Paterson’s pickle

The recent news about Governor Paterson's decision not to seek re-election should not come as a shock to many.

Even though he has been in office for less than two years, the governor has been plagued by scandals since his administration began.

This all started with the resignation of his predecessor, Eliot Spitzer, due to a prostitution scandal. Shortly thereafter, Paterson came out saying that he cheated on his wife, and used campaign funds for his hotel trysts.

His first big job as governor was selecting somebody to replace Hillary Clinton's senate seat after she became secretary of state. He thoroughly botched this task by dropping Caroline Kennedy as a potential candidate at the last minute and berating her in the media.

His incompetence culminated with his press conference last week, where he adamantly denied any wrongdoing in the alleged abuse of power concerning his top aide.

Paterson has been accused of abusing power by using state police to cover up for his aide, David Johnson. Johnson was involved in a domestic abuse case, and the police persuaded his victim to drop her case against him.

All of this came to light immediately after Paterson chastised Hiram Monserrate, who had a domestic abuse case of his own and was expelled from the state senate.

As New Yorkers, we have all witnessed — and collectively rolled our eyes at — the dire state of politics in Albany. It has come to the point where we don't even react or feel shocked at the alarming amount of corruption that goes on.

One may wonder why Paterson has declined to run again. He had previously stated that he would run again no matter what people thought. He's not any more or less corrupt than anyone else in Albany, either.

From the moment his approval ratings declined, the Obama administration made it clear that they did not want him to run again. It is unusual for the national government to step into local politics and make their opinions known to the public at large.

One possible reason is that Paterson's potential loss would be a humongous blow to the Democratic Party and could help the Republicans win by a landslide. If a huge Democratic stronghold such as New York had a Republican governor, it would help the GOP win seats nationwide.

Democrats across the country are in a precarious position because of high unemployment rates, intense political gridlock, unpopularity and a rise in populist sentiments from the masses.

Covering up domestic abuse by using state police and general incompetence is an extremely serious matter that needs to be investigated. Perhaps it's good that somebody like Paterson is not running for re-election.

Paterson's negative publicity is a combination of bad luck, bad timing, unethical behavior and gross incompetence. Attorney General Andrew Cuomo will most likely run in the upcoming election, and he is considered a strong contender for governor.