated Press:

"I ought not to have referred to it at all," Hendren told the AP. "When I referred to him as Jewish, it wasn't because I don't like Jewish people."

In an interview with an Arkansas blogger, Hendren added this:

"At the meeting I was attempting to explain that unlike Sen. Schumer, I believe in traditional values, like we used to see on 'The Andy Griffith Show,'" he explained. "I made the mistake of referring to Sen. Schumer as 'that Jew' and I should not have put it that way as this took away from what I was trying to say."

Chrysler Dealerships in NNY Set to Close

Chrysler's other shoe just dropped.

A couple weeks ago, the car maker announced it would file Chapter 11 bankruptcy and reorganize (with the help of Italian auto company Fiat).

Bankruptcy lets the company negotiate - in a way it couldn't before - with unions, suppliers and dealers. Specifically, Chrysler can terminate contracts.

This morning, the car maker released its list of dealers it will no longer supply - likely forcing the closure of these businesses.

Some northern New York and Vermont dealers are on this list:

Great Northern Motors Jeep on Route 11 in Malone

Dominic Condino Motors selling Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep on State Street in Carthage

John C. Miller Jeep on Perry Street in Johnstown (just south of the Adirondack Park and the town of Gloversville)

Lewis Goodman Chrysler on W Genessee Street in Syracuse

Bob Kavic Chrysler and Dodge on Route 28 in Herkimer

Rutland Dodge on Route 7 in North Clarendon, Vermont

and Walker Motors Jeep on River Street in Montpelier, Vermont

Do you work at any of these dealerships? Do you know someone who does? Have you bought a vehicle from them? Were you planning on it?

Keep in mind, those listed can appeal to Chrysler and possibly remain dealers.

What do you think losing these dealerships - the jobs, the tax revenue, the ad revenue, the corporate philanthropy - will mean for your community?

Please comment below:

For the GOP, it's dumb & dumber

The Republican National Committee is meeting this week for a "rebranding" session. But the target of their labors isn't the GOP.

No, the bright lights of the conservative movement plan to dub the Democratic Party the "Democrat Socialist Party."

Yeesh.

The future health of the Republican Party is vital to the health of the nation. But so far, the GOP has preferred quack remedies to tough medicine.

Consider some of these recent flights of fancy:

Rep. Pete Sessions from Texas -- a leader of the House GOP -- told the New York Times that President Obama is deliberately sabotaging the economy, hoping to “diminish employment and diminish stock prices” and “to inflict damage and hardship on the free enterprise system, if not to kill it.”

Senator Lindsey Graham, Republican from South Carolina, declared that waterboarding might be a worthy tool for American intelligence agents: "One of the reasons these techniques have survived for 500 years is because apparently they work."

In talking about the climate change, Rep. John Boehner -- House minority leader -- told ABC News the following: "Every time we exhale, we exhale carbon dioxide. Every cow in the world, you know, when they do what they do, you've got more carbon dioxide."

Three of the central issues of our time: The economy, national defense, and environment, and Republicans sound like boobs.

But perhaps the worst of it is the name calling. It comes across as churlish and small-minded.

If Republicans want to beat Democrats, they should do it by formulating policies that solve problems and by mounting positive, forward-looking election campaigns.

This kind of kookiness won't do the trick.

Farmers in handcuffs

And it has nothing to do with Mexican immigrants working illegally on the farm.

You may have heard my interview with Extension agent Molly Ames about how farmers are navigating dangerously low milk prices. It costs more to make the milk than it's worth. But Molly said farmers she knows in Jefferson County are hanging on because the value of land and cows are too low to sell out.

The situation is so bad, ugly things are bound to happen. Molly passed on this story of a Vermont farmer who was arrested (!) for bouncing checks when he couldn't pay a debt to the feed dealer.

The way forward in Iraq, Afghanistan

President Obama is slipping and sliding deeper into the war mire he inherited from President Bush.

There's been a torrent of painful complications recently.

