The campaign for governor so far has been filled with angry charges and counter-charges -- but little attention to issues that truly concern the voters.
The overriding issue in this campaign is clearly the state of New York’s economy and jobs. There has been little discussion of that from Democat Andrew Cuomo and Republican Carl Paladino so far. It's anybody's guess whether the Democrat’s solution to finding jobs is more acceptable than the Republican’s proposals.
Paladino has called for massive spending and tax cuts to meet a state deficit hovering around 8 billion dollars. How does Cuomo feel about the same issue?
Blair Horner of the watchdog group, NYPIRG, says he is disappointed in the tone of the campaign so far. “I’m not interested in what they do with baseball bats or what they watch in a gay parade.
“The fiscal stability of the state is at stake, our long-time economic outlook. We’re being treated to a circus, with sleazy innuendos There’s been little discussion of ethics.”
Horner pointed out that one issue that has been neglected is education. The recent study by the New York Times of the test score issue showed that neither the state nor the city had established credibility in the way they devised or administered tests in reading and math.
Horner thinks the way our children are tested should be an issue
And I agree. In recent months I have written several times about the unreliability of tests and the need for reform. There seems to a growing recognition by experts and parents alike about the failures of our testing process.
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Since test scores are at the heart of the educational reforms touted by Mayor Bloomberg and some state education officials, the candidates for governor need to debate this issue and present their ideas on how to better serve the interests of our children.
It’s one vital issue and, sadly, so far it’s been absent from the campaign for governor.
“Both major candidates,” Horner says, “have agendas for reform. But so far they’re not emphasizing them. It’s more reality tv than c-span.”
Alas, he’s right.
