Outspoken Amigo
Back and Forth: Sen. Ruben Diaz, Sr.
Mon, 27 Apr 2009 13:51:00
State Sen. Ruben Diaz, Sr. (D-Bronx) recently had reason to celebrate, as his son Ruben Diaz, Jr., was elected Bronx borough president. Still, it is the recently introduced gay marriage bill that is on the forefront of the senator’s mind these days. During an interview at his Bronx office, Diaz, Sr. spoke about his son’s victory, gave a counterintuitive interpretation of the political motives behind Paterson’s gay marriage bill, reflected on the alleged secret pact the governor made with the Gang of Three and laid out the policy he is pushing as chair of the Aging Committee.
What follows is an edited tran scri pt.
Q: What are you doing this year as chair of the Senate Aging Committee?
A: We are pushing for the State of New York to purchase pre scri ption drugs from Canada. And the state would save $800 million by doing that, buying the same pre scri ption drugs that they buy here. And our seniors would purchase drugs at the cheapest price. Because now our seniors have to decide if they eat, if they pay rent, or if they buy medicine. So this is a good way to do it. The county of Schenectady is already doing it.
Q: Do you think it has the chance of passing this year?
A: That’s the question. Where are those Democrats and Republicans that talk so much about protecting our seniors, but where is the government in all of this? Why doesn’t the governor use the same energy that he’s using for gay marriage to pursue this possibility now?
Q: As a father, what are your feelings about your son winning the Bronx borough presidency?
A: I’d like to keep my son out of this. [Laughs.] My stances, my beliefs are different from my son’s. Sometimes my beliefs hurt my son, but I have to go with my beliefs, but sometimes they hurt my son. People tend to take it out on my son. People have to understand he’s my son, he’s his own person, he has his own beliefs, he has his own philosophy, and he has his own agenda. What father doesn’t want the best for their children? But there are issues where we disagree. Gay marriage. Abortion. Stem cells.
Q: What is going on with the Gang of Three these days? Or is it the Three Amigos?
A: We are the Three Amigos! You call it the Gang of Three. We don’t call ourselves the Gang of Three, we call ourselves the Three Amigos. We have jackets.
Q: Do you have a secret handshake?
A: No secret handshake. We have a secret handshake with the governor. I’m going to tell you something that I haven’t told anyone. ... This thing of getting together at the beginning and trying to stop Malcolm Smith, that was the governor’s idea. And I’m telling you right now here, the governor was part of it. He doesn’t want Malcolm Smith to be there either, and he knows that.
Q: What did the governor do?
A: We met with the guy, he said, “I don’t want Malcolm Smith.” But he had a problem with [Dean] Skelos. We said, “We could get somebody that would not be Skelos, like [Tom] Libous.” But Skelos didn’t want to step down. We had a handshake with the governor. And he said, “Ok, go ahead and keep doing what you’re doing.” In public, I’m going to keep pushing Malcolm Smith. But you do what you are doing. I can tell you that the only way gay marriage will be done in the state is when we have a Democratic majority. We need 32 votes, it cannot be done with 31. Not one Republican will vote for it because they’re waiting for us to bring that issue, so they could take out those senators from upstate. We got there last year because of the Obama tsunami. That was it. It was an anti-Bush thing.
Q: So you believe Paterson is still trying to hurt Malcolm Smith with the gay marriage bill?
A: I believe that’s the only thing he’s doing now. That’s the only thing he’s achieving and he’s going to bring down some Democrats from upstate.
Q: Do you believe Sen. Tom Duane’s assertion that a number of Republicans have told him privately they’d vote for the gay marriage bill?
A: I’m saying he should release those names. If you give me a commitment, you have to be man or woman enough to stand with that commitment. Or you’re not giving me a commitment. Either you give me a commitment or you don’t. But if you give me a commitment and say, “Don’t release my name,” then you are cheating. Then you should not be an elected official. Especially on a sensitive issue like this. Either you are for it or you are against it.
Q: How do you feel about being the de facto spokesperson against gay marriage?