Those torture photographs, the debate over prosecutions of Bush-era officials, upticking violence in Iraq, the precarious situation Pakistan, surging Taliban strength in Afghanistan, corruption within the Karzai regime, and the abrupt dismissal of our top Afghanistan general.

It all stems from George Bush's decision to create a two-front war in Asia and the Near East. The blunder was the greatest political and military debacle of the post-World War era.

If he had focused our efforts on rebuilding Afghanistan and conducting peace talks with the Israelis and Palestinians, Mr. Bush's post-9/11 leadership might have qualified him for Mount Rushmore.

Instead, he cost the country hundreds of billions of dollars, thousands of lives, and forfeited the moral high ground that we held so decisively after the planes smashed into the Twin Towers.

But right behind Bush's folly stands the blunder of President Lyndon Johnson, who inherited a deteriorating war in Vietnam and failed to change its course.

Johnson -- who won a far more decisive election than Mr. Obama -- allowed himself to be bullied by events and by a limited sense of what was and wasn't possible.

He also lied to the American people about the situation on the ground.

We know that Mr. Obama will avoid Bush's blunder. But will he escape Johnson's fate?

Replacing the top commander on the ground in Afghanistan won't do the trick. Mr. Obama has to do four things immediately:

1. Tell the American people exactly how bad it is in Afghanistan and Pakistan; and articulate a clear vision for why this war has to be won decisively. Is a "boots on the ground" response to terrorism really appropriate, or should we begin shifting to the more surgical European model, based on espionage, law enforcement, and diplomacy?

2. Explain in clear, unambiguous terms what victory means. Americans have learned that the Taliban and Al Quaeda will never sign a peace treaty or throw in the towel. So what is the long-term vision for keeping America safe? Are we doing the right things now -- in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere -- to make that transition.

3. Implement a specific, targeted "war tax" to pay for the fight and for its aftermath. America needs shared sacrifice. It is morally reprehensible to do this on the cheap, or with borrowed money. We also need more money for health care and counseling for the troops coming home.

4. Demand a greater commitment by NATO and our other allies. The time has come for Mr. Obama to cash in his worldwide celebrity. If we're to win, we need the Canadians, the French, the British, the Egyptians -- a true coalition. Those same countries have to do more to rebuild Afghanistan.

Sadly, this fight looks to get a lot ugly before it gets better.

If Afghanistan is to be America's next "good" war and not another Vietnam, Mr. Obama needs to set a bold new course now.

North Country General picked by Obama to lead National Guard

A military man from Washington County has been tapped by President Barack Obama to head the Army National Guard.

Major General Joseph Taluto lives in Fort Ann.

He serves currently as Adjutant General of New York’s National Guard.

Back in 1998, Taluto led the National Guard response to the North Country Ice Storm. He also led the 42nd Infantry Division during their deployment to Iraq in 2004.

In an interview with the Glens Falls Post-Star, Talutao said he felt like has “up to the work” and has “something to offer.”

Taluto, who’s 61 years old, has served in the Army and the National Guard for more than four decades.

If confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Taluto will coordinate more than 300 thousand troops nationwide.

Engineering Desire

GM is killing Pontiac. Actually, the company killed the brand over the past 20 years.

In the 1960s and '70s, Pontiacs were the cars everybody wanted. The GTO, Bonneville and Firebird were brute muscle, fast as hell and so what if the brakes were too weak compared to their outsized engines? That just added to the aura of power.

For the last two decades, Pontiac's Red Shield migrated from mean cars to family-friendly mini-vans and grocery getters. I'm not insulting these vehicles. They're pragmatic, but that's 180-degrees from what Pontiac meant to millions of car buyers.

Among all the other sins committed by GM, the dilution and diminution of Pontiac's brand will be textbook examples of what not to do. It will be a cautionary tale, retold in business schools as long as there are business schools.

It was at Pontiac, in the early '60s, where a young John DeLorean looked at the most powerful muscle cars in production and asked, "What if we make a faster car?"

