NY Dem senators relent, will attend joint session
Facing a break in their ranks amid criticism
they were snubbing the governor during a fiscal crisis, the
Senate's Democrats now plan to attend Gov. David Paterson's speech
to a joint session of the Legislature on Monday.
Senate Majority spokesman Austin Shafran says Friday the
senators will be there.
The announcement comes after Sens. David Valesky in central New
York and Neil Breslin in Albany County said they would attend the
speech intended to galvanize support for addressing the state's
budget deficits.
State officials said Thursday that the Democratic majority
leaders decided against attending. One dismissed the speech as a
"photo op" because there are no agreements in place. They spoke
on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to speak
for the senators.