[nfb-talk] Fwd: Friends and foes both respect Paterson

[David Andrews]

>
>N.Y.'s lieutenant governor
>Friends and foes both respect Paterson
>Blind Harlem Democrat described as brilliant, compassionate and congenial
>Tuesday,  March 11, 2008
>By Michael Gormley
>ASSOCIATED PRESS
>
>ALBANY, N.Y. ­ Less than two years after he 
>reluctantly ran for lieutenant governor, David 
>Paterson is suddenly in line to be only the 
>third black governor since Reconstruction, and the first in New York.
>
>“He's the next governor and probably quite 
>soon,” said Maurice Carroll, director of 
>Quinnipiac University's Polling Institute and a 
>longtime New York political reporter.
>
>Attention turned to Paterson immediately after 
>word surfaced yesterday that Gov. Eliot Spitzer 
>had been linked to a high-priced prostitution 
>ring. In a brief appearance in front of 
>reporters, Spitzer issued a vague apology and did not mention resignation.
>
>If Spitzer quits, Paterson automatically becomes 
>governor and would complete Spitzer's term, which ends Dec. 31, 2010.
>
>There was no immediate comment from Paterson.
>
>Paterson, a 53-year-old Democrat from Harlem who 
>is mostly blind, is well-respected by Republicans and Democrats.
>
>Former New York City Mayor Edward Koch recently 
>called Paterson “very capable, not withstanding 
>his near sightlessness. It's never impeded his 
>public actions or his personal actions, and he's 
>really overcome it in an extraordinary way.”
>
>Paterson, who does not use a cane or a guide 
>dog, can make out shapes and even people up 
>close. He lost most of his sight as an infant 
>when an infection damaged his optic nerve. He 
>still talks of his fragile self-esteem in 
>childhood and recalls not being invited to 
>parties because “people thought I would fall and hurt myself.”
>
>Paterson's disability has never been an issue in 
>Albany in his 20-year political career. He has 
>memorized lengthy, impassioned speeches without 
>missing a mark; cited arcane legal references in 
>fast-paced floor debates; and won more victories 
>for his party in the Senate than any other 
>leader in the Legislature. His efforts brought 
>Democrats to within a seat of taking the Senate 
>majority for the first time in decades.
>
>Critics and supporters alike all point to the 
>intellect, compassion and humor that Paterson 
>brings to the Statehouse. When Spitzer picked 
>him to be his running mate in 2006, Paterson 
>deadpanned: “I told Eliot, `Whenever you are 
>trying to reform a system, you need a person 
>with vision and a person who is a technician,' 
>and that's what I am 
 because I sure don't have vision."
>
>“He's going to bring love to the executive 
>branch and Legislature,” said Assemblyman Dov 
>Hikind, a Brooklyn Democrat. “He's a real mensch, plain and simple.”
>
>The only black governors since Reconstruction 
>have been Deval Patrick, serving in 
>Massachusetts, and L. Douglas Wilder of Virginia, who left office in 1994.
>
>Even New York Republicans have a healthy respect for Paterson.
>
>“I don't think there's an issue David Paterson 
>and I agree on, but he's one of the most decent, 
>honorable guys I've ever met,” said Rep. Peter 
>King of Long Island, who already was referring 
>to Paterson as “the new governor.”
>
>Paterson has enjoyed a good relationship with 
>Spitzer's chief foe, Republican Majority Leader 
>Joseph Bruno. In pointed yet humorous floor 
>debates, a kind of father-son relationship was 
>evident between the younger Harlem Democrat and 
>the rural, upstate Republican, who is 78.
>
>Two years ago, Paterson was so focused on taking 
>control of the Senate and becoming majority 
>leader that he was surprised by Spitzer's offer to be lieutenant governor.
>
>If he ascends to the governor's office, Paterson 
>would also have an advantage in that he would 
>have nearly three years remaining in Spitzer's term.
>
>“If he becomes governor, he can move forward 
>with what he wants to do as governor and start 
>to set a tone,” said Lee Miringoff of the Marist 
>College Institute for Public Opinion. “The state 
>will have been shaken by all these revelations. 
>And I think he's someone who is widely 
>respected, and he has a lot of experience in the corridors of Albany.”