The answer was the GTO and its ultimate model, The Judge. With a 455-cubic-inch engine that could power a small city, it remains the most bad ass machine to ever roll off an American assembly line.

It's easy enough to say this was also the beginning of the problems now threatening the very existence of American auto making. The industry, followed by much of the car-buying public, fell in love with gas guzzlers. And these cars did nothing so well as trash the environment and deepen this country's dependence on oil.

But this argument discounts a crucial part of the story of American cars before their decline in the 1970s: Americans WANTED them. American companies designed and manufactured automobiles that Americans had to have. In short, U.S. automakers engineered desire. That's not happening now.

Part of the reason is we, the car-buying public, now desire different things from our automobiles. We want fuel efficiency, reliability, safety. But when it comes time to buy, we still want our cars to be objects of our - and our neighbors' - desires.

Now that Pontiac is headed for the scrap heap, where will a designer like DeLorean ask, "What if we make faster, environmentally friendly cars?"

This may not be a burning question in the minds of most current hybrid owners, but more Americans have to be sold on just the idea of buying a fuel-efficient car. For many, $4-a-gallon gas will change buying habits. But lots of people still need the image of an American speedster blowing past foreign cars - the way GTOs ate up and spat out Ferraris and Porsches.

I'm not saying the end of Pontiac means the end of desirable American engineering. But it doesn't help. And right now, it's not clear who or which company will spark the creative renaissance in American auto making we so desperately need.

If we knew this, the questions over bailouts and bankruptcy would fade - quickly - like a speed bump in the rear-view mirror of a fast car.

Arcuri top legislator of the year?

Rep. Michael Arcuri, whose 24th NY congressional district covers Old Forge and a big chunk of the western Adirondacks, faced a tougher-than-expected challenge in 2008.

He was very nearly a rare Democratic casualty, winning by fewer than 10,000 votes. (Okay, I know -- after the Murphy-Tedisco bout, 10k sounds like a big pile of votes...)

The conservative National Review is hoping that Richard Hanna will go another round.

Arcuri's fundraising is lagging so far. There's some hopes that Hanna is interested in another run.

According to the Utica O-D, Arcuri's $$-raising ranks near the bottom of the list for Dems nationwide.

During a phone interview Thursday, Arcuri wouldn’t respond directly to questions about his fundraising. He said he has been spending much time visiting with residents in the district, and they want him to focus on accomplishing goals related to issues such as the economy.

“My constituents don’t want to hear me talk about politics, and I’m going to respect that,” Arcuri said. “My numbers are what my numbers are.”

Republicans keep hoping for a highwater-mark signal, a sign that the 2006-2008 Democratic surge may be cresting.

Arcuri doesn't want to be that sign.

Today, his office released an announcement that Rep. Arcuri has been named "legislator of the year by national association."

Who awarded him that honor? The National Burglar and Fire Alarm Association.

“I’m honored to be recognized for my efforts to protect our seniors from deadly fires,” Arcuri said. “It is absolutely critical that the facilities that house our seniors are equipped with professionally installed fire prevention and detection systems – they deserve nothing less.”

Why isn't Lake Champlain famous?

It's been a struggle for organizers of the Lake Champlain Quadricentennial to build momentum and national attention.

Other geographies in America are iconic: the Mississippi River of Twain and a thousand blues songs; the Southwestern landscapes of cowboy yarns and Steinbeck; the lush, Faulknerian world of the South and the Civil War.

So why doesn't Lake Champlain resonate? It's one of the cradles of North American history and legend -- or maybe one of the crucibles.

From Benedict Arnold's fierce battle near Valcour Island to the Battle of Plattsburgh to the bearing of John Brown's body to the waves of immigrants who burrowed deep under the Lake's shore in search of iron ore.

There's no richer landscape culturally. And the physical beauty is unrivaled.

And yet before I moved to the North Country, I had no sense of it. I knew of Fort Ticonderoga -- but didn't know that it was in the Champlain Valley.

