Big Mike, Uncle Dan and Me

How I Beat 20th Century New York State's Most Corrupt Political Machine

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Pub Date 31 May 2020 | Archive Date 03 Sep 2020

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Description

As District Attorney, Thomas E. Dewey cracked Tammany Hall, one of the nation’s most powerful and corrupt political machines. Yet, as Governor, in spite of all his state’s resources, Dewey could not crack O’Connell and Big Mike’s Upper New York State machine. Only the Citizens Party, a ragtag group of independent, inexperienced, democratically minded reform activists, could.

The story takes place in the 1960s and 1970s in Cohoes, New York. Cohoes played a major role in the industrialization and unionization of America in the past, but now it is in economic decline, suffering, like many Rust Belt cities, from urban blight, the concentration of poverty, and the exodus to suburbia.

This is the never-before-told story of how a group of first-generation idealistic college graduates, led by Dr. Van Buskirk, formed the independent Citizens Party in Cohoes and triumphed over the local arm of the notoriously corrupt and entrenched Albany County Democratic Party. It is also the first public accounting of how infighting ultimately destroyed the Citizens Party.

 This David vs. Goliath tale begins with an overview of how Michael “Big Mike” Tecumseh Smith founded and ran the political machinery in Cohoes in the first half of the 20th century. It then details how the Democratic Party’s subsequent alignment with Albany’s Democratic powerhouse Dan O’Connell ensured that the machine was impossible to crack. Smith’s powerful but inept political heirs remained in office until Dr. Van Buskirk, rejecting his own prominent Republican family’s views, publicly agitated for change. The Citizens Party’s 1963 win over the Democrats was achieved thanks to Van Buskirk’s ruthless, methodical organizing, which the New York Herald Tribune described as a “take no prisoners, go for the jugular” approach. 


About the Author:

DR. PAUL VAN BUSKIRK is a licensed engineer, a nationally recognized city planner, and an accomplished educator described in Legendary Locals of Cohoes (2013) as “one of the greatest political leaders in the city’s history” and recognized by the Albany Times Union (1966) as a “political giant” for his role in overthrowing the Cohoes arm of the Albany Democratic political machine.

At the age of 31, Dr. Van Buskirk was selected for the “Distinguished Service Award” by the Albany County Junior Chamber of Commerce for his leading role in many civic projects and for helping his city be recognized as an All-America City. Look Magazine (1967) credited Dr. Van Buskirk for his role in “breaking the grip of an entranced political machine that had used every trick to stay in power.” The New York Times (1973) also published a piece on his use of state-of-the-art management techniques to revitalize the city he grew up in.

Dr. Van Buskirk studied engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) and received his PhD from Barry University of Miami in the behavior sciences, where he is the recipient of the 2020 Distinguished Alumni Award. Other acknowledgements include the National Science Foundation Award and the Charles Evans Hughes Award from the American Society for Public Administration for his “courageous and imaginative work” in local government. In 2020, Dr. Van Buskirk was inducted into the American Institute of Certified Planners College of Fellows.

As District Attorney, Thomas E. Dewey cracked Tammany Hall, one of the nation’s most powerful and corrupt political machines. Yet, as Governor, in spite of all his state’s resources, Dewey could not...


A Note From the Publisher

Author is available for interviews, blog tours, autographed tours, autographed book giveaways, contests, and book club discussions.

Author is available for interviews, blog tours, autographed tours, autographed book giveaways, contests, and book club discussions.


Advance Praise

 “Paul’s book is a definite page-turner, a human-interest story full of political intrigue and betrayal. It has uncanny parallels with today’s political climate.” – Robert Signoracci, Past Chairman of the Albany County Democratic Committee

 “Paul’s book is a definite page-turner, a human-interest story full of political intrigue and betrayal. It has uncanny parallels with today’s political climate.” – Robert Signoracci, Past Chairman...


Available Editions

EDITION Other Format
ISBN 9781098307981
PRICE $19.95 (USD)
PAGES 258

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