The N.Y. Post's F.U. Dicker and NY Sun's Jacob Gershman both report that Gov. Pataki is sending signals that he isn't interested in you-know-what. Aides to the governor say he's not hip to the idea of calling a special session in December because the seriously-underpaid legislators have not offered enough in terms of a fair deal.

What might these protestations suggest? Put your seatbelt on, let the horse-trading begin and keep your calendars clear for December...

UPDATE: Sen. Malcolm Smith (D-Queens,) who was unanimously elected minority leader today, said in his first talk with members that he favors legislative pay raises because they work so hard, haven't had a raise in 8-years and because their pals at the NYC Council just voted for their own pay raises too.

UPDATE II: Looks like the horse-trading is already underway, behind-the-scenes. In light of an anti-Pataki ruling from the Court of Appeals today on the issue of civil confinement, Pataki announced that a special session would be called "in the coming days" to discuss legislation surrounding the issue. This would be a good time for Charter Chuck to get busy guiding students/parents/board members/supporters/etc. on the letter writing, phone calling crusade.