War of 1812? Barely registered.

So what do you think? Do we need a great writer to bring Lake Champlain into the national imagination? What separates the iconic landscapes from the forgotten (or at least neglected) places?

Obama's Catholic problem?

There have been protests and debates over Notre Dame's decision to invite President Barack Obama to speak this Thursday.

New York's Archbishop-designate, Timothy Dolan, has called the Catholic university's inclusion of the President in their graduation ceremonies "a mistake. "

Here in the Diocese of Ogdensburg, Bishop Robert Cunningham has joined the criticism of the President's agenda - particularly Obama's pro-choice stance.

Here's Archbishop Dolan's statement, reported by the Catholic News Agency:

"Periodically, we Catholics have to stand up and say, `Enough'," Archbishop Dolan told the Associated Press. "The church as a whole still calls out to what is noble in us."

Appealing to fallen-away Catholics, he said he plans to tell them “We need you. We love you. The Church is your family… Please come back. We miss you. We're sorry if we hurt you. We'll listen to you. It's not the same without you.”

What do you think? Is the Church right to engage with Obama? To offer him a place of honor at their ceremony?

Is it significant that Obama won 54% of the Catholic vote last year?

How should the traditional Catholic views shape political debates here in New York over issues like poverty, abortion, same-sex marriage, and war?

Comments welcome.

Murphy win continues to resonate nationally

Time magazine leads its latest issue with an article portraying Republicans as an "endangered species."

Right there in the second sentence, writer Michael Grunwald zeroes in on the 20th NY congressional district special election:

[Republicans] lost Congress, then the White House; more recently, they lost a slam-dunk House election in a conservative New York district, then Senator Arlen Specter.

Grunwald then hones in on the nut of the Republican conundrum:

And the electorate is getting less white, less rural, less Christian — in short, less demographically Republican.

I know this topic has been kicked to death, but Grunwald really lays out the GOP's conundrum in stark detail.

I'm notoriously bad at predictions, so I'll pose a question:

Is this really a cyclical downturn for Republicans -- part of the natural cycle of American politics?

Or has the conservative movement actually gone off a cliff?

We'll know more in November 2010, but in the meantime what do you think?

Is the GOP hibernating? Endangered? Comments welcome.

North Country Lawmakers movin' on up

In Washington, Roll Call is reporting North Country Congressman John McHugh's ascension to ranking Republican on the House Armed Services committee, along with his reputation for bipartisanship, have put him in the spotlight.

In Albany, a State-Senator gone mad has thrust Democrat Darrel Aubertine to the helm of the influential Senate energy committee. Ironically, this is a position recently held by Aubertine's Republican predecessor, Jim Wright, who's retirement (at least, until he resurfaced as director of DANC) opened the door for Aubertine.

Another irony: remember the flap when Aubertine announced he offered chairmanship of the New York Power Authority, only to have Gov. Paterson say it wasn't true? Well, now Aubertine runs the committee that oversees that chairman.

For the record, Aubertine will retain his chairmanship of the Senate agriculture committee.

Dem scandal elevates Aubertine

The Democratic chair of NY's state Senate energy committee, Kevin Parker, was arrested on Friday for allegedly attacking a news photographer.

The Dems hastily stripped Parker of his leadership posts.

North Country Senator Darrel Aubertine is now listed on the Energy Committee's website as the chair.

The post is highly influential in the region, with oversight over the New York Power Authority.

The committee also has direct oversight over telecommunications in New York, a key issue for Upstate communities searching for better cell phone and broadband access.

Hand and Name

Pope Benedict is making his first official visit as pontiff to Israel today and is scheduled to make a speech after touring the Holocaust museum Yad VaShem. I've been to this museum twice and thought I'd offer a description of it.

To call this place moving and sobering would be a gross understatement. There are dozens of exhibits with photos, recordings, letters and personal affects of the millions of Jews murdered in Europe during the Holocaust.

