Rumors Surroundin' Me Every Day

How intense is NY media scrutiny? Tough enough that a sitting gov. has to use an interview w/the AP to shoot down rumors about a NYT story that hasn't even been printed yet.

-- So what happens if this "bombshell" (sex, drugs, partying at the Mansion!?!) is more like a "bomblette"? Paterson still sounds like a candidate determined to run for re-election (Newsday reports he'll kick off his campaign 2/20 in Hempstead and have a 2/21 event in Harlem). And, as the WH has already learned, pushing him into a corner only makes him dig in further. For Cuomo, there's nothing more dangerous than challenging a pol who feels like he's got nothing to lose. Lazio gets this too, which explains "defending" Paterson and attacking the NYT. A good messy primary fight may be the only way for Lazio to get any traction here.

-- And so, we ask, why aren't Dems doing more to help find the embattled gov. a "soft landing"? Do they really want to be bring NYers two govs. who were forced to resign/retire in disgrace? Also, more Paterson coverage means more attention on the legislative mess in Albany, which isn't good for any sitting legislator. In the latest Marist poll, the only thing more unpopular than Paterson was the NY state Senate.

-- One beneficiary of the media obsession w/Paterson is Ford. The more time they spend tracking down rumors of a pending "resignation," the less time they have to play "gotcha" w/the transplanted Tennessean.