Tough decisions await in Albany

Dean Skelos is almost certain to be elected Senate majority leader, a position he has held before. That he has met with and is ready to work with Governor-elect Andrew Cuomo bodes well. That he has not yet met with or spoken to Assembly Majority Leader Sheldon Silver does not.

Skelos' powerful role is "almost" certain because it depends on the certification of Jack Martins as the winner in the 7th Senate District over incumbent Democrat Craig Johnson who is trailing by a daunting 451 votes. The camps are fighting over a manual recount and Martins has already triumphed twice, setting up a final hearing before the Court of Appeals. Johnson is doing a service by pursuing the case. The new law that required electronic voting machines is muddy and scrutiny by the top court is needed to clarify it, or force the legislature to do so.

So Skelos will run the Senate, albeit with a majority of just one vote, and that is good news for Long Island, which had been ignored by the previous Democrat majority. New York's problems go beyond turf wars, though, and if the leaders are to fix them, they must rise above these battles, as well.

The state's projected budget deficit is $9 billion next year. Neither voters nor politicians have any appetite for raising taxes. So the budget must be balanced via cuts to core programs. Skelos said education won't get a planned $2.9-billion increase and health care will see cuts.

In an interview with the Newsday editorial board Thursday, the Rockville Centre Republican was pragmatic and conciliatory toward Democrats. But when the talk turned to specifics, it became clear just how difficult this process will be even if Cuomo, Skelos and Silver work together as smoothly as the Three Musketeers.

With the state's prison population down by 15,000, closing some facilities looks like an obvious choice. But asked if he would look to shutter more prisons Skelos said you can't close a prison until you have an economic plan in place to provide jobs for the host community. If we can't cut the spending that is truly unnecessary, how will we cut schools and hospitals?

Skelos' belief that workers must contribute to their health insurance and pensions is inarguable. His desire to defer conflict about the MTA payroll tax until after Cuomo releases his budget is wise. His apparently sincere desire to treat the Senate minority equitably, bring more Democratic bills to the floor, invite minority leaders and the public into the budget process and play fair with his fellow powerbrokers, is just.

But if he and the others can't make the hard decisions, much less the easy ones, none of it will matter a bit. hN