Pointing to newly released poll numbers from the Siena College Research Institute showing a majority of New Yorkers opposing Governor Eliot Spitzer's unlawful plan to give illegal aliens driver's licenses, Assembly Minority Leader James Tedisco (R,C,I-Schenectady-Saratoga) again urged the Governor to reverse course and rescind his plan. The poll also showed Governor Spitzer's favorability rating plummeting to an all-time low.

"The poll released by the Siena Research Institute this morning clearly shows that New Yorkers - seven out of ten to be exact - oppose Governor Spitzer's unlawful plan to issue driver's licenses to illegal aliens," Tedisco stated.

"The poll also showed that the Governor's favorability rating has sunk to an all-time low, of just 41 percent, down from 75 percent in January and 64 percent just five months ago. To call this is a stunning reversal of fortune for someone elected with an historic mandate, who promised that on 'Day One everything would change,' probably qualifies as the understatement of the decade," Tedisco said.

"There was such tremendous hope and optimism surrounding this Governor - it makes the collapse all the more disconcerting as Day One has come and gone but, in its wake, things are more polarized, more political in the State capitol than they've ever been and that's a genuine shame," Tedisco said.

"I think Governor Spitzer's declining poll numbers also point to something deeper and more important, like the fact that New Yorkers are frustrated and disappointed with his leadership style and reticence to compromise and negotiate. We're less than a year into his administration and many New Yorkers already want change. That really says something," Tedisco stated.

"I have served in the State Assembly under three different Governors: Mario Cuomo, George Pataki and now Eliot Spitzer. While each of them certainly weathered their own storms, I've never seen a Governor cause such self-inflicted damage to their job approval the way this Governor has. Quite frankly, the controversy that Governor Spitzer's policy has engendered is compromising his ability to effectively lead our state - and it's all due to a 'my way or the highway' approach to governing. It's downright sad and, unless Governor Spitzer makes substantive changes to his leadership style, I'm not sure if things will ever get better. If they don't, it's unlikely we'll achieve meaningful action on a legislative agenda to improve the quality of life for all New Yorkers," Tedisco said.