Cuomo’s on his way

Opinion

March 17, 2010

Naming an independent counsel in the Paterson probe was a wise move

Anonymous The Daily Freeman of Kingston The Lockport Union-Sun %26 Journal Wed Mar 17, 2010, 11:51 PM EDT

LOCKPORT — The stars are aligning for Andrew Cuomo.

There’s still the little matter of a campaign followed by an election for him to hurdle, but if Cuomo doesn’t win November’s gubernatorial contest, it could go down as the biggest upset in the history of New York politics.

Here’s Cuomo, the state’s popular attorney general, son of a former governor, and the ultimate political operative, who has made few mistakes in his climb to the Executive Mansion (save for the big one of alienating the minority political establishment in 2002 when he foolishly challenged African-American state Comptroller H. Carl McCall for the Democratic nomination for governor), plotting a careful path to victory in 2010.

Building a favorable reputation as attorney general (just as did Eliot Spitzer before him, remember?), Cuomo has bided his time, not yet officially declaring for office and allowing unpopular David Paterson, the accidental governor, to self-destruct. Meanwhile, Cuomo has been working at (not necessarily with success) wallpapering his well-earned, longtime reputation as Albany’s Mr. Nasty.

With Republicans coming up with no better presumed opponent so far than Rick Lazio, a former congressman and unsuccessful U.S. Senate candidate, and Paterson formally dropping out of the race, Cuomo has clear sailing, it appears.

But there is the matter of Paterson’s legal/ethics problems, some of which have landed in AG Cuomo’s lap.

That was a political pothole for Cuomo to navigate. So last week, Cuomo recused himself from the investigation and named the highly respected former Chief Judge Judith Kaye as an independent counsel to probe allegations that Paterson illegally secured World Series tickets and tried to interfere in a domestic violence case involving his top aide.

“This is a legal determination as to what is the best way to conduct an investigation,” Cuomo said. “... I want to make sure this is an investigation that is as free from political interference as is possible.”

He sure does. Because that aforementioned clear sailing toward the Executive Mansion was beginning to encounter choppy water, at least according to a Marist College poll, which showed Cuomo’s approval rating falling in the wake of the Paterson matter, particularly among the accidental governor’s African-American base.

Since Cuomo didn’t create the charges against Paterson, it’s likely the attorney general’s numbers will stabilize now that he can say he’s taken the high ground and handed off the investigation.

As the old saying goes, plenty can happen between now and Election Day. Once Cuomo gets the nomination, his past will be explored, flaws and all. His time as Bill Clinton’s secretary of Housing and Urban Development will be examined, particularly in light of the mortgage crisis that nearly brought down the nation’s economy years after he left office. His personal life, including a messy divorce with one of the Kennedy clan, will be fodder, as well.

But Cuomo got past all that in winning the attorney general’s job and he’s pretty much standing tall today.

His appointment of Judge Kaye as independent counsel is wise for him and the investigation.

—

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