Joe Bruno's Revenge

Here's a really astonishing story coming out of the Republicans' loss of three State Senate seats last year: It appears that the Senate Republicans are taking it out on the losers' constituents, from Syracuse to the Bronx.

The Syracuse Post-Standard reported today that, before the election, Nancy Larraine-Hoffmann promised grants to various groups, things like a local waterline extension in the town of Sennett.

She lost, and suddenly the grants -- which had already been promised in writing -- evaporated.

Now we're told the same thing is happening in East Harlem, where Jose M. Serrano beat Republican Olga Mendez.

"From the minute I got into office, I've been getting phone calls to my staff from different local organizations who are very concerned about grants that they were promised by Olga Mendez. Suddenly they're not getting them," Serrano told us.

"I really would rather hold harmless any of these groups that were looking to get support from the State Senator," he said. "It's pretty cynical."