Saratoga Standard

New York State Governor Kathy Hochul has been criticized by Jim Tedisco following her recent State of the State address. Tedisco expressed skepticism about the Governor's proposals and leadership during her tenure.

“If this is the Governor’s new ‘vision’ for New York State, she needs a new eyeglasses prescription!” said Tedisco, questioning Hochul's approach to addressing the state's challenges.

He pointed out that Hochul has been in power for nearly four years as Governor and over seven years as Lt. Governor, noting her involvement in one-party rule. He attributed New York's affordability and public safety issues to this governance style. “The irony of all ironies is that Kathy Hochul has been the Governor for almost four years and Lt. Governor for over seven years before that and during that reign she has been at the center of one-party rule and total domination of all levers of power in Albany that has led to our state’s affordability and public safety crisis. Now she’s going to be the one to save our state! If you didn’t laugh, you’d cry,” he remarked.

Tedisco praised New York as a state with "amazing and talented citizens" but criticized its current economic climate under one-party rule, which he claims makes it unaffordable for many residents. “The Empire State is a beautiful state with amazing and talented citizens. Unfortunately, under one-party rule that Kathy Hochul has been a leading part of, it’s become too expensive for many people to afford to live and work in, which has led to a mass escape from New York over the past few years,” he stated.

He agreed on cutting taxes and enhancing public safety but questioned how these goals would be financed without detailed plans from Hochul. “We agree with the need to cut taxes for New Yorkers and enhance and bolster public safety to end our state’s crime crisis but missing from the Governor’s pie-in-the-sky State of the State Address was any semblance of reality as to how she’s going to pay for her ‘vision.’ What programs will the Governor cut? Where’s the cap on unsustainable state spending?” Tedisco asked.

Tedisco concluded with skepticism about passing such visions without raising taxes or spending: “Forget pulling a rabbit out of a hat, the Governor’s going to need to be a magician on the order of Houdini to convince her pals in the Super-Majorities in the Legislature to pass her vision without raising taxes and spending to even higher levels.” He added humorously, “Maybe the Governor missed her calling. Instead of running for Governor, she should have become a comedian because her State of the State proposal is laughable.”