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Greg Edwards
Edwards Mounts Anti-Albany Revolution
Oct 3rd - 12:43 pm
Chautauqua County Executive Greg Edwards, the man best known for running (through an odd twist of fate/NYS Election Law) as Carl Paladino’s No. 2 in 2010, is now trying to change Albany from the outside, urging his local Legislature to reject the “sham” 2 percent property tax cap champhioned by Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
“The 2% property tax cap is nothing more than a campaign slogan meant to get them re-elected and give local leaders the pain for their failure to act,” Edwards wrote in his weekly “Monday Morning Memo” (#196). “Enough is enough.”
Edwards, who last week unveiled a 2012 budget proposal that called for a 12 percent property tax increase, said he wants the Legislature to debate refusing to fund state mandated programs like welfare and Medicaid beyond the 2 percent cap.
“When the money runs out, we stop delivering the programs and Albany can receive the telephone calls looking for services,” Edwards wrote.
The Republican country executive also suggested the Legislature support him in refusing to send “one more penny” of the approximately $600,000 a week Chautauqua must send to Albany as of Jan. 1, 2012 unless the state “immediately” take over the counties’ share of Medicaid costs, pass a law preventing the approval of future unfunded mandates and authorize counties to set their own sales tax rates.
If Edwards makes good on his threat, he won’t be the first county executive to withhold Medicaid funds from the state. Oneida County Executive Tony Picente has intermittently refused to pay his weekly Medicaid bill to Albany in retaliation for the state’s habit of delaying reimbursement.
Edwards Won’t Challenge State GOP Chair Cox
Aug 3rd - 3:16 pm
Chautauqua County Executive Greg Edwards has decided not to try to oust state GOP Chairman Ed Cox from his post when his two-year term ends this fall.
Edwards, who was tapped by former Rep. Rick Lazio to be his LG running mate in 2010, and – by a quirk of the state Election Law – ended up running with Lazio’s successful primary foe, Carl Paladino, instead, told me this afternoon that he has decided he would rather remain an elected official and perhaps run for higher office than pursue a purely political position.
The county executive said the fact that he would have had to give up his current job in order to serve as state chairman also weighed heavily into his calculation. The Chautauqua County charter makes it clear that the county executive “shall devote full-time to the duties of the office” – something it would be impossible for him to do if he succeeded Cox.
The state GOP is clearly on the ropes these days. Newsday’s Yancey Roy noted yesterday that party enrollment is at its lowest point since the early 1990s, although that probably has a lot to do with the fact that the GOP is out of power at the state level and has been since ex-Gov. George Pataki left office at the end of 2006.
Edwards told me he has not heard of anyone else actively pursuing a campaign to challenge Cox the way he was. He didn’t trash Cox, but he didn’t praise the chairman, either.
The entire interview – which focused mostly on the first meeting of the WNY economic development council, which took place in Buffalo today – will air this evening on Capital Tonight at 8 p.m. and re-air at 11:30 p.m.
Edwards A Possible Challenger For Cox
Jul 11th - 5:22 pm
Chautauqua County Executive Greg Edwards, who ran a failed bid for LG as Carl Paladino’s running mate last year, confirmed his is “considering” a challenge to state GOP Chairman Ed Cox this fall.
Edwards said he has been asked by “people whose opinions I respect” to consider a bid to take over the party (which, for the record, did not initially back him – or his first running mate, former Rep. Rick Lazio, in 2010). He refused to reveal the identities of these individuals, but stressed that he is “flattered” that they approached him.
“Like anything else, when someone presents a business proposition to me, I analyze where I am, I analyze the proposal, I consider my options. And that’s precisely what I’m doing,” Edwards told me during a brief telephone interview this afternoon.
“…So, I’m making calls, and I’m considering it. All kinds of other issues demand my attention as county executive, and they’re getting that.”
Edwards refused to be pinned down to making a decision, saying only: “Everything has a timeline.”
Cox’s two-year term ends after the September primary. Technically speaking, there’s no provision in the party rules for ousting a sitting chairman. Generally speaking, challengers interested in bumping a chair before his tenure is up build support among the county chairs, who, in turn, pressure their leader to step down.
