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Gov. Paterson waffles, fibs, bungles and mumbles - but he doesn't resolve

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CPBO

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Gov. Paterson waffles, fibs, bungles and mumbles - but he doesn't resolve

 

 

 

Gov. Paterson is not such a nice guy after all, writes Michael Daly.

 

Take our pollPaterson's problem

What do you think is the main reason for Gov. Paterson's drop in the polls?

 

 

Perception of a dysfunctional management style.

 

 

 

His handling of the search for a replacement for Hillary Clinton's seat.

 

 

 

Economic forces that are beyond his control.

 

 

 

It was bad enough when it was three, the governor, the Senate majority leader and the speaker of the Assembly, up in Albany deciding behind closed doors too much of what we can and cannot do down here in the city.

 

Now, when we need a strong governor more than at any time since the Great Depression, when we face a historic budget crisis and the possibility of a $2.50 subway fare, we have a guy who is at most half what he should be.

 

When we need resolve, he waffles.

 

When we need honesty, he fibs.

 

When we need competence, he bungles.

 

When we need leadership, he mumbles.

 

And, it turns out, he is not such a nice guy after all. Just witness the smear of Caroline Kennedy for which he refused to accept responsibility.

 

His behavior in that bizarre interlude caused the whole city to ask, "Who is this guy, anyway?"

 

Then, the person chosen to replace Hillary Clinton in the U.S. Senate was Rep. Kirsten Gillibrand.

 

Doubts about Paterson's judgment were confirmed at the announcement by the sight of senator-turned-lobbyist Al (Hungry Al) D'Amato on the stage with Gillibrand as if he were measuring her for strings.

 

Worse, we discovered that Paterson had picked someone who is cuddly with the National Rifle Association.

 

Innocent kids were getting killed by stray rounds and Paterson picked somebody who is pro-gun.

 

At least Gillibrand accepted an invitation from a Brooklyn high school to meet the classmates of a student who had been gunned down.

 

Paterson was also invited, but he never showed.

 

A special election will be held next week for Gillibrand's replacement in Congress.

 

We could have long ago held a special election for a governor to succeed Eliot Spitzer, but Article IV of the state Constitution calls for the lieutenant governor to serve out the rest of the resigning governor's term.

 

What voter would have thought back in 2006 that the guy on the ballot for lieutenant governor might be running the state in a time of direst emergency?

 

Paterson certainly seemed eminently qualified for the office to which he was actually elected. A lieutenant governor does essentially nothing. Paterson had been doing exactly that, first as a state senator and then as the Senate minority leader.

 

The system that produced Paterson has often been described as the "most dysfunctional" Legislature in America. The Senate majority leader and the speaker of the Assembly decided who got what funding and which bills reached the floor. Less than 1% of bills received any public hearing. Every bill that came to a vote passed.

 

"Neither house voted down a single bill," a 2006 study noted.

 

A secret 2005 report - obtained by the Daily News' Elizabeth Benjamin - on the minority leader's office during Paterson's tenure notes that one staffer's entire duties consisted of ensuring there was paper in the copy machine.

 

Paterson had no real duties at all, right up to the day he replaced Spitzer.

 

The irony is that because he is a stunted product of the three-men-in-a-room system, Paterson was really only half a governor when he suddenly became one of them.

 

Among other shortcomings, he has been unable to push through the MTA rescue plan even though his party is the majority in both houses.

 

Monday, Paterson told the MTA to go ahead and prepare for big service cuts and a huge fare hike in case the Legislature does not see reason.

 

Our half-governor uttered a platitude about democracy and consensus, as if we really had a functional Legislature and there were no men in a room at all.

 

mdaly@nydailynews.com

 

 

What we already knew!!! :tdown:

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TransitGuy

TransitGuy

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Patterson is just a seat filler, he has no talent...not sure why Spitzer chose him as his right hand. Getting stuck with this idiot in the midst of this economic crisis is the worst thing for us New Yorkers

 

Agreed, in addition, his overall attitude and stance on everything is ridiculous. NY is in for a trip. I just hope this fool doesn't get elected again and the replacement can help us out. What a loser...

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