Empire Page Columnists Dissect Senate Coup

ALBANY, NY (06/14/2009)(readMedia)-- What should the public make of this week's power struggle in the State Senate? Two of the Empire Page's leading columnists – Larry Hirsch and Empire Page publisher and editor Peter Pollak -– present their views in columns published today Sunday June 14.

Hirsch, the latest columnist in the Empire Page's stable, takes on billionaire Tom Golisano's role in the coup. "It seems at least in part to be a case of a billionaire who could not get what he wanted and orchestrated a change in alliances that led to the Republicans taking control," Hirsch writes in his Hudson Views column. "Our country is founded on the principle of government by and for the people not the will of the billionaires," he warns.

Pollak takes a different tack in his piece published on The Excelsior Files blog page. He challenges the distaste with which some editorial writers and columnists have viewed the Senate power struggle. "[H]ow can we complain that decisions in Albany are made by three men in a room with closed doors on the one hand and then complain when battles over power take place in the open for all to witness?" Pollak asks.

Pollak further suggests that the coup was a result of a lack of leadership in Albany, which eventually will be resolved, resulting in the Senate's returning to conduct business in the near future. "How well the new leaders perform will be tested perhaps many times between now and November 2010 when the voters will have their chance to weigh in."

Larry Hirsch and Peter Pollak are two of the five exclusive columnists writing for the Empire Page.

The Empire Page is published by PoliticalNewsToday.com, LLC, which seeks to provide information and opinion on the key issues of the day through websites that aggregate news and opinion and provide useful content for people active in government and politics. The partnership consists of Peter G. Pollak, who is the majority shareholder and actively manages the company, Schwartz-Heslin Group and Wynantskill Capital.