That, as you’ll recall, is how Cox managed to get into the state chairmanship in the first place. Unlike his rival for the spot, then-Niagara County GOP Chairman Henry Wojtaszek, Cox didn’t wait for its occupant at the time, Nassau County GOP Chairman Joe Mondello, to announce he wouldn’t seek re-election.
Wojtaszek’s careful approach cost him the job, even though he was backed by almost the entire NYS GOP establishment.
Edwards arguably risks the same fate with his “I’m considering it” line. Then again, former state GOP Executive Director Ed Lurie, who was actively campaigning for Cox’s job, just pulled back on that effort, citing a lack of interest on behalf of the county chairs.
So, maybe Edwards is smart to play it safe here.
He is a Western NY guy, and the displeasure with Cox is strong on that end of the state. But it’s unclear if he would be any better than Cox at fundraising for the party – particularly since he doesn’t have deep ties to the deep pocketed NYC donors – other than those he forged during his statewide stint last fall.
Ex-LG Contender’s E-mail Potentially Hacked…Or Wiped (Updated)
Feb 28th - 6:31 pm
Chautauqua County Executive Greg Edwards, who ran as gubernatorial hopeful Carl Paladino’s running mate last fall, informed recipients of his so-called Monday Morning Memo (I’m not on that e-mail list, unfortunately, so this was forwarded to me by YNN Buffalo) that his personal Gmail account might have been hacked over the weekend.
UPDATE: Google announced today that a glitch impacted e-mail service for some 150,000 accounts, effectively deleting all e-mails, attachments and chats. Google engineers are working to get that information restored.
Less than .08 percent of Gmail users were reportedly impacted – apparently, Edwards was one of them.
“At some time between 9:30 p.m. Saturday and 7:30 a.m. Sunday my personal e-mail on G-mail was accessed and all of the history on my account and all of my e-mails disappeared,” Edwards wrote.
“While at this moment I am unable to determine if this is an error by G-mail, or if my account has been hacked, I decided to be proactive and notify all the recipients of the Monday Morning Memo of this event.
My MMM is run off our County Server, but many of you correspond with me on my personal account and I wanted to advise you of the following:”“Over the last three months, three of my contacts had their e-mail accounts hacked, and shortly thereafter I received what looked like an e-mail from them that just attached a Website address. In each case when I opened the site it was what appeared to be a company trying to sell Canadian pharmaceuticals like Viagra and Cialis.”
“I contacted each of the victims and told them that I suspected that they had been hacked and they all confirmed that someone had accessed their e-mail accounts. These victims then sent an e-mail to all on their contacts to let them know they had been victimized by hackers.”
“Please be advised that I will never send you an e-mail with just a Website contact. If it happens that you get such an e-mail with my address, note the information on the e-mail, delete it and send me the information so that I can take action to address such a problem.”
“I will be working with my three friends to make sure that our Attorney General knows of this epidemic to attempt to generate an action against the people responsible.”
Edwards Unplugged
Feb 9th - 12:01 pm
During the 2010 campaign, Chautauqua County Executive Greg Edwards often stepped up to defend the controversial statements of his unintended running mate, guberantorial candidate Carl Paladino, and somehow always managed to deliver even the harshest criticism of the other side in the nicest possible way.
Edwards joined me on CapTon last night, and he was his usual measured self, but he also had some pointed words for Gov. Andrew Cuomo, particularly when it comes to his budget proposal and decision not to attend the NYSAC conference in Colonie yesterday.
If there was ever a time we should be partnering with the governor…this is the year, and our governor should have been there with us, collectively, across the board,” Edwards said.
“There was almost 900 people from counties across the state available to hear directly from our governor what he believes we ought to do, not through a spokesperson, you know, not from a document. If true change is what we need, if we are truly in crisis, that’s when you reach out to your partners and say: Let’s band together. What can we agree on today to move forward on?”
On the budget, Edwards said the Medicaid and mandate relief task forces “sound really good,” but he also expressed concern that they’re not scheduled to release recommendations until March 1, which doesn’t leave the Legislature much time.
