Asked if he might flip to Democrats in the coming weeks, Simcha Felder replied: “I never say never. You know what I mean? Have a good day.” | AP Photo Cuomo pushes Felder, raises prospect of do-nothing session

ALBANY — The rest of the legislative year is on state Sen. Simcha Felder’s shoulders, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Wednesday: Either stay with the Republicans and end the session with a whimper, or join Democrats and allow votes on a slew of progressive bills.

Most people are predicting a whimper. And Felder seems to be enjoying his time on the hot seat.


The Democratic governor sent an open letter to Felder on Wednesday and spoke at length to reporters in his Manhattan office about the senator, a Democrat from Brooklyn who caucuses with the Senate’s 31 Republicans and gives them a majority, even after Democrats won two special elections on Tuesday.

“I think this is an opportunity — you can put the politics aside,” Cuomo said. “There are major issues that we could act on if he became part of the Democratic coalition. Otherwise, we basically do nothing for the rest of session. … There will be no movement on any of the major issues.”

He mentioned measures that would make it easier to vote, restrict political giving from limited liability companies and enact stricter gun controls. Many of the issues were discussed as part of the state’s $168.3 billion budget but were dropped from the final spending plan.

Felder issued a statement on Tuesday, before Shelley Mayer and Luis Sepulveda won their special elections, saying that he would remain with the Republicans through the end of the session in June in order to “prevent an unprecedented and uncertain late session political battle that will only hurt my constituents and New Yorkers.”

“OK,” Felder told POLITICO on the chamber floor when told of Cuomo’s challenge. “Read [my statement] again — I don’t have anything else. I always feel pressure.”

Asked if he might flip to Democrats in the coming weeks, Felder replied: “I never say never. You know what I mean? Have a good day.”

An aide rushed Felder away, saying he had to catch a train. A phalanx of cameras and reporters waited for him in a nearby hallway, and Felder repeated the same answers as the same aide tried to rush him away. (Amtrak does not have a train departing Albany at 1 p.m., which was about the time Felder was answering reporters' questions.)

“Just one more minute — I need to get a little more attention,” Felder said.

Republican senators were warm and friendly toward Felder, and Democrats spoke openly about how they, too, coveted his support.

“We’re going to continue to try and impress upon him why we love him so much and we really want him to join us,” said Sen. Diane Savino (D-Staten Island), a member of the former IDC, which has rejoined the main Democratic caucus in the Senate. “I didn’t hear what the governor had to say, but we’re all here. … Sen. Felder should join us, and we’re going to grow the majority and that’s what we’re going to work towards.”

Nobody predicted major action on significant legislation. The dynamic is similar to 2014, when Cuomo pledged to fight for Democrats in order to win the nomination of the Working Families Party. (This year, the party endorsed Cuomo challenger Cynthia Nixon.) Still, Savino was able to push through legislation creating a tightly controlled medical marijuana program in 2014.

“What major issues do we see on the horizon in the next three weeks, Mike?” Savino asked Sen. Michael Gianaris (D-Queens).

“If we’re in the majority or not?” Gianaris replied between bites of a salami sandwich. “If we’re not, nothing, because they won’t do anything.”

Indeed, Cuomo and lawmakers noted that the budget included a slew of policy actions — everything from requiring disclosure in online political ads to changes in required sexual harassment policies. Proposals on gun control, reducing the use of cash bail and increasing the statute of limitations for victims of child sexual abuse all fizzled in the face of GOP opposition, Cuomo said.

“The remaining issues they will not do. Period. No, take out the period — exclamation point!” the governor said.

Republicans said they would advance their own priorities. Sen. Patrick Gallivan (R-Elma) said he was pushing Democrats who dominate the Assembly on a school safety package that includes allowing more armed police officers in schools.

Sen. Cathy Young (R-Olean) said she expected that the chamber would act on “different member priorities” and “a lot of local bills.”

“There are a lot of things we were able to get done in the budget — stopping all the governor’s proposed tax hikes, focusing on things like making sure our schools are properly funded,” she said. “We got a lot done in the budget, so now we’ve got to focus on wrapping up for the year.”

The Legislature’s last scheduled session day is June 20.