With his immediate future as Governor becoming a daily topic of conversation and criticism, David Paterson has tried to resume his normal schedule and concentrate on the daunting $9 billion budget deficit this year.
Paterson, who attended the opening of The Palm Bar & Grille at JFK Airport on Friday, March 5, and a budget town hall hearing in Brooklyn on Monday, March 8, believes he is the right person to help New York through this difficult budget.
“The most significant hindrance to negotiating with the Legislature is a governor that’s running for re-election,” Paterson said on Monday. “I’m no longer running for re-election, so there’s no politics at all. Everybody has outside issues and that should not…be a distraction when you’re trying to balance a budget and do what’s right for the State of New York.”
Paterson has come under fire after a series of bombshell newspaper articles depicting his role in a possible cover-up involving an alleