Editorial: White House meddling in Albany

It is beyond discussion that David Paterson's term as governor is a monumental disappointment. Few if any serious people suggest bright prospects for improvement. Arguably, Paterson's tenure was doomed when his trusted aide and gatekeeper Charles O'Byrne was forced to resign in a tax scandal. Paterson is legally blind and relied on O'Byrne to play a role The New York Times has described as "the center of the intricate system that Mr. Paterson and his closest aides established to allow the governor to work efficiently." Paterson never recovered from O'Byrne's departure and even considered rehiring him back in February. Paterson is a smart man — anyone who's heard him give a speech knows it — but is clearly not a strong executive.  O'Byrne himself can be viewed as a symbol of Paterson's inept management style — it's true Paterson entered office in a hurry after his predecessor resigned, but an aide at that level should have been vetted carefully, no matter what, before a newspaper could get around to making an embarrassing revelation. So Paterson has not been a good governor and there's no reason he should be given a full term to prove us wrong, but that's really the voters' decision to make. With the Governor's current approval rating at about 20 percent it's more than likely a primary between Paterson and just about anyone would have put him out of his political misery. However, it seems not everyone agrees it should be up to the voters. President Obama is trying to muscle Paterson out of running for re-election, it was reported this weekend. Then, in a speech in Albany, the President made chummy remarks about Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, whose candidacy he clearly favors. The problem is somewhat contradictory. First, as a statement of principle, head of the Democratic Party or not, it's none of Mr. Obama's business who runs for governor in New York. If he favors machine-style politics — not the change he promised — let him meddle back home in Chicago. The contradiction, however, is that this is not the first time Mr. Obama has done this. Aided by Senator Schumer, the President also scared off potential challengers to Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (whose botched appointment is another lingering proof of Paterson's ineptitude). As someone who has recently spoken with the newly minted senator described it, “There didn't seem to be that much there, there.” In other words, if first impressions count for anything, she's no Moynihan, or even Hillary. Now, while we're likely to have a more able governor one of these days, the benefits of incumbency, aided by the President's and Schumer's interference, mean we're likely to be saddled with Gillibrand for a long, long time.