Between 1928 and 1932, the Empire State was led by Gov. Franklin Delano Roosevelt. FDR followed in the footsteps of Alfred E. Smith, also a Democrat. Nelson Rockefeller, a Republican, created our great state public universities. These outstanding governors set the standards for leadership and social programs that lifted New York – and by emulation the rest of the country – into the modern era. There were other exemplary governors as well.

From 1975 to 1982, Gov. Hugh Carey was part of that tradition. During his eight years in office, Carey saved New York City from bankruptcy and New York State from financial ruin. By virtue of the 11th Amendment to the Constitution, our states are prohibited from applying for bankruptcy and the protections of the federal bankruptcy courts, which assure an orderly payout of the bankrupt’s assets.

Carey’s contribution to the well-being of the state and city he loves is not yet appreciated, but someday he will be recognized for his many achievements, perhaps by naming the Battery Tunnel in his honor, as suggested by our current lieutenant governor, Richard Ravitch. (The latter’s considerable talents are currently being wasted by Gov. Paterson, who was prescient in his appointment of Ravitch, but who unwisely declines to use his services.)

The leaders of our state Legislature are not well known. The two I worked with over an extended period were Speaker of the Assembly Stanley Fink, a Democrat, and Majority Leader of the Senate Warren Anderson, a Republican. Compared with today’s leaders, Fink and Anderson were giants devoted to the public’s needs.

Regrettably, the two current leaders – Speaker of the Assembly Sheldon Silver, a Democrat, and Majority Leader of the Senate John Sampson, also a Democrat – are not in the Fink-Anderson tradition of public service. Indeed, at this moment, New York Uprising, a political action committee – in which I have a leadership role – is dedicated to cleaning the Augean Stables known now as the dysfunctional Albany Legislature.