March 13, 2003

THE DEATH OF A PARTY

By James Eugene*

Rest in peace, Liberal Party. A casualty of electoral failure, the Liberal Party shut its doors and closed shop in February. Its demise is a lesson to all minor parties about how not to operate. Its life and death are a telling tale, one that we will recount here.

The Liberal Party in New York was formed when a group of disaffected Socialists and Communists, who had come to realize that socialism and communism might not really work, joined with labor unions to fight for the rights of the immigrants and the working class. While the assistance of the intellectuals was helpful, the real power behind the party came from the union leaders, particularly the needle trades. A party cannot survive without membership and the unions provided that membership. The intellectuals provided ideas and goals for the party. And many institutional wonders, such as various affordable housing projects, can be traced to their influence.

Throughout American history, third parties have been an important part of the political framework. Very often, these parties are formed around ideas or concepts that are not accepted at the time of their formation except by those who are actual party members or sympathizers. However, the seed of these ideas often stems from a problem, a problem that grows until it cannot be ignored by the major parties. The ideas are then co-opted by one of the major parties, usually in a time of crisis. The New Deal was the ultimate success for third parties. Many of the ideas implemented during the New Deal dated back to the Grange movement of the 1880's and 1890's. Scoffed at during that era, these policies were implemented and expanded over the past seventy years.

And the requirements for success of a third party are not so different today: a core membership and a core of ideas that have relevance to a significant segment of the population. The Liberal Party at its end had neither.

Since the late 1980's, the Liberal Party has been the tool of an individual (we shall not glorify his name, but he had two sons in the Administration of Mayor Prosecutor). That individual controlled the party… entirely. All decisions came from this individual and what he said went. No dissent was tolerated. He was the boss.

Now being the boss of a small structure may be nice, but it is not much unless you get something for it. And to get something for it, the Liberal Party boss made an alliance with Mayor Prosecutor. In return, the Liberal boss got patronage (the two sons, a Deputy Mayor, access for lobbying purposes, and more). But the party was devoid of ideas, and the deal with Mayor Prosecutor did not allow for dissent from Mayor Prosecutor. Thus, when Mayor Prosecutor made decisions that would enrage liberals, the Liberal Party and its boss remained silent and sometimes even defended Mayor Prosecutor. In effect, the Liberal Party failed to stand for anything except the patronage it could obtain in giving shelter and running interference for Mayor Prosecutor.

All this game playing did not escape the unions and liberal intellectuals. Because they were not friends with the boss, they received no patronage and they were not heard within a party that intellectually should have been theirs. And so what did these people do? You guessed it, they started their own party, the Working Families Party. This party, formed by the unions and the intellectuals, challenged not only Mayor Prosecutor and Governor Patacuomo, but it also challenged Democrats who did not fit within their political dynamic, something the Liberal Party had not done in years. And the Democrats began to pay attention. On the City level, Democratic candidates for the Council openly courted the endorsement of the Working Families Party, and on a government level, I would venture to say that the Living Wage Bill, passed by the City Council in 2002, would not have become law without the influence of the Working Families Party. In essence, the Working Families Party has become the Liberal Party.

Now New York is a big place, but it is not so big that it can have two Liberal parties. And something had to give. The choice was between a party that was young, vibrant and inclusive and a party that was old, stale and exclusive. The Working Families Party won. In the end, it was for the best. The Liberal Party no longer espoused anything, no longer influenced anything and no longer mattered.

In the end, the demise of the Liberal Party answers for itself a question that seems rather obvious. Can you have a one-man party? The answer is no.

Deputy Mayor Marc Shaw recently received a raise to almost $195,000 per year, making him the highest paid person ever within the Mayor's Office. Thankfully, the local media seems to understand the value of this man and wrote muted stories about the increase. I happen to have breathed a sigh of relief when Mayor Billionaire chose Shaw as a Deputy Mayor for Operations and in essence a First Deputy Mayor. Shaw is a combination of brilliance, innovation and pragmatism and is an excellent implementer. He would not get elected to dogcatcher, but if any politician had to pick a second in command, they could not do better. He is experienced with tough budgets and knows how to bring the City through tough times with the least amount of damage.

However, I almost died when the labor officials start crying foul and stating how insensitive this pay raise was. Hey folks, Shaw's increase did not even equal the cost of one City worker's salary. And guess what, if you didn't have him, you would have had layoffs by now! Bet that would have made your members real happy. Don't view Shaw's increase as a pay raise. View it as a way to save your members' jobs.

On another point, I propose a law that requires all labor union officers to reveal their salaries and expense accounts and let's see how much their members like what they see.

* James Eugene is the pseudonym of a veteran of NYC government affairs. Inside The Big Apple will appear exclusively on the Empire Page. If you want to send tips or column ideas to James Eugene, email them to jameseugene@empirepage.com.