It's crunch time in New York

[TJ]

OK, I just stopped sticking pins in my Eliot Spitzer voodoo doll. What do ya wanna talk about now?

Pick a topic, any topic...........if it's a good one I'll chime in :>) TJ

[Rokeby Forever]

How about this one, TJ - the wonderful things that Spitzer is doing in NY:
http://www.nypost.com/seven/12092007/ne ... 979761.htm

[Rokeby Forever]

Joe Bruno smells blood.

http://news.bloodhorse.com/viewstory.asp?id=42720

The vote is on Thursday - fingers crossed!

[Green Hills]

It ain't gonna happen - Spitzer is as hated in NY as can be and nobody is gonna give in to anything he wants. Politically...why should they? He's dead in NY!

From your mouth to God's ear....

[Rokeby Forever]

Well, we all know by now that NOTHING was accomplished in the last State Senate hearing of the year and nothing will be accomplished by the deadline.

Three scenarios are possible:

1. NYRA gets to shut Aqueduct down.

2. The courts allow a temporary stay to keep the NYRA in control of racing until the January 9 State Senate hearing.

3. The courts allow State oversight of Aqueduct until the January 9 State Senate hearing.

Which is it going to be?

The lastest argument is over the simulcasting, which provides the bulk of the revenue right now. NYRA wants to maintain control of it and Joe Bruno wants an outside agency to control it - that won't be an easy issue to resolve.

[Gerry]

Rok...I bet the courts go with choice #2..its the easiest for all concerned and since NY is lazy and Spitzer is an idiot will be interesting to see what happens on the 9th

[Rokeby Forever]

I'm thinking that you're right, Gerry.

What a disaster this whole situation has turned into. What I don't hear throughout this entire mess is what's best for the horsemen - not a single word! NY should kick out EVERYONE in Albany and get some people in there that want racing to succeed while the horsemen get a fair shake in this deal.

[bdw0617]

did anyone catch the spin coverage on NYRA's replay show the other day?

[Rokeby Forever]

If you go to www.Nyra.com, you won't see a SINGLE WORD about any of the mess that NY racing is in right now. The NYRA is intent on not reporting anything going on in Albany - and why should they? The NYRA is the direct fault of the entire mess.

[TJ]

If you go to www.Nyra.com, you won't see a SINGLE WORD about any of the mess that NY racing is in right now. The NYRA is intent on not reporting anything going on in Albany - and why should they? The NYRA is the direct fault of the entire mess.

Hi Roke,
Guess I'll agree to disagree with the culprit in this case. Spitzer has no love for NYRA yet he is willing to return the franchise to them. His ulterior motive is getting the ownership of the land the NYRA claims is theirs. That is what makes it a viable deal for the State, in the vicinity of billions. Bottom line quite a bit more than the millions the other groups want to give to the state for the franchise. Bruno on the other hand has a personal vendetta agains Spitzer (which is mutual) and will stop at nothing to make Spitzer look bad after Spitzer investigated his private union deals. At this point (this past Thursday, in a letter) Bruno is getting pressured from his constituents to move the deal along and in fact want the deal that Spitzer has proposed (or at least a happy median that will end this dispute). Bruno is very upset that he is being forced into backing down. This goes beyond just racing for Saratoga County. The fact the sales for seats haven't begun because of this franchise battle, the economy of Saratoga is in jeapordy and on hold. The motels, hotels, restaurants and other businesses that rely on the Saratoga boom for the town is at a standstill. By now most of the bookings and dates for the millions that come to Saratoga would have been settled and the business owners would know all was well. This is one area that has as much, if not more clout than racing and they want Bruno to back off and let the deal go through. Everyone has their own agenda, not just that which involves racing. Joanne Yepsen, Saratoga Springs Representative on the Saratoga County Legislature sent a letter to all 3 (Bruno, Silver and Spitzer) involved in this political battle. It expressed the fears of the County and told them their patience and trust has run out. If this deal isn't struck(or at least the promise of a pending deal) by the 27th, when NYRA has to return to the bankruptcy court they will not be released from the bankruptcy. This will start a whole new water fall of circumstances to get free of the bankruptcy court that will add to the dilemma. NYRA is not going away and Bruno won't accept that. His own constituents are tired of it and panic is setting in among Saratoga County in fear of the uncertainty this delay brings to the economy of the area. TJ

[Rokeby Forever]

Well, whether or not there's a shutdown is now in the NYRA's hands...let's see how much they care about the horsemen and racing vs themselves.

http://news.bloodhorse.com/viewstory.asp?id=42800

[Rokeby Forever]

Well, a deal is on the table to keep the NYRA in control at least through the Senate meeting on January 9th. A shutdown on January 1st will depend on whether or not the NYRA accepts it.

http://www.thoroughbredtimes.com/nation ... nsion.aspx

[TJ]

Well, a deal is on the table to keep the NYRA in control at least through the Senate meeting on January 9th. A shutdown on January 1st will depend on whether or not the NYRA accepts it.

http://www.thoroughbredtimes.com/nation ... nsion.aspx

Hi Roke,
The political web continues, this is another Bruno smoke screen so he won't be blamed for shutting down racing. The truth is the 3 political stooges (Bruno, Spitzer, Silver......or shall we just abbreviate it, BS er'S) are all more to blame for this than NYRA. This should have been decided long before now. There is no way NYRA can accept these conditions without some type of guarantee as to Bruno's intent regarding the franchise when the Senate meets on the 9th. If NYRA refuses this deal (which it must in its present form) and if NYRA says to the oversight committee, OK take over racing. Who will the committee get to run racing and do all that the job entails. The NYRA employee's won't go with the committee to run racing for them. It will be a total disaster, that is the only reason they gave NYRA this short extension in the first place. They can't take over racing if they wanted to, they don't know what or how to do it. I can see Bruno at the $50 window, Spitzer grading the track and Silver taking entries. BS er'S...............TJ

[Rokeby Forever]

TJ,

A shutdown looks inevitable. But why is NY racing closed this week? If it closed the week starting January 1st, a shutdown wouldn't have mattered. STUPID!

[Rokeby Forever]

This is true Spitzer genius. It's the same genius that made General Custer say, "Over that hill, men - I think they're friendly Indians!"

http://www.thoroughbredtimes.com/nation ... board.aspx

What does this appointee (Steve Newman) know about racing or running a racetrack? He was an assistant in NYC's Comptroller's office under the Alan Hevesi regime. Here's an old article concerning him:

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.h ... A962958260

What happened to Alan Hevesi while Steve Newman worked for him? Hevesi plead guilty to fraud and resigned to avoid going to the can!

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/22/nyreg ... yt&emc=rss

Great, huh?