The New York Observer » David Paterson

Paterson to Warn Grads of the Crushing Disappointment Ahead

Gov. David Paterson is slated to deliver the commencement address at Paul Smith's College in the Adirondacks next month, and he told The Politicker that he hopes to warn the grads not to get discouraged in the unforgiving real world they are about to enter.

"What I want to convey to them is, unfortunately, some of Read More

Roundup: Sweetening Pensions, Counting Homeless

Executive Pay: New York tops the list. [Stateline.org]

Police Scandal: "Police Headquarters and City Hall, where officials are preparing for a police scandal the likes of which the city has not felt in decades." [Murray Weiss]

2012: Trump "is making a fundamental miscalculation about what we can get away with." Critics wonder "has all Read More

Condé Nast Bonanza! A Manic Monday For Mag Moguls at the Grill

Monday was extremely busy--but don't worry, everyone was safe; Commissioner Kelly presided at one of the central tables in the Grill! Across the room, Governor Paterson was eating fruit salad with Bill White.

Peter Brandt was also here, looking very sharp in a gray pinstriped double-breasted suit--no wonder he's back with his gorgeous wife! The whole Read More

Paterson on His Legacy, Governing Blind, And Kirsten Gillibrand

In this morning's Observer, I wrote about David Paterson's budget extender brinksmanship and the lasting impact it might have on how business is conducted at the state Capitol.

While most Albany observers seem to consider the new tool to be his administration's lasting legacy, the former governor said he was most proud of his stewardship Read More

Paterson Also Rises: Former Governor Claims a Victory, at Last

Buried in the New York Post's exultant coverage of Andrew Cuomo's on-time budget agreement with the Legislature in Albany was a remarkable, easily missable tribute to a governor whom the Post, in general, likes somewhat less.

Despite a "dismal" record in office, David Paterson (along with another predecessor, George Pataki) "helped blaze the path that Read More

Paterson Calls Cuomo’s Task Forces ‘Brilliant,’ Fears Only Bicycles

Former Governor David Paterson has high praise for the budget battle being waged by his successor, Andrew Cuomo.

"I really like the task forces he put together to give people a chance to air their differences to each other personally, which I think is actually brilliant," Paterson said yesterday in Brooklyn.

"What the governor is doing is, Read More

Before Day 1

This letter, from former Governor Paterson is hanging on the wall in the New York Observer's conference room. In it, Paterson politely declines my publisher's $5 Starbucks giftcard, due to the strict nature of Albany's ethics rules.

I officially start here tomorrow, but couldn't resist sharing Read More

Scandal One of Top Reasons NY Pols Leave Office, Report Says

Want a new legislator? Looks like there's a better chance of them get caught with their hand in the cookie jar or posting fun, flirty classifieds on CraigsList than getting voted out of office.

A report released today says that one of every 11 legislators who left office since 1999 has done so on account Read More

For Some Reason, BlackRock Promises to Deliver 200 New York Jobs Next Year

Governor David Paterson today announced that BlackRock, the world's largest asset manager, has promised to have 1,530 New York jobs by the end of this year and add another 200 New York jobs over the course of 2011.

By way of comparison, the New York Department of Labor says that the state lost 15,600 Read More

In Other News…: Courtney Love Is the New Tinsley Mortimer! Be Very Afraid

- The MTA wants to ruin our lives and take all our money. Tell me something I don't know. But the fact that they're predictable doesn't make the $104 Metrocard any less painful.

- Jerry Garcia's house is for sale. The listing photos. Are. Hilarious. Trust us. Sneak preview above.

- Paterson talks Read More

Inside the Paterson Bunker: Newly Released Emails Document an Aide’s Moment of Disgrace

"I'm looking at the calendar each day and I'm so sad ... he is working soooo hard," wrote Karen Boykin-Towns to one of Governor David Paterson's top aides, David Johnson, on Jan. 22.

It was the Friday of what had been a very bad week in the press for those rooting for Mr. Paterson--lackluster poll Read More

Lit Up: Paterson ‘Frustrated’ With Cigarette Tax Delay

For the moment, bargain-hunting smokers can still hike upstate to Indian reservations for cheap cartons of cigarettes — and David Paterson is less than pleased. In June, the Governor signed the far-reaching bill that would force retailers on reservations to buy cigarettes at fully taxed wholesale prices. The ordinance was set to go into effect Wednesday, Read More

Indian Reservations Smoked Out: Judge Tells Paterson He Can Tax Cigarettes

Nicotine-fiending New Yorkers may stop making the trek upstate in search of cheap cartons. A ruling yesterday by a Buffalo judge put down an effort fronted by the Seneca Indian Nation to keep the cigarettes sold on Indian reservations tax-free, the Post reports. Gov. Paterson, concerned over the number of smokers who make the pilgrimage to avoid Read More

Paterson’s Self-Described Legacy: Cuts

On a call with reporters today, which Governor Paterson held to chat about the completed budget, the lame-duck governor was asked about what he now views as his legacy.

Acknowledging he hadn't yet done much introspection, he took a Chris Christie-esque line—albeit with less zeal—and pointed to his proven record as a budget slasher:

"In Read More

David Paterson’s Shame

Here's how low the bar is in Albany these days: There was a collective sigh of relief on the second floor of the State Capitol last week when a report about the conduct of the governor and his aides concluded that they exercised poor judgment, but they didn't commit a crime.

In a Read More