Link- NY TIMES: Paterson Says He Will Run, Rejecting Call From Obama
“President Obama had sent a request to Mr. Paterson that he withdraw from the New York governor’s race, fearing that Mr. Paterson cannot recover from his dismal political standing, according to two senior administration officials and a New York Democratic operative with direct knowledge of the situation.”
I have two main issues here:
1. The Story-
Gov. Paterson is the man who took over for the disgraced Eliot Spitzer following his prostitution scandal, and he was the unlucky man who is had to deal with the fallout from that disgrace. He is currently the sitting Governor of New York. (He is also legally blind... not that that should play an issue here.) He also is not enjoying very favorable polling numbers at the moment due to a wide range of issues, some his fault, some not.
What I don’t get is why in the world is Obama getting involved with political races at a state level. Before you say "all Presidents have done that, it's nothing new," I agree with you. But why Obama didn't just send some henchmen to pass his word along, instead of opening this up to the media, I don't know. Seems like everyone from the White House Spokesman to the White House Janitor has been briefed on this one. This should be the job of Tim Kaine, the chairman of the DNC.
Frankly, if his numbers are so bad, he probably won’t make it through the primaries. I think we should let the democratic process run it’s course here and let the people decide. If New York doesn’t want him, New York won’t have him. We don’t need a “holiest of holies” committee deciding who can and can’t run for office before the election takes place… like they do it Iran by the way. Obama should worry about running this country and getting America on track, not whether his party might lose strategic positioning in New York.
Although I don't think this is the main reason, all this seems to come down to is petty politics, which Obama has time and time again said his Administration would be above. This is one of many references in the article to how Gov. Paterson has miffed Obama and Democratic leaders in Washington.
- “Making matters worse, the governor also publicly snubbed Caroline Kennedy, a close personal friend and ally of Mr. Obama’s, who announced in December her wish to be chosen as Mrs. Clinton’s replacement, but then withdrew her name from consideration in January, citing personal reasons."
Gotta hate when a governor is making decisions for what he thinks is best for his state.
2. The Article-
So if you don't know, the NY Times is know to have a donkey (aka liberal) slant. This is no secret. But after reading the entire piece I can't help but wonder how they could not ask the same questions I am asking above. They call it an "extraordinary intervention" and a "delicate" move. Those are very carefully placed words as to not "bite the hand that feeds you" in my opinion. Nowhere does it point out that he needs to get his hands out the cookie jar. They don’t belong in this cookie jar.
This article does leave out some interesting facts as well. The article hints that this "delicate" move would allow Obama to support New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo to run on the Democratic ticket for governor. (Interestingly, he holds the spot last held by Mr. Spitzer.) Who was Mr. Cuomo married to? None other than Mary Kerry Kennedy, the seventh child of Robert F. Kennedy and member of the Kennedy clan. They are now divorced but interesting none the less.
In Closing-
- “The message the White House wanted to send — that it wants Paterson to step aside — was delivered,” said the Democratic operative, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the discussions were intended to be confidential. “He is resistant.""
I hope Governor Paterson wins.