‘Disappointment’ Abounds At NYSAC
Feb 8th - 3:42 pm
Apparently even serving on Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s transition team AND both his Medicaid and mandate relief task forces still doesn’t give one enough juice to wrangle an in-person appearance by the state’s chief executive.
NYSAC Executive Director Stephen Acquario was very upset that Cuomo declined to show up at the association’s annual meeting in Colonie today – the first time in some two decades that a governor has been a no-show for this event.
“This is an unusual occurance here, not to have our general if you will,” Acquario told reporters. “I say that with respect.”
“These are essentially his soldiers in government. County legislators, County supervisors, county executives, county treasurers, all these people at the local government county level are delivering state services locally. They really wanted to hear from their general.”
“What are the orders from the top? What is the state saying to its troops down below? And how can we help in that message? And I think there is a lot of disappointment here, that he did not come to this event because a lot of people came here thinking he’d be here to learn about the things he has been talking about.”
The disappointment is being expressed across party lines. Republican Chautauqua County Executive Greg Edwards, who, thanks to the state’s bizarre Election Law, was Carl Paladino’s LG running mate last year, just left the CapTon studio where he echoed Acquario’s sentiment.
Edwards was slightly more pointed in his criticism of Cuomo. But if you want to see that, you’re going to have to tune in tonight at either 8 p.m. ot 11:30 p.m.
Edwards To Attend Log Cabin Event (Updated)
Oct 11th - 4:04 pm
Talk about strange timing.
The Log Cabin Republicans sent out an e-mail alert shortly after noon today that inform supporters that GOP/Conservative gubernatorial candidate Carl Paladino’s LG running mate, Chautauqua County Executive Greg Edwards, will be attending a fundraising to benefit its political action committee in Manhattan tomorrow.
“Dear Friends,” Log Cabin Republicans Chairman Gregory Angelo wrote. “I’m pleased to report that Chautauqua County Executive and New York State Lieutenant Governor candidate Greg Edwards has confirmed he will be in attendance at Tuesday’s Log Cabin Republicans of New York State PAC Victory Fundraiser!”
“In addition to providing the funds necessary to support fair-minded Republicans across the state, the PAC event is also an incredible opportunity to directly engage with elected officials and candidates for office. Mr. Edwards is excited to attend our event and to personally hear about the issues that matter most to you.”
I left Edwards a voice mail message, which he has not yet returned.
This seems rather incongruous, coming on the heels of Paladino’s explosive anti-gay comments in Brooklyn yesterday and subsequent insistence that his main concern when it comes to the LGBT community is that same-sex marriage should not be legalized.
UPDATE: Angelo informs me Edwards reached out to the Log Cabin Republicans “prior to the events of last weekend expressing his desire to attend our event on Tuesday,” adding:
“He has said nothing against gay men and women in this state and, quite the contrary, has expressed an openness to dialogue with gay Republicans. We will treat him with the same dignity and respect that all New Yorkers deserve.”
Angelo said he has spoken with Edwards today by phone and e-mail and the county executive still plans on attending tomorrow’s fundraiser.
Paladino’s Three Minutes
Oct 7th - 7:18 am
A source close to Carl Paladino says the gubernatorial candidate is in “seclusion” preparing for his big three-minute televised speech at 5:13 p.m. this afternoon, during which he will speak directly to voters and try to repair the damage his angry-man approach has wrought since his surprise landslide GOP primary win on Sept. 14.
Paladino’s scheduled has been cleared and he will reportedly be taping his message at 4 p.m. He has purchased time on three stations in his hometown – WKBW (ABC), WIVB (CBS) and WGRZ (NBC) – but the spot will also be downloadable and likely carried by stations elsewhere throughout the state.
As I reported on CapTon last night, there is division in Paladino’s camp over what, exactly, he should say. He will not be dropping out of the race, according to multiple sources familiar with the situation.
He has spoken on multiple occasions with Chautauqua County Executive Greg Edwards, the running mate Paladino inherited from his vanquished primary foe, Rick Lazio.
