ALBANY — State legislative Democrats waited two decades for a New York City mayor from their party, but now that their wish has come true, many want him to slow down.
Already in a tooth-and-nail battle over his push to pay for expanded prekindergarten programs by raising the city income tax on the wealthy, Mayor de Blasio surprised state legislative allies last week when he proposed the creation of a separate city minimum wage. Both ideas need state approval and are opposed by Gov. Cuomo, a fellow Democrat.
“It should be one big issue at a time,” groused one city Democratic senator. “His agenda is definitely welcome, but a lot of liberals in the Legislature, and I’m one of them, are saying he’s giving us too much to chew.”
About a dozen Democrats in the Assembly and Senate questioned why, tactically, de Blasio would suddenly spring the minimum wage issue at the same time he is asking the Legislature to fight for his pre-K tax plan.
“I’m as confused about that as anyone else,” an Assembly Democratic official said. “They’re having some growing pains right now.”
Sen. Ruben Diaz (D-Bronx) said he’s heard similar complaints from his colleagues.
“Everyone is saying, ‘Take it one at a time,'” he said.
After 20 years of battling Rudy Giuliani and Mike Bloomberg, state legislative Democrats were pumped when the liberal de Blasio scored a landslide win.
But nearly seven weeks in, many of those same Dems are shaking their heads. In part, his agenda is at the mercy of a state Senate still controlled largely by Republicans, and the fact Cuomo and the GOP have opposed raising taxes in an election year.
“I know he wants to take advantage of his mandate, but he’s got to remember as members of the Legislature we have to continue to have a relationship with the governor. This is where we govern,” a source said.
Some believe the new mayor allowed himself to be outfoxed on the pre-K issue by Cuomo. Others argue de Blasio should have recognized that Cuomo was never going to allow the tax hike and should have started to work sooner on improving the governor’s $1.5 billion plan for a state-funded statewide pre-K.
“He waited too long and what he could have claimed as a victory will now be written up as a loss,” said a source.
Making matters worse, several Democrats said, is that de Blasio picked an inexperienced Albany lobbying team, and some state lawmakers from the Bronx and Queens remain bitter over his involvement in the City Council speaker fight. All but one lawmaker from those two boroughs skipped a recent Albany event pushing his pre-K plan.
A Senate Democratic official said de Blasio is likely fine with the fight with Albany because it plays to his city liberal base.
But others accused him of not yet having transitioned from public advocate to mayor.
“The job of public advocate is to be a paid complainer,” one Democratic insider said. “That’s fine, but it doesn’t move things in Albany. They don’t know what they’re doing right now.”
klovett@nydailynews.com
