SLIDESHOW

Friday, December 17, 2010

Gov.-elect Andrew Cuomo set for small, politician free inauguration next month

inaugural light..........half the calories but still plenty of flavor.......a far cry from Spitzer's Grand ceremony.............and pretty much no elected officials.......very interesting indeed.......
Friday, December 17th 2010, 4:00 AM
Gov.-elect Andrew Cuomo announced plans Thursday to scale back his inauguration.
Tama/Getty
Gov.-elect Andrew Cuomo announced plans Thursday to scale back his inauguration.

ALBANY - Gov.-elect Andrew Cuomo Thursday unveiled plans for a scaled-back inaugural celebration that will be light on pomp and even lighter on lawmakers.
Talk about symbolism.
As he prepares to take on the Legislature and special interests, Cuomo chose a small reception area of the Capitol known as the "War Room" for his public swearing-in ceremony.
No more than 200 relatives, friends and media members will be on hand.
Cuomo insiders say few, if any, lawmakers will make the list because the room is small. Others note Cuomo could have picked a bigger setting.
"They don't do anything without a message tied to it," one Cuomo ally said.
The Daily News reported last month that Cuomo wanted an austere inauguration to reflect somber fiscal times.
"This is not a time for the grand and expensive celebrations of the recent past; it is the time to return dignity, integrity and performance to state government," he said yesterday.
Cuomo will be sworn in privately at 12:01 a.m. on New Year's Day. He'll have a staff meeting that morning and then the small ceremony, which will include the swearing-in of new Attorney General Eric SchneidermanThomas DiNapoli. and Controller
Staffers said his inaugural address will focus on the need to fix Albany - and bring more openness to government.
The next day, Cuomo plans to attend Mass and then go to work at the Capitol.
The scaled-back events are a far cry from the gala inaugurals held when Eliot Spitzer and George Pataki took office.
In 2007, Spitzer held a coronation-like event capped by a concert featuring James Taylor and Natalie Merchant. Pataki's first inaugural included a laser light show.


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