One aim of the museum is tracking how a minority (in this case European Jews) is identified, how it's ostracized and ultimately dehumanized.

Everyone who visits Israel on state business must tour Yad VaShem. It's a requirement of the nation's government. And the museum is structured in such a way that it concludes with a walk through a wide, low-ceilinged room of dark stone. This is the Hall of Remembrance. The only light comes from a fire pit and candles lit in memory of those murdered.

It's been 20 years since I walked through the Hall and into the light of a simple garden that is the end of the museum. The feelings of overwhelming sadness - and admiration that people could survive and rebuild after the Holocaust - are still visceral. And I remember seeing others walk into that garden sobbing uncontrollably. Some, overcome (perhaps by a personal loss) had to lean on family or friends just to make it to the garden.

I remember seeing a TV interview with a survivor of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. Describing the sound of the detonation, he said the noise was so loud it was "too big to hear." Yad VaShem can spark emotions too big to feel.

One other thing about the museum: Yad VaShem literally translated means Hand and Name. The 'Name' is obvious enough. The museum contains lists of every Jew murdered by the Nazis during the Second World War. The 'Hand' part of the title is a little more complex. It's an allusion to what each person did or, put another way, the work of their hands.

There were many Jewish cobblers, mechanics, carpenters, artists and architects and other trades people killed in the Holocaust. And there are exhibitions that attempt to document what these people did and what they could have done in a world without the prejudice and hatred that led to Genocide.

Here's a link to Yad VaShem's website.

Is this a time for school teachers to demand raises?

The Plattsburgh Press-Republican is reporting that schoolteachers in Tupper Lake will receive a 4.25% raise next year under their contract with the local school district.

That means their neighbors will pay more taxes -- 3.2% more to be exact -- despite the fact that the district will have fewer teachers serving their children.

These are tough economic times for North Country families. Unemployment is flirting with double-digits. Property taxes are punitively high already.

So what do you think? Is this a time when public sector employees should be taking raises?

Even if they were agreed to under contracts established before the economic meltdown occurred, should those labor deals be revisited?

Other North Country districts -- Crown Point drew headlines recently -- are going a different direction, with teachers accepting pay freezes but demanding job security.

Teachers are already among the highest paid, best-benefited workers in most North Country communities.

Is there a concern that real resentment could develop between the school district employees and the neighbors who are paying their salaries?

Teachers: what do you think? If you're getting a raise next year, how do you feel about it?

And how do you feel about taking a pay increase at a time when your colleagues are being cut?

I know these are tough questions -- we all love our kids' schoolteachers -- but this happens to be a place where a lot of tough trends (the souring economy, property taxes, education woes, etc.) converge...

Comments welcome below.

Gillibrand under Schumer's wing

So says the New York Times this morning. Gillibrand, just appointed New York's junior senator by Gov. Paterson in January, is already raising money to fend off primary challengers next year. The Times reports Schumer says there'll be NO primary, and is doing his best to shore up Gillibrand's standing in the Senate, and the state. At least three other New York Democrats have said they're considering a primary challenge.

McHugh makes bipartisan list

North Country Congressman John McHugh appears to get along with his Democratic peers. McHugh made the list of most bipartisan Republicans, as rated by other lawmakers. The survey was conducted by one of DC's insider newspapers, The Hill. Hat tip to Political IV.

The Dalai Lama in Albany

I'm just catching up on the other blogs out there...can't resist passing along this from Liz Benjamin in the Daily News. Wish we could have been there, and not just because it's rare to see pictures where everyone in BOTH parties is smiling.

Mysterygam 4: Colbert doesn't think so

Susan's right: Our last Mystergram was a Groucho Marx line. How about this one -- anybody?

"Facts are stubborn things."

Upstate New York, the 51th state?

Spend even a little time in public life in the North Country and you'll hear this argument: our taxes are so high because we're sending money down to New York City to support all those people and the public services they consume.