A: I don’t mind. That has nothing to do with being homophobic. You might not believe in my religious beliefs. That’s okay. Somebody asked me, “But what about the people that are not your religion? What about the people that voted for you, that gave you money for the election, and now you vote against this?” So I say, “What about the people that voted for me, that gave me money, that supported me, and in the budget I didn’t vote for something that they wanted, I voted against it.” So you know, what can you do? You go there, you got elected, and you got to go with your conscience.
Q: What did you think of the MTA compromise recently put forth by Richard Ravitch?
A: Another gimmick. They say there’s going to be a rebate. They call it a rebate, it’s a gimmick. Give me tolls, we give you a rebate. Once you give them tolls, I assure you that after a year or two they are going to say they can no longer afford a rebate so they’re going to take it out. It’s a gimmick.
Q: What is your solution?
A: The MTA has two problems. One is the immediate problem that we’ll call operations. And the other is a long-term problem that we’ll call capital. So they have an operational problem which is immediate and they have a capital problem which is long-term. We are telling them, “We are going to solve your immediate problem, the operational problem. We are going to give you the money and you will not have one single layoff. We’ve solved your problem now.” And then you have a long-term capital problem. Nobody knows what the plan is. They’re saying, “We have a problem, we need money for capital, we have to buy things, we have to do things, give me the money.” So we say, okay, fine. Give me the plan. The plan was supposed to be submitted in October. So you want us to give you money now for something you didn’t submit in October? No. No. Because you have a history of mismanagement, of waste. So this is what we’re going to do. We’re going to solve your problem now. Meanwhile, we will have the opportunity to send an independent auditor into your books. The auditor will take a look at your books and we’ll see how many real properties you have. How many of those properties we could lease to families. How many we could sell to families. How many we could rent to families. How much your secretaries are making. How many bonuses you’re getting.
Q: What has it been like being at the center of so much controversy?
A: I am responsible for my actions. I know what I am doing and I’m being responsible. I’m being very responsible. People don’t understand that, I’m not seeing where the wind blows and going with it. I’m being a serious, responsible senator, responsible to my constituents, responsible to my obligations. And I know my obligations. So who is the one who is out there fighting for the community, protecting our community and trying to expose what they are doing to our community? That’s what I’m doing. That’s why I’ve been called.
--
ABOVE: Sen. Ruben Diaz, Sr. has been at the center of recent controversies over Senate leadership, the MTA bailout and gay marriage, and is eager for more. Photo by Andrew Schwartz
What follows is an edited tran scri pt.
Q: What are you doing this year as chair of the Senate Aging Committee?
A: We are pushing for the State of New York to purchase pre scri ption drugs from Canada. And the state would save $800 million by doing that, buying the same pre scri ption drugs that they buy here. And our seniors would purchase drugs at the cheapest price. Because now our seniors have to decide if they eat, if they pay rent, or if they buy medicine. So this is a good way to do it. The county of Schenectady is already doing it.
Q: Do you think it has the chance of passing this year?
A: That’s the question. Where are those Democrats and Republicans that talk so much about protecting our seniors, but where is the government in all of this? Why doesn’t the governor use the same energy that he’s using for gay marriage to pursue this possibility now?
Q: As a father, what are your feelings about your son winning the Bronx borough presidency?
A: I’d like to keep my son out of this. [Laughs.] My stances, my beliefs are different from my son’s. Sometimes my beliefs hurt my son, but I have to go with my beliefs, but sometimes they hurt my son. People tend to take it out on my son. People have to understand he’s my son, he’s his own person, he has his own beliefs, he has his own philosophy, and he has his own agenda. What father doesn’t want the best for their children? But there are issues where we disagree. Gay marriage. Abortion. Stem cells.
Q: What is going on with the Gang of Three these days? Or is it the Three Amigos?
A: We are the Three Amigos! You call it the Gang of Three. We don’t call ourselves the Gang of Three, we call ourselves the Three Amigos. We have jackets.
Q: Do you have a secret handshake?
A: No secret handshake. We have a secret handshake with the governor. I’m going to tell you something that I haven’t told anyone. ... This thing of getting together at the beginning and trying to stop Malcolm Smith, that was the governor’s idea. And I’m telling you right now here, the governor was part of it. He doesn’t want Malcolm Smith to be there either, and he knows that.
