Paterson admits role in Kennedy withdrawal flap: report

[Jeep789]

Source: Reuters

NEW YORK (Reuters) – New York Gov. David Paterson has acknowledged ordering his staff to deny that Caroline Kennedy had been his first choice following her withdrawal from consideration to replace Hillary Clinton as senator, The New York Times reported on Saturday.

But in his first admission to any role in the matter of how Kennedy's withdrawal was portrayed, Paterson told the paper in a telephone interview he had never intended anything on the order of what he termed "character assassination."

Paterson said in the interview on Friday that he was bewildered when members of his staff harshly attacked Kennedy, who was considered a strong candidate to replace Clinton, the then secretary of state nominee.

Rather, Paterson said he meant for them to challenge the Kennedy camp position that she had been his first choice for the job.



Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090221/ts_nm/us_usa_politics_paterson

[bottomtheweaver]

1. "bewildered" to the tune of a million dollars.

http://blogs.villagevoice.com/runninscared/archives/2009/01/the_pudgy_papa.php

[Octafish]

4. A couple of hidden hands, exposed, and they're attached to D'Amato.

Thanks for the article, bottomtheweaver. Spells things out very well.

[bottomtheweaver]

8. Thanks Octafish. Pay-to-play doesn't get any more obvious,

but Blago and Burris are the ones who get character assassinated for it. Funny how that works.

[Octafish]

15. As long as the Kennedys lose, the players are happy.

I'm a Kennedy Democrat. It'll be a while before I'm able to rest.

[bottomtheweaver]

17. The game hasn't changed much since 1963 has it?

And no one does a better job of documenting the cold hard facts than you.

:yourock:

[Cha]

13. I'm so disgusted with that

whole thing..I was liking Paterson until this was exposed.

You don't character assassinate Caroline Kennedy in the New York papers, idiot..no wonder she dropped out.

[bottomtheweaver]

16. It's pretty discouraging.

It would have taken a pretty secure base of support to go up against D'Amato and Clinton, and Paterson is basically a small fish in a big pond, so I guess he rightly figured they would have done to him what they did to Caroline if he didn't play ball with them. But he didn't have to help them add insult to injury.

[Cha]

18. Karma has a way of taking

care of assholes.

[deminks]

2. Asswipe.

He hired a Bushie, and then he's shocked that the Bushie did a character assassination. A character assassination on an icon. Say what you will about whether she (Caroline) deserved consideration or not, her treatment from the gov was indeed despicable.

So, is it the Bushie that no longer works for you, gov dear?





:grr:

[liskddksil]

3. This guy needs to be primaried

so sleezy.

[w4rma]

5. Both him and his Senatorial pick need their clocks cleaned. (nt)

[Native]

6. when he introduced her, did that whole love fest just make you want to vomit?

and I'd like to thank my maid, my first grade teacher, the wonderful florist down the street, my shoe salesman, the hot dog vendor on the corner, and all the people who made this possible. But most of all, I'd like to thank God and my dead great aunt Lucille, who I know is looking down on me with tears of joy. What an ass kissing exercise that was! You'd think she'd grown up down the street from everyone that was on the stage with her.

[Cha]

14. I just had a feeling I wouldn't like

what was coming out of her mouth..The gut does it again!

[TheWraith]

7. Well, he's in trouble, but she's going to be pretty safe.

Mostly he's in trouble because of a combination of the state budget cuts being pretty nasty, and the fact that he doesn't have well established relationships with the rest of the state.

Really though I think it would be a bit of a shame if he got tromped out of office. Yes, some things have been messed up, but the guy came into office under tough circumstances, and most of the nonsense over the Caroline Kennedy thing was the creation of the media and some people in NY politics who saw her as the "enemy" for endorsing Obama in the primaries.

[w4rma]

9. She's no safer than he is. She's already behind in her polls for her upcoming primary. (nt)

[TheWraith]

10. Polling 20 months before the election is rather dubious...

Particularly when there's 39% undecided.

[w4rma]

11. My point is that her primary opponent is already beating her, therefore she's not safe. (nt)

[TheWraith]

19. And I'm saying that that poll doesn't reflect where things are likely to be in a year.

90% of the negativity on Gillibrand is really blowback from the governor and media speculation about the Senate pick. Combine that with the fact that she's not very well known yet, and that most of the Democratic vote is in New York City, where McCarthy is much better known.

Combine that with the fact that McCarthy's loudly pro-Iraq-War record and opposition to gay marriage won't sit well with New Yorkers compared to Gillibrand being anti-way and pro-gay-marriage. The ONLY thing McCarthy has to run on is being rabidly pro-gun-control, and frankly I doubt that many people in New York City are going to vote based on who they think will reinstate the Federal Assault Weapons Ban when New York already has one of its own.

So while a poll might say something right now, the circumstances are definitely going to change over the next year or so.

[w4rma]

20. You may be right. I didn't know these things about McCarthy. (nt)

[midnight]

12. I'm now wondering what if any comments were passed on about

his former boss-Eliot Spitzer?

[No Elephants]

21. Hire a Rove protege and then express bewilderment about character

assassination? Give me a damn break, will you?

The good news is that everyone knows Patterson mishandled the whole event and this excuse is lose lose. If you disbelieve him, then you have to think he's a liar and a coward. If youbelieve him, then you have to think he's as dumb as post and cannot control his people. Lose lose.

[bosbdd2009]

22. Do You Know?

If the rumor about her having an affair with the NY Times reporter was ever confirmed. And does anyone know where that rumor started. I heard it reported by a few people in the media, jerks like O'Reilly and Hannity, and then nothing.

I also heard that Hillary supporters who were mad at her for supporting Obama may have started that rumor to smear her. Does anyone have info about any of that.