We've reported quite a bit over the years that it's actually that opposite. As NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg testified in January, NYC sends $11 billion more to Albany than it receives. And Queens lawmaker Peter Vallone, Jr., wants the City to secede from the state:

“Every day we are given another reason to secede,” he said, offering as but one example Albany’s paralysis over a rescue plan for the city’s transit system. The Legislature, he said, is “probably second only to Somalia when it comes to ineffectiveness.”

As a lifelong Upstater, I've heard numerous calls for secession from our side. A friend of mine used to say, "I Love New York...but I draw the line at Yonkers."

Do you think Upstate New York could survive as its own entity? Or do our fortunes rest in the five boroughs?

A glimmer of good news for Corning

It's been a bruising couple of years for the Corning plant in Canton. The facility has had to cut its workforce more or less in half and endure several shutdowns.

There's some good news today. The plant successfully lured a new line of Polarcor glass from a soon-to-be-shuttered plant in Virginia, according to the Watertown Daily Times. Good news for Cantonians; bad news for Virginians.

The new line will only create 8 new jobs or so. But as St. Lawrence County economic development chief Ray Fountain told the paper, just keeping jobs in today's economy is a major achievement. Gaining any jobs is a bonus.

Hope for the GOP

Jack Kemp, who died May 2nd of cancer at age 73, may have represented the high water mark for the version of the Reagan-era Republican Party that is now dismantling itself piece by piece.

Kemp represented a chunk of Western New York in Congress and managed to mix conservatism, pragmatic governance, and a sophisticated worldview.

Like a lot of Republicans in the Reagan school, Kemp embraced optimism and a hopeful, responsible sense of American exceptionalism.

As the GOP looks to "rebrand" itself, this is one piece of the old playbook that should be dusted off.

To much of the conservative message these days is frankly apocalyptic and churlish. President Barack Obama is a socialist or a fascist or the Anti-christ.

When Republican leaders speak of Democratic leaders Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi and the "Democrat" party, you can hear the scorn.

From Glenn Beck to Rush to this advertisement on John Boehner's website, conservatives are doubling down on gloom and doom.

As I cruise the Right's most popular websites, the message is all Decline and Fall, with very little Shining City On A Hill.

In these hard times, that stuff won't play in Kemp's Buffalo.

It's hard to see how this stuff wins over any part of mainstream America, which has never had much tolerance for sourpusses and sore losers.

It's even hard to see how this venom mobilizes the Republican base. If the world is ending, what good is casting a ballot?

Maybe it's smarter to just go buy a gun...

Job one for the New GOP is to articulate a clear, positive vision for what America should look like five or ten or twenty years from now.

How does that vision tackle Americans' biggest concerns: jobs, healthcare, climate change, and defense?

And how do conservatives avoid the pitfalls of their own philosophy that contributed to the Iraq War disaster, the Katrina fiasco, and the economic meltdown?

Job two for the New GOP is to close ranks against the nattering nabobs of negativism who have colonized their movement.

The take-no-prisoners approach of Rove and Delay and Rush turned out to be a dead-end.

The next great era of conservatism should acknowledge that fact and instead embrace Kemp's openness. This from the Wall Street Journal's remembrance:

The GOP also needs a rhetoric and a demeanor that invite all Americans to its cause.

The Kemp-Reagan message was rooted in ideas but it also appealed broadly across ages and incomes because of its buoyant temperament.

Jack Kemp's admirable life shows that it is possible to be a populist intellectual and a capitalist for the common man.

A future without prisons?

The Plattsburgh Press-Republican has must-read editorial today, describing the history of the North Country's prison system and predicting a murky future.

"We're probably going to have to close prisons," Sen. Betty Little, Stafford's successor, admitted during an interview last week with the Press-Republican Editorial Board.

She suggests closing Sing Sing, which sits on valuable land on the Hudson River in Westchester County, because the land could be put to better use.

Nevertheless, a battle for survival is very likely going to be waged by Little and others as budgets and changing prison populations exert their weight.

