Politics at Boys' State

By David Foster, 0083

Since my last entry, I have experienced more than my fair share of Boys’ State activities and events. Yesterday evening I attended Session One of the Nationalist State Party Convention and we began selecting candidates for the upcoming program-wide election of officers. Each county had already selected its candidates for the nomination, so we quickly started off discussing the offices and contenders. We first selected a permanent party chairman, and then moved to positions such as secretary and clerk. The gymnasium was hot and we alternated between having no air circulation and not being able to hear because of loud fans.

The Convention ran to its adjournment time at 10:00 PM and I returned to my room. I was exhausted, so I felt great relief when I realized I could close my room door to block out the light. I slept comfortably for the next six hours, until I received a relatively polite awakening this morning. Our counselor knocked on the doors to awaken us and we walked outside to complete our first day of Physical Training (we did not do PT yesterday because of flag raising duty). The exercises included ten push-ups, stretching, and a ten-minute run. We then ate breakfast, where they served excellent hash browns, and proceeded to the stuffy assembly hall for our daily session.

Our first speaker was Dave Valesky, who is a Democratic State Senator from Syracuse. Mr. Valesky was part of the four-seat gain that Democrats made in the State Senate in 2004. He had a little outside help from a Republican, however. Mr. Valesky won with 45% of the vote, while incumbent Rebublican Nancy Larraine Hoffman netted 44% and a Republican running as an Independent split the vote by taking away 11%.

Mr. Valesky discussed the challenges of state government and the tradition of concentration of power in New York State. More specifically, he spoke of how the Majority Leader in the Senate, the Speaker of the Assembly, and the Governor meet in a closed room to hammer out the budget. He added that a better system involves committee input in which each member plays a role in the process.

Our second speaker was Ron Tocci, a Legionnaire spoke against flag burning and desecration. He also discussed the movement to pass a flag burning amendment. It would override the 1989 Supreme Court Decision Texas v. Johnson, which declared unconstitutional the Flag Protection Act of 1989.

We left the session to practice drills and eat lunch. Afterward, the County convened to complete its selection of candidates to present at Sessions Two and Three of the Nationalist Convention. The entire party reconvened that afternoon at 1:30, where we nominated candidates for offices such as Court of Appeals Justice, Comptroller, and Attorney General. County Party Chairmen were making deals in which they would promise reciprocated voting. For example, if two counties each had a candidate for different offices, they would agree to vote for one another’s respective candidate to increase each County’s electoral chances. After two hours of this voting and negotiation, the session concluded and I left to participate in one of the many sports that Boys’ State offers here at Morrisville.

I reported to the tennis courts with my racket and played a vigorous match with a fellow citizen. Although I lost handedly, I welcomed some fun physical activity for a change. I returned to the cafeteria for dinner. Remarkably, our meals provide an occasional treat: today’s evening ration contained one of the best potatoes I have ever eaten.

In tomorrow’s entry: the dramatic conclusion to the Nationalist Convention, where the party nominates its candidates for Lieutenant Governor and Governor.