Senator complains of Republican censorship

[Judi Lynn]

Senator complains of Republican censorship
BY MELISSA MANSFIELD
STAFF WRITER

March 16, 2006
ALBANY - Being in the minority is rarely easy.

Liz Krueger, a Democratic state senator from Manhattan, complained yesterday that Republicans get to censor her newsletters to constituents. Pointing to Sunshine Week, a national initiative to show the importance of open government and freedom of information, the Senate Minority says they want to communicate with their constituencies without the Senate Majority's editing process.

"They might not like what I have to say," Krueger said, pointing to her September 2005 newsletter, "but they do not have the right to tell me, basically, that I have to take out a good 30 percent of what I wrote in that newsletter."

Krueger's newsletter was returned with alterations. She fought the changes, and ultimately it was sent with fewer edits. Her final version omitted the phrase "years of avoidance," when discussing the Senate's emergency contraception voting, and the word "perverse" when describing "an incentive for the legislature to induce a late budget." In a photograph caption, efforts to "clean up Albany" was transformed into "reform" for the constituents.

"Democracy is supposed to be an open flow of information and the opportunity to take positions," she said. "What we have here in the New York State Senate is censorship and unequal standards."
(snip/...)

http://www.newsday.com/news/local/state/ny-stnews164663978mar16,0,2700858.story?coll=ny-statenews-headlines

[aquart]

1. WHAT??????????????????

Republicans are censoring elected Democrats?????????????

May they rot in hell.

[Nay]

2. This is unbelievable! How can this possibly happen? What happens

to a congressperson who refuses to be edited? Has anyone tried? Has it always been this way?

[saracat]

7. This isn't Congress. This is the NY Legislature. It is the Majority , the

GOP controlled Senate censoring the Minority Dem senators. I find it bizarre that NY has a GOP Senate! Still outrageous!

[nicknameless]

3. Can she mail whatever correspondence she wishes at her own expense?

I wonder. :shrug:

[SujiwanKenobee]

4. Here's where personal blogs/e-mails for someone in this sit would be handy

It seems like we need more avenues for communication these days as a necessity!

[tecelote]

5. We live in a Brave New World.

So much for Democracy in America. Who would have guessed that Democracy was limited? We try to take Democracy to Iraq but to do that, we have to give it up in America. Who knew?

America used to be an example to the world. A truly great Democracy.

Does anyone else remember when Americans were proud of our freedoms?

[ugarte]

8. Anybody alive pre-2001 remembers...

We're rapidly running out of words to describe what is happening.

[NVMojo]

6. this is a joke, right??? ARGH!!!!

[wicket]

9. kick

:kick: