Analysis of Tales from the Sausage Factory: Making Laws in New York State - Book Report/Review Example

 TALES FROM THE SAUSAGE FACTORY: MAKING LAWS IN NEW YORK STATE The media has been at the forefront pointing out inadequacies on the part of the New York state legislature. For a very long time, no one ever came out to respond to the concerns raised by the media. The Tales from the Sausage Factory: Making Laws in New York State makes certain very strong points on the failings of the once very vibrant assembly. It gives two main reasons for to justify the reduced reputation and performance of the institution. The first reason is the change in the recruitment criteria. Initially political recruitment processes were influenced by county party leaders, as opposed to today that they are dominated by wealthy individuals and interest groups. The second reason is the bipartisan gerrymandering which results in entrenched incumbencies and high re-election rate. The Tales from the Sausage Factory: Making Laws in New York State, hereinafter referred to interchangeably as the book or tales, is a book that any political student who is keen to understand how much the New York State legislative processes have changed in the past few decades. Looking at the history books for people who were born in the 1980s and 1990s, one realizes how professional the assembly was in terms of passing good laws on very pertinent issues; issues that touched directly on the lives of the New York dwellers1. If that is compared to the state of affairs today, it is noted that today’s NY State legislature is much of corrupt and dysfunctional outfit that is struggling to regain the past glory. The professionalism is gone, making the legislature much of a shell of older version. It is authored by Daniel Feldman, a former New York state legislator, and Gerald Benjamin, a distinguished political science professor based in New York City. The book outlines the declines of the state’s legislative processes and approaches along certain timelines and lists down some of the laws that have been passed by the assembly which depict serious lapses vis-à-vis the pinnacles of excellence of the 1970s and 1980s. Daniel Feldman served in the New York state legislature when it was the epitome of a professional law making body, and has lived to witness it decline largely to something different; something associated with legislative impropriety. Four case studies are used to illustrate the decline. They include the Rockefeller drug laws, gun control, and organized crime control and sex offender notification. Many people would think of this book as a memoir, but it is largely a description of and reflection of the workings of the legislature and politics and how they change and effect that change in the state. It is important to look at all that because the political systems and the socio-legal landscape of a state are as good or as bad as the legislative processes of that particular state. The amount of rot in these two aspects of the New York state is a product of legislation based on convenience, without regard to what would be a panacea to the issues that constantly trouble the state2. It is difficult to wish tales away because its two authors have no partisan interests in the manner that they look at and analyze the political intrigues of the New York state legislature. This is because Daniel Feldman, a democrat who was a legislative representative of southern Brooklyn, and Gerald Benjamin, a republican sympathizer and a renowned political science professor in New York. The book is a fulfillment of what its cover title promises, by unabashedly examining the how principles and ego, public good and politics interact in an unappetizing process that makes up the legal process. Gerald Benjamin uses his tremendous political science knowledge to help Daniel Feldman delve into the political and psychological machinations that are kept as top secret by the insiders. There is every reason for journalists, public officials, students, citizens and political analysts to want to read the books due to its rich content. Saving the NY state from the shackles of legislative strangulation will take one reading Tales and gaining the deepest understanding of its legislative processes3. The title is an adaptation of a statement once made by a one-time German chancellor, Otto von Bismarck. He once said that laws are like sausages, one would rather not see them being made. The title is fulfilled because ideally, one would be hard-pressed to be seated in the assembly and listen to the debates which guide the law making process in the New York state legislature. If one decided to make a presence, they would realize that laws on certain pertinent issues are a culmination of a series of debates inspired by self-interest. The war on drugs is far from won due to the manifest handicaps in the Rockefeller drug laws4. The gun control laws aren’t effective; one can note that there is rise in people owning guns illegitimately. Organized crime cases are on the rise because of a crippled organized crimes act. There are many more things going on in the state that are born by the bad laws passed in the New York state legislature. “I expressed my public opposition to the lengthy sentences imposed by the Rockefeller drug laws on low-level non-violent addict/sellers years in advance of the emergence of the assembly majority’s support of the view. Speaker (Mel) Miller and most of my democratic colleagues could not afford to advance such a position at the time, even if they agreed with it (many did not).”5 Tales serves the important role of doing something that many scholars haven’t dared to do. The nuances of the legislative processes have hardly been highlighted before, at least not with the insight with which it is done in the book. Lovers of politics would get valuable insight and fun in every page of the book. It gives wonderful description of the legislative and political life of the state. It is important to read it because everyone would be interested in understanding the dynamics of New York, given its standing among the states of the USA. NYC is an important city and the USA administrative headquarters. The book offers suggestion on how to turn things around and get New York state legislature from its state of dysfunction6. Anybody who understands the role New York plays in the United States; they would sure understand why a turnaround is necessary. The dire need for reform in the manner that New York state legislative businesses are conducted makes tales a nice read for reformers. It is an important tool for them. The book brings out a sense that change is possible, but takes persistence and luck, and never takes time to come to fruition. Scholars and practitioners interested in understanding the present status of New York state government and legislative handicaps will find the book useful. One needs to know the problem and probably its root cause in order to be able to turn it around. Tales is rich in the kind of information that change-seekers will need. The given suggestions for change can be helpful in finding permanent solution to the New York state problems. The two authors of the book have covered all that adeptly. The political punditry and prowess of Gerald Benjamin come out vividly. He uses his political lenses to address and analyze the problems facing New York state legislature. There is recognition of the fact that not all legislators from across the political divide are ill-intentioned. However, even the good-intentioned representatives get lost among the corrupt legislators and give up on the agenda of change. They are weighed down by the big number of selfish legislators who have selfish interests ahead of anything else. The book clearly brings out the byzantine workings of the New York state legislative arm. The four case studies in the book make it even easier to pass the message of bad governance. The book provides answers to the questions raised by citizens and other agencies about the conduct of the NY state legislature. Tales communicates the fact that Albany is the United States’ most dysfunctional legislature. It points out the failings, functions and malfunctions of the legislature. Albany is a factory that shapes lives of millions of American citizens. It tells of the push and pull, flesh and blood, and political life sagas in the USA’s invincible legislative laboratory is ultimately ruled by networking, nuance and nonsense. In conclusion, Tales from the Sausage Factory: Making Laws in New York State is no doubt an eye opener for many concerned new Yorkers and many other Americans who do not reside in New York but recognize the role it plays in the USA. It has no serious gaps and ambiguities in the manner it chronicles the legislative failings of the New York state legislative assembly. It can be useful in the efforts to cause reforms so as to return the state back to its former glorious status. Law/political science students should read the book between the lines because it would help them act as agents of change. They should have the deepest understanding of the ills in the New York state and, with that knowledge, strive to do things differently in order to make amends. Voters need to be lectured on what New York problems stem from. This would help vet their leaders before electing them and not end up electing selfish individuals into the legislature. By so doing, a precedence is created that ensures that the leaders elected in future are made to account for all the laws they pass, and always making reference to the shortcomings of their predecessors with regard to legislative issues. Such awareness will sure bring back sanity, mainly because the elected leaders understand that the electorate will judge them by their deeds. Recall of legislators will certainly be one of the options voters have whenever they are convinced that their elected leader is the champion of doom in the legislature. The book should form a basis of a turnaround. Bibliography Benjamin Gerald & Feldman Daniel, Tales from the Sausage Factory: Making Laws in New York State, 80-374. New York: State University of New York Press, 2010. Read More