Press Center

Running On Empty

Once again, we're finding it difficult to take Brian Foley seriously

Times Beacon Record Newspapers
10/08/08

We understand that, by law, the Brookhaven supervisor is required to submit a budget proposal by a certain date each year, and we applaud the man (and his dwindling staff, thanks to a vengeful Town Board majority) for meeting the deadline. Foley, campaigning for state Sen. Caesar Trunzo's (R-Brentwood) seat, has followed the letter of the law, in fact, and kept his state run far away from Town Hall.

But it's no secret the supervisor longs to be long gone when January comes, fulfilling his best destiny as an anonymous cog in the great state machine.

So we find it somewhat comical when the supervisor calls a press conference to tout his "fiscally austere" 2009 budget proposal. We find it insulting that Foley, with no intention of being here to execute them, champions "belt-tightening" moves like reducing personnel vacancies and cutting overtime (moves that beg the usual question, "Why wasn't this done already?").

We got an especially warm chuckle out of the supervisor's five-year land-preservation plan, in which he proposes earmarking $10 million in town funds per year for open-space purchases. The chances of Foley still holding a Brookhaven office five years hence are about as good as Hillary Clinton's chances for a seat in a John McCain cabinet.

Sure, presidents and lesser elected executives are famous for promises and plans extending beyond their terms — Kennedy shooting for the moon, for instance. But those promises and plans largely come from inspirational executives who fight for their beliefs, no matter how rough the opposition. The let's-go-to-Mars call put forth by President Bush — even with his post-Watergate, Nixonesque approval ratings — has a better chance than some of the Foley pitches in this budget plan.

When the supervisor announced his latest run for higher office, he essentially abdicated his sinking throne and gave the hostile Town Board majority exactly what it wanted: an easy, toothless target. He basically threw his hands up and surrendered, because the majority had him over the coals and there was a more fun opportunity over there. Like the man once said, he's no Jack Kennedy.

Even Brookhaven, of course, is America, and this professional candidate is free to do what he wants, even while spending taxpayer time on legal challenges against political rivals and juggling annoying budget deadlines.

We'd simply prefer he did it quietly. Perhaps town Democrats' top choice to run for Foley's hypothetically vacated seat would have been a better choice to discuss budget proposals. Foley should nix the tired press conferences and leave the long-term plans to people willing to see them through.