The dean of the state Senate has seen it all

The state Senate is saying goodbye to its dean as state Sen. Neil Breslin prepares to say his final farewell to the chamber after 28 years in office. First elected in 1997, the Albany-area native has seen a lot, from entering in the minority to presiding over a legislative coup and becoming part of the Democratic supermajority. Breslin spoke with City & State about the ups and downs during his time in the Legislature, the changing political climate and his thoughts on what comes next for his party during a time of reevaluation. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

You’ve been in office almost 30 years. How are you feeling as you prepare to retire?

I have tremendous mixed feelings. I spent 15 years in the minority, so that was very difficult in and of itself. Now being in the majority, having been gifted by having Andrea Stewart-Cousins, who is just by far the best leader I've seen in 28 years. It's a pleasure to work for her, it’s a pleasure to be part of a team with her. So I'll miss that tremendously. And over the years, various positions here, and now (chair of the) Insurance (Committee), which I had no serious background to become Insurance chair. But it's been very rewarding and an enjoyable time, and most of us, if we figured out how we spend our money, we spent way too much money on insurance.

Did you ever expect to be in office for so long, or even at all, when you started out as a lawyer?

I have two brothers who were in government. And (when) I used to (get) offers to do something governmentally, I just turned to one of them and say, ‘Why don’t you take it? I don't want it.’ I was very comfortable not having a government job. I'm from Albany, and I used to walk by the Capitol frequently, but I never was excited enough to go in and see what it was about. The first time I saw the Senate chamber was the day I was sworn in.

What happened in Albany is that there was really changing politics. I'm a Democrat, as you know. Republicans have been winning a lot of offices. I think the feeling was that we better come up with new candidates. So my brother Michael and I ran in consecutive years, him for county executive, myself for senator. They talked to me about running for county executive, but I don't think I have the attention span to be a county executive.

How would you say the chamber has evolved during your time in office?

I think philosophically, they've gotten further apart. When I first became a senator, I didn't see tremendous differences between Democrats and Republicans. Now I would suggest that Democrats have become more liberal and that Republicans more conservative, so that there's a wider plane, and (it’s) more difficult to resolve problems. There was a camaraderie that surprised me. Now, that camaraderie doesn't exist now that existed when I was first here. I think that makes it more difficult to legislate in a way that's accepting of two points of view. I try to make real exceptions. I’m on the Legislative Ethics Commission and the co-chair Sen. (Andrew) Lanza from Staten Island is on the committee. Philosophically, we don't agree on a lot, but I just have tremendous respect for him. We have a wonderful friendship, and I gain a lot from our conversations. Hopefully, he'd say that he gains a little bit for me too. 

When I was first a senator, even though there was camaraderie, the minority was treated totally differently. They didn't have the offices, they didn't have the computers, the other things that are necessary. And I've always tried to go by that quote that says ‘he who forgets the task is doomed to repeat it.’ So any kind of disfavor I had with being treated unfairly, I tried not to do the same thing when I became part of the majority.

What would you say your biggest accomplishments have been? What have you been proudest to achieve?

I haven’t really given it a tremendous amount of thought. Insurance is something that is not part of a dinner table conversation. Nobody wants to talk about insurance. They all have to pay a lot. So a lot of my accomplishments, I think, are quiet accomplishments. The insurance companies pay for the portion of the budget that's made for insurance. All the expenses of insurance are paid for by premiums. When I first got involved (with) insurance, and we have little deficits, the reaction probably in both Democratic and Republican parties says, ‘Well, we'll put some premium, or some tax, on insurance companies so that they contribute more, then we don't have as big a deficit.’ Unfortunately, insurance companies said, ‘Well, they put an additional tax on that, we’ll pass it on to the consumer.’ That's not fair. One of my objectives has always been, with insurance, to make sure it doesn't get passed down to the consumer. The consumer has the lowest possible prices for pharmaceuticals, pays the least of premiums. Unfortunately, it doesn't always work out, but if that's your objective, you can accomplish a great deal of your goal.

You were part of a very turbulent time in state Senate history. What was it like experiencing the leadership crisis of 2009, and how do you think Democrats were able to evolve past that to the leadership that we have now?

First of all, anything is better than those months. I was presiding when the coup took place. The following weeks when each side was declaring victory and each side was meeting separately and calling itself the New York state Senate majority (were) very difficult. Through the entire summer, we were going into session virtually every day. Maybe it was some way cathartic, but it certainly wasn't enjoyable. But we survived it and went into the majority. 

I think the (Independent Democratic Conference), to me, was much more difficult. We finally climbed the mountain, became the majority, and then we were told that there's seven Democrats who are going to be with the Republicans at the behest, I think, of Gov. (Andrew) Cuomo, so that he could kind of divide and conquer – have a Republican Senate and a Democratic Assembly, which would reduce the power overall. For me, that was just unacceptable, that a Democrat just unilaterally could just go to the other team because that person profited from it. And beyond that, I don't see any valid reason for doing it other than their own profit. So that, to me, was and still is difficult to accept.

What was 2018 like for you then? Not only winning back the majority, welcoming in Andrea Stewart-Cousins as majority leader, but also seeing so many of those IDC members get primaried out of office?

I could never accept any rationale for their movement other than their own self interest. So I was never as forgiving as maybe some others were. But slowly they moved out. (Former state Sen.) Diane Savino was the last person out, and there's now no one remaining from the seven. It was a time of joy to be in the majority and find out that you could affect change in a positive way to help New Yorkers. Even now, I come in on weekends. I enjoy the work. It's been very rewarding. And it is difficult to leave, but it's time. The last time I didn't have a job was right before my first paper route. I'm getting at that age where I'd like to enjoy a few years doing other things.

As someone who has weathered some chaotic times yourself, what is your advice to Democrats contemplating the future of the party right now?

Some people have said that the Republican Party has become too conservative, and the Democratic party too liberal. I just think that there's enough information available to me to come to a conclusion on issues and vote in that way. Having a leader like Andrea Stewart-Cousins, who allows you to think that way makes it that much better. We rarely get told, if at all, you must or you should vote this way. We come to a conclusion as the consensus at times, but it's well thought through. 

There's some wonderful, wonderful young senators who are philosophically far apart. (State Sen.) Zellnor Myrie is a wonderful young legislator who would make an excellent mayor of the City of New York. There’s (state Sen.) Julia Salazar, who's more liberal than most of us, who's done a terrific job. So I'll miss a lot of the young folks who've done such a great job over the last couple of years.

Have you helped mentor some of the young lawmakers that have come in?

I’m their coach! Absolutely. I've tried to be a positive force, not a condescending force. I did not have any background to be a legislator. So I really had to get up to speed quickly. I wasn't as young as a lot of the ones are now. So I could use some of that experience of 28 years here. I think of some legislators who just didn't think it was a good idea to talk to lobbyists who were advocating for a particular point of view. I disagreed with that. I said, ‘You don't have to agree with lobbyists, but you ought to be able to hear their side of the story.’ And at the end of their story, you should be able to ask them, ‘What would you argue if you were on the other side of this issue?’ If they give you a disingenuous answer, maybe you should think twice about meeting the next day. So there are things that I think I can help new members with.