Edwards, a straight shooter who once proudly told me the state could use a little “bland” in its leadership after the upheaval we’ve seen in recent years, is reportedly sounding out party leaders to see what they think today’s message should be.
The candidate himself (not surprisingly) favors a forceful and defiant approach, while others – including GOP consultant Roger Stone, who has been quite vocal in his opposition to the Buffalo businessman’s personal attacks on his Democratic opponent, Andrew Cuomo – think it’s time to tone things down and re-focus on issues.
To be fair, Paladino has been trying to do just that, but he can’t seem to stop stepping on his message with angry outbursts, including the one following his Crain’s breakfast speech during which he called Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver a “criminal.”
I reported in my DN column Monday that there is mounting pressure from GOP leaders for Paladino to apologize for accusing Cuomo of stepping out on Kerry Kennedy when the two were married.
Now added to the mix is a call for the candidate to apologize to Silver, whom Paladino has made quite clear on numerous occasions that he really just can’t stand.
He has said the speaker belongs in Attica, suggested it was wrong for Erie County Executive Chris Collins to apologize for comparing the Orthodox Jewish Democrat to an anti-Christ and Hitler and stood by, smiling and nodding, while an ultra-Orthodox rabbi called Silver a “baby-killer.”
Even if Paladino does apologize, it’s unclear whether he would be able to reverse the slide he’s seeing in recent polls. Less than a month remains until the Nov. 2 election, and unless he really straightens out his act and spends a lot of money to convince New Yorkers he has done so, he really has no shot at victory.
Maggie Haberman has noted that Paladino isn’t really on the airwaves while Cuomo has been blanketing them since the primary. Also, she recalled the 2002 election when another of Stone’s candidates for governor, Independence Party founder Tom Golisano, who is Paladino advisor, reserved airtime very close to Election Day.
There was rampant speculation that Golisano might drop out of the race, improving the chances of victory for Democratic nominee, H. Carl McCall, over the incumbent Republican Gov. George Pataki. In the end, however, Golisano did not depart.
GOP Takes Mahoney To Task
Oct 6th - 5:36 pm
Republicans are sounding off on Onondaga County Executive Joanie Mahoney’s decision to cross party lines and endorse Democrat Andrew Cuomo for governor, with some particularly harsh criticism coming from the new local chairman, Tom Dadey.
“Joanie’s decision today is likely to sadden many Republicans who have supported her in her own electoral pursuits and may even feel that she has let them down,” Dadey said.
“As county executive she may believe she is doing what is in the best interest of the Onondaga County residents. Republicans across the state should look at this endorsement for what it is: A distraction.”
Mahoney has broken ranks with the party in the past, but not this drastically. In 2007, GOP leaders endorsed Dale Sweetland for county executive, and she successfully forced a primary, going on to win the general election and become the first woman to hold her post.
Duffy Goes After Edwards On Taxes
Oct 4th - 1:01 pm
This took a while, but was almost inevitable, given that Chautauqua County Executive Greg Edwards just unveiled a 2011 budget that a 9.2 percent county tax increases, 3.7 percent spending hike and a $6.7 million deficit.
Edwards has blamed Albany for much of his county’s fiscal woes, noting everything from Medicaid costs to state pension fund contributions are going up.
But Duffy is nevertheless using Edwards’ budget proposal as a vehicle with which to highlight “a disparity between the words and actions of the Paladino campaign.” (Recall that Paladino today proposed eliminating the corporate franchise and capital gains taxes).
Duffy said in a press release that since he has been mayor he has reduced property taxes by 7.1 percent and proposed closing a $43.9 million gap by cutting $15 million worth of spending.
“Let’s look at the facts, a Republican County Executive raised taxes and increased spending while a Democratic Mayor cut both of them in a much more challenging environment,” Duffy said.
“New Yorkers want leaders who will reign in spending, and make our State an affordable place to own a home, raise a family, and own a business. That’s what I did in Rochester, it’s what Andrew Cuomo has put forward in his comprehensive plan for New York, and it’s what we’ll achieve once elected.”
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