Citizens Group Blasts Golisano
WNED
Buffalo, NY
BUFFALO (wned) – Citizen Action of New York has targeted its anger at two men who, they claim, orchestrated this week’s events in Albany: Tom Golisano, the Rochester billionaire; and adviser Steve Pigeon, a former head of Erie County’s Democratic Party.
“Since when does one man have the right to buy legislators? If people were not convinced that we need to remove the power of money in politics before this week, Golisano’s actions should certainly convince them, ” said Ellen Kennedy, President of Citizen Action of New York, from the steps of the Mahoney State Office Building on Court Street.
Citizen Action also held similar events in Rochester and Albany
“Golisano did not like what the Legislature did about fair taxes, so he uses the power of money to change the Senate to his liking,” said Kennedy.
Citizen Action claims Golisano’s deep pockets and Pigeon’s sour grapes attitude over some political patronage jobs for which some of his cronies were denied led them to successfully overthrow the Democratic leadership and return the majority to the Republicans who lost control of the Senate for the first time in decades last November.