Q: What did the governor do?
A: We met with the guy, he said, “I don’t want Malcolm Smith.” But he had a problem with [Dean] Skelos. We said, “We could get somebody that would not be Skelos, like [Tom] Libous.” But Skelos didn’t want to step down. We had a handshake with the governor. And he said, “Ok, go ahead and keep doing what you’re doing.” In public, I’m going to keep pushing Malcolm Smith. But you do what you are doing. I can tell you that the only way gay marriage will be done in the state is when we have a Democratic majority. We need 32 votes, it cannot be done with 31. Not one Republican will vote for it because they’re waiting for us to bring that issue, so they could take out those senators from upstate. We got there last year because of the Obama tsunami. That was it. It was an anti-Bush thing.
Q: So you believe Paterson is still trying to hurt Malcolm Smith with the gay marriage bill?
A: I believe that’s the only thing he’s doing now. That’s the only thing he’s achieving and he’s going to bring down some Democrats from upstate.
Q: Do you believe Sen. Tom Duane’s assertion that a number of Republicans have told him privately they’d vote for the gay marriage bill?
A: I’m saying he should release those names. If you give me a commitment, you have to be man or woman enough to stand with that commitment. Or you’re not giving me a commitment. Either you give me a commitment or you don’t. But if you give me a commitment and say, “Don’t release my name,” then you are cheating. Then you should not be an elected official. Especially on a sensitive issue like this. Either you are for it or you are against it.
Q: How do you feel about being the de facto spokesperson against gay marriage?
A: I don’t mind. That has nothing to do with being homophobic. You might not believe in my religious beliefs. That’s okay. Somebody asked me, “But what about the people that are not your religion? What about the people that voted for you, that gave you money for the election, and now you vote against this?” So I say, “What about the people that voted for me, that gave me money, that supported me, and in the budget I didn’t vote for something that they wanted, I voted against it.” So you know, what can you do? You go there, you got elected, and you got to go with your conscience.
Q: What did you think of the MTA compromise recently put forth by Richard Ravitch?
A: Another gimmick. They say there’s going to be a rebate. They call it a rebate, it’s a gimmick. Give me tolls, we give you a rebate. Once you give them tolls, I assure you that after a year or two they are going to say they can no longer afford a rebate so they’re going to take it out. It’s a gimmick.
Q: What is your solution?
A: The MTA has two problems. One is the immediate problem that we’ll call operations. And the other is a long-term problem that we’ll call capital. So they have an operational problem which is immediate and they have a capital problem which is long-term. We are telling them, “We are going to solve your immediate problem, the operational problem. We are going to give you the money and you will not have one single layoff. We’ve solved your problem now.” And then you have a long-term capital problem. Nobody knows what the plan is. They’re saying, “We have a problem, we need money for capital, we have to buy things, we have to do things, give me the money.” So we say, okay, fine. Give me the plan. The plan was supposed to be submitted in October. So you want us to give you money now for something you didn’t submit in October? No. No. Because you have a history of mismanagement, of waste. So this is what we’re going to do. We’re going to solve your problem now. Meanwhile, we will have the opportunity to send an independent auditor into your books. The auditor will take a look at your books and we’ll see how many real properties you have. How many of those properties we could lease to families. How many we could sell to families. How many we could rent to families. How much your secretaries are making. How many bonuses you’re getting.
Q: What has it been like being at the center of so much controversy?
A: I am responsible for my actions. I know what I am doing and I’m being responsible. I’m being very responsible. People don’t understand that, I’m not seeing where the wind blows and going with it. I’m being a serious, responsible senator, responsible to my constituents, responsible to my obligations. And I know my obligations. So who is the one who is out there fighting for the community, protecting our community and trying to expose what they are doing to our community? That’s what I’m doing. That’s why I’ve been called.
--
ABOVE: Sen. Ruben Diaz, Sr. has been at the center of recent controversies over Senate leadership, the MTA bailout and gay marriage, and is eager for more. Photo by Andrew Schwartz
