Paladino backs away from property tax cap

PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. - On a tour of "Mad as Hell" rallies through northern New York Friday, Carl Paladino backed off his support for a property tax cap, saying he would instead seek to cut tax bills by slashing government spending.

Paladino, the Republican nominee for governor, had advocated a 2 percent cap on property taxes as an interim measure to slow homeowner expenses. It was a position similar to that of his Democratic opponent, Andrew Cuomo, the state attorney general.

But Paladino said Friday that he had given people the mistaken impression that he wasn't serious about cutting taxes.

"It was foolish and it was always taken out of context," he told reporters in Saratoga Springs. "I don't want people having the impression that we're agreeable to a cap. We're going to cut taxes - cut, cut, cut."

The Buffalo developer also refused to apologize for calling Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) a "little girl" at a Nassau GOP rally Thursday in Hicksville. In a statement Friday, Gillibrand called the remark "offensive to women and unacceptable in any circumstance."

"Well, that's just too bad," Paladino said of Gillibrand's statement. "She's offended? I don't care; it doesn't matter."

Later here, Paladino cut off a live television interview with a local CBS affiliate and walked away when asked about Gillibrand's comments. "She wants to talk trash, she can talk to someone else," Paladino said.

Paladino was greeted by enthusiastic audiences throughout his swing through the Albany region and the Adirondacks. Standing on the steps of the Capitol in Albany in a drizzle, Paladino drew cheers from a crowd of about 40 when he pointed at the building and mocked lawmakers.

"We're going to hose this building down after we take out the trash," he said. He added that he supported Gov. David A. Paterson's plan to fire nearly 900 state employees but warned of more layoffs if he wins the election on Tuesday.

Paladino, who has vowed to "take a baseball bat to Albany" to cut taxes and spending and root out government corruption, has sought to channel voter discontent with slogans such as "I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take it anymore." But Friday at a stop at a Glens Falls restaurant, he objected to being called "angry."

"I'm not angry. Saying you're 'mad as hell' is a phrase, it comes from a movie and it describes the frustration of an individual," Paladino said, referring to the 1976 movie "Network."

At the Westside Grille, nestled in the Adirondack Mountains in Glens Falls, supporters said that message was resonating upstate, even if Paladino was being disparaged in the media as "crazy."

"Maybe crazy is what we need to get this state out of the situation we're in," said Warren County Republican chairman Mike Grasso said as he introduced Paladino to wild cheers.

With James T. Madore