Cuomo watch: Dissent in the ranks

Syracuse Mayor Stephanie Miner last week raised eyebrows by saying she was "puzzled" by Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo's proposal to use future pension savings as a way to offer municipalities budget relief now. "Isn't this what got states like Illinois in trouble?" Miner queried.

Under Cuomo, Miner co-chairs the state Democratic Party. Lt. Gov. Robert J. Duffy, promoting the governor's budget plan, was asked by a reporter Friday if Miner was showing disloyalty. "I've heard nothing come up in any conversation I've had or any conversation I've heard that would indicate that," Duffy told the Buffalo News.

Earlier, he told the Syracuse Post-Standard, "If this [plan] is not sufficient . . . one viable option she would have is to request a financial control board."

-- Dan Janison