The P-R's editorial team urges local leaders to begin planning for a different (read: fewer prisons) future in the post-Rockefeller drug law era.

Camp Gabriels near Saranac Lake goes dark in July. So what do you think? Can our towns survive without all those Corrections Officer jobs?

Slamming NPR's political commentary

Cokie Roberts takes a drubbing today in the pages of Slate.

If you're vaguely conversant with current events, you're already cruising at Roberts' velocity.

Roberts doesn't just voice the conventional wisdom; she is the conventional wisdom.

Jack Shafer, Slate's editor-at-large, offers plenty of examples of Roberts' puffery and vamping. He suggests that it's time for the NPR veteran to hang up her punditry cap for good.

What do you think? Do you find Cokie more enlightening than Jack?

And more broadly, what's your take on the political analysis that NPR (and NCPR) bring to the airwaves?

Juan Williams? Daniel Schorr? David Brookes and EJ Dionne? Ken Rudin? Whose finger do you trust on the pulse of your democracy?

(Remember: thoughtful analysis and criticism are welcome; ad hominem nastiness will be met with gentle remonstrances.)

Mysterygram 3: Need an expert?

Yup, it was Tolstoy who opined about the complexity of bad marriages. How about this bit of wisdom?

A child of five would understand this. Send someone to fetch a child of five.

Price tag for 20th special election: $4 million

According to Congressional Quarterly, Rep. Scott Murphy (D-Glens Falls) and Assemblyman Jim Tedisco (R-Schenectady) raised more than $1 million a month from January to the end of March.

Yikes. When you factor in the amount that taxpayers spent to fire up the ballot system and the courts -- that's one pricey slice of democracy.

Mystergram 2: Happy?

Okay, folks, the Mystergram marches on. The answer to the last m-gram was Ludwig Wittgenstein. We started tough: Now, an easier one. Who said this?

Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.

Answers in the comment section.

Bordeaux vs. Budweiser: Magazine looks at North Creek growth

Rob Gurwitt with Governing magazine took an in-depth look at rural gentrification in the latest issue -- and he used the Johnsburg/North Creek region as his case study. It makes for fascinating reading and a good starting point for conversation.

There are people in Johnsburg, New York, who still won’t set foot in the Tannery Pond Community Center, even though it was built in part for them. The local theater production of a play about Picasso and Einstein didn’t seduce them. The monthly gallery shows hold no interest. Nor do the movies, chorale concerts or dance performances — not for the working-class people in this small town in New York’s North Country, nestled in the Adirondacks, four hours north of Manhattan.

What do you think? Folks in the Gore Mt. Region: Does Rob capture your hopes? Your concerns?

Political junkies take note

The director of "Columbia County's Home on the Web," ccSCOOP, introduced himself and his site by e-mail today. Currently up is an interview with the county's election commissioners about various details of the count, challenges, and processes -- and some resentments -- during the recount in the 20th Congressional District special election. ccSCOOP is also looking for people who have stories of challenges to their ballots in the special election. There's a deep news archive there, plus local sports, food and wine, and arts news too.
And there's a cow on the masthead...

New In Box Feature: Mysterygram of the Day

People have been blogging for millenia, right? That's what epigrams are: little, pithy bits that go viral through a culture.

I come across these cool passages all the time. So here's the new game: I'll mine these chunks of wisdom (and sheer cleverness) from the universe.

You see if you can guess who said it. And if you use Google or some other search engine, be sure to cop to that fact in your answer...

Answers in the comment section below. And if nobody else gets it, I'll give the correct answer in the next day's Mysterygram. We'll start with a toughy.

Our civilization is characterized by the word 'progress.' Progress is its form rather than making progress one of its features.

Typically it constructs. It is occupied with building an ever more complicated structure. And even clarity is sought only as a means to this end, not as an end in itself.

For me, on the contrary, clarity, perspicuity are valuable in themselves.

I am not interested in constructing a building, so much as in having a perspicuous view of the foundations of possible buildings.