ALBANY &#8212 If Joe Bruno has learned one thing as he awaits sentencing this afternoon on

his corruption conviction, it is that political friendships can be fleeting.

&#8220Bruno who?&#8221 Sen. Martin Golden, R-Brooklyn, said when asked about Bruno&#8217s

fate.

&#8220No comment,&#8221 said Sen. George Maziarz, R-Newfane.

&#8220No,&#8221 said Sen. Catherine Young, R-Olean, when asked if she wanted to discuss

Bruno.

Bruno, as State Senate majority leader, led the Republican conference for 14 years,

steering state money and campaign contributions into districts of fellow Republicans that

propped them up politically. He ensured that Senate district lines were redrawn in 2002 to

protect Republicans, at least for a few more elections, in this blue state.

When he wasn&#8217t negotiating on their behalf as one of Albany&#8217s three men in a

room, Bruno served as the front man for Senate Republicans, soaking in the praise but also

enduring the criticisms.

Now Bruno is facing a possible prison term of eight years or more if federal prosecutors

get their way, which could be a life sentence for the 81-year-old. And his former Senate GOP

colleagues have largely abandoned him &#8212 at least publicly.

&#8220Obviously, the moon dance that they&#8217re doing in terms of staying away from him

is a matter of trying not to be soiled, if you will, by his conviction,&#8221 Sen. Bill

Perkins, D-Manhattan, said of Senate Republicans.

Perkins was one of two senators &#8212 both Democrats &#8212 who turned up in the gallery

at Bruno&#8217s trial that ended with the Rensselaer County Republican&#8217s conviction in

December.

&#8220It shows you what friendship is like here. It&#8217s fleeting when the handcuffs are

dangled,&#8221 Perkins said.

&#8220Truman said if you want a friend in Washington, get a dog. It applies in Albany,

too,&#8221 said Philip Klinkner, a political scientist at Hamilton College.

Dozens of letters have been sent to U.S. District Judge Gary L. Sharpe in Albany by a mix

of friends, officials and New Yorkers claiming no ties to Bruno, urging the judge to be

lenient on him. There also have been letters asking Sharpe to sentence him to the maximum.

But not one Senate Republican has sent a letter. Privately, they say their hands are tied.

While they like Bruno and some still call him a friend, the timing could not be worse: Senate

Republicans are trying to win back the Senate this fall amid rising voter anger toward

politicians.

Being photographed next to Bruno outside the courthouse this afternoon, or last year during

the trial, would certainly not look good in a campaign mailing, lawmakers say.

&#8220Joe is standing on his own, and we are what we are. This is a different world

today,&#8221 Sen. Dale Volker, R-Depew, who worked alongside Bruno for 32 years, said of what

he called a growing anti-politician sentiment among the public.

Besides, Volker said, Senate Republicans believe Bruno&#8217s fate has already been sealed

and there would be little point in writing letters of support to the judge. &#8220I don&#8217t

think there&#8217s anything most of us believe we could do. The judge has already made his

decision,&#8221 said Volker, who is retiring this year.

Like some other Senate Republicans, Volker believes Bruno will be sentenced to prison this

afternoon and not, as Bruno&#8217s lawyers have requested, probation and restitution.

But Bruno&#8217s backers are also eagerly awaiting a decision &#8212 expected in the coming

weeks &#8212 from the U.S. Supreme Court on the constitutionality of the statute under which

Bruno was convicted. That federal law, heavily used by prosecutors in recent years but derided

as vague by defense attorneys, makes it a crime to deprive another of an &#8220intangible

right to honest services.&#8221

In Bruno&#8217s &#8220honest services&#8221 conviction, prosecutors convinced jurors that

the former lawmaker, who resigned in 2008, expanded his personal fortune by using his powerful

position to make outside deals with private companies and individuals, some with business

before the state.

Of course, election-year politics is playing a part in the lack of public sympathy offered

by Bruno&#8217s Republican colleagues.

Democrats last year took control of the Senate, albeit with a slim 32-30 edge, after 70

years of GOP dominance. As the two sides fight it out in advance of the November elections,

Democrats have not been shy about bringing up the Bruno corruption conviction.

But Democrats have their own problems, led by active federal or state corruption

investigations of Democrats Senate Majority Leader Pedro Espada of the Bronx and Senate

President Malcolm Smith of Queens.

Among politicians who are talking, the reaction to the Bruno sentencing has been mixed.

Former Republican Gov. George E. Pataki, who had his battles with Bruno, wrote the judge

Tuesday, urging him to consider the former senator&#8217s accomplishments.

Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, D-Manhattan, had a hot-and-cold relationship with Bruno

when they led their respective chambers during three gubernatorial administrations.

&#8220I have no thought,&#8221 he said when asked about Bruno&#8217s sentencing.

&#8220It&#8217s in the judicial process. He was a senator. I&#8217m an assemblyman. He was a

Republican. I&#8217m a Democrat. So, he wasn&#8217t my former colleague.&#8221

Indeed, Albany itself is a changed town. Legislators used to furiously fight over policy

during the day and then hit the Albany restaurant scene at night as friends.

Today, Albany is defined by severe partisan bickering &#8212 and corruption. Over the past

five years, the Capitol has been rocked by scandal, with lawmakers going to jail, a governor

resigning over his prostitution visits, a state comptroller convicted of corruption and the

current governor under investigation.

Golden, the Brooklyn senator, said he will be busy doing constituent work back in his district

today and so can't make the sentencing.

"I feel sorry for Joe Bruno and his family, and it's a tragedy and it's a shame to see so

many years of service to the state of New York to have ended this way. But, unfortunately, it

seems to be a culture here lately," he said.

"You know, it seems harsh for a person who is 81 years old," Senate Minority Leader Dean

Skelos, a Nassau County Republican who briefly held Bruno's post before Democrats took over,

recently said of a possible eight-year prison term.

Bruno's leadership style may have also cost him friends in the end. While affable with a big

personality in public, he also ran a tight ship that tolerate little dissension.

"Bruno was probably respected in some ways and feared in other ways, but I don't know how

well-liked he was. He maintained power in the old fashioned way by dispensing carrots and

sticks," Klinkner said.

During the trial, Sen. Eric Adams, a Brooklyn Democrat, attended and sat in the front row

with Bruno family members. He said he went to learn about the honest services law, but also to

show his support for Bruno, who he said helped him make the transition from his former career

as a New York City police officer to a state senator.

"I wanted to show my moral support for a colleague," Adams said.

Adams said he won't comment on the sentencing.

"I have never been a fair weather friend." Adams said. "All of us are going to go through

some turbulent times in our lives. If all we have are fair weather friends, we're all in

trouble. So, I was surprised others did not attend [the trial].

"I hope the best for him," Adams added before walking off.