A furious Mayor Bloomberg has declared war on Albany — warning the Senate clowns and their ringmaster that he’s sick of watching them play power games while the fate of the city’s schoolkids hangs in the balance.
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“I find it inconceivable they won’t do this,” Bloomberg told The Post in an exclusive interview.
He was referring to the refusal of the Senate and its new Democratic leader, John Sampson, to sign off on the mayoral- control bill already passed by the Assembly.
He’s incensed about Sampson’s drive to strip the mayor of his majority on the Panel for Educational Policy or impose fixed terms on his appointees.
“That’s not going to happen,” Bloomberg declared.
“That’s the old Board of Education,” he said dismissively, vowing to battle any last- minute “compromises.”
“The days of tweaks are over,” he said.
Bloomberg noted that the Senate passed the 2002 school governance law by a whopping 55-3 vote.
Sampson was among those voting yes back then. And Sampson’s own Brooklyn district, Bloomberg noted, has shown major gains.
“The results . . . have been spectacular,” he said, citing double-digit percent age gains in student performance on math and reading tests, and a boost in the graduation rate.
If the law is allowed to lapse on June 30, control of the city schools with their 1 million students reverts back to a dysfunctional system where a seven-member elected central Board of Education shares power with local boards in each district — a proven recipe for chaos.
Bloomberg said of senators, “They should be happy trying to take credit for the improvement in the schools.”
The mayor said he can’t understand why some legislators want to scuttle something that’s working.
“It doesn’t make sense to me,” he said. “Maybe they need more information.”
Bloomberg, noting that Gov. Paterson has called for an emergency session of the Legislature tomorrow, said that now is clearly the time to act.
“It’s important that we go on the record,” Bloomberg said.
Senate work ground to a halt after a surprise coup on June 8 put the GOP temporarily in charge of the chamber. Two Democrats, Pedro Espada and Hiram Monserrate, defected.
But Monserrate switched back, leaving the Senate split, 31-31, and several major bills, include mayoral school control, lost in legislative limbo.
“They’re going to have to find a way to bring this to a vote,” Bloomberg said.
“If it goes to a vote, it should pass overwhelmingly.”
The mayor said he remains optimistic.
“The Albany Legislature did what was right in 2002. In the end, they will do what’s right [now],” he said.
He wants the Senate to pass the Assembly bill he negotiated with Speaker Sheldon Silver (D-Manhattan) and Education Committee Chairwoman Cathy Nolan (D-Queens) that largely preserves mayoral control, but adds more oversight and parental input.
He said the senators — who haven’t conducted business in two weeks — have forfeited their right to negotiate any substantive changes.
And he noted the Assembly voted 121-18 to extend mayoral control.
“This is not a narrow, close issue,” he said.
“A vast majority of people said it should be done. The Senate has got to take up the Assembly bill and pass it. This is not the time to start negotiating.”
The Assembly bill has been introduced in the Senate by Frank Padavan (R-Queens).
Senate Republican leader Dean Skelos (LI) said he has 31 votes to pass the Assembly bill, and has encouraged Bloomberg to put the heat on the Democrats to provide the 32nd vote.