שאקירנד: סטעיט סענאט ווערט קאנטראלירט דורך שווארצע באונסערס

The most glaring example of the thug-like behavior occurred on the Senate floor Wednesday as several burly, thick-necked men suddenly began flanking the podium in an apparent attempt by Democrats, who claim to control of the chamber, to block Republicans from rushing up.

The move was shocking because the Senate already has several professionally trained and experienced sergeants at arms, many retired state troopers, who do a fine job keeping order.

Several Democratic senators including Pedro Espada of the Bronx, John Sampson of Brooklyn and Malcolm Smith of Queens have also appeared with bullish bodyguards and other "body men'' for the first time ever.

One Democratic faction, loyal to Sampson, has begun spying on members of the faction loyal Smith, and even preparing reports on their activities.

Journalists like myself have always been granted free access to the Senate but two weeks ago Democrats sought to bar journalists from the chamber, only backing down in the face of the protests from several angry scribes.

During the long years of Republican control, the all-white GOP "conference" would regularly bemoan its lack of diversity, and make extra efforts to recruit minority Senate candidates and hire minority staff.

During the first five months of this year, with the Senate under the control of its first African-American majority leader, Smith, top Democrats bemoaned the lack of minority Senate staffers.

But instead of trying to recruit new hires, they fired nearly 200 almost exclusively white workers and replaced them with a large number of minority employees, many of whom were seen by their fellow workers to be unskilled at their new jobs.

The move produced severe racial tensions, made worse by the fact that, as a high-level Democratic staffer confided, "We've been told to only hire minorities.''

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http://www.nypost.com/seven/07052009/postopinion/opedcolumnists/albany__i_give_up_177689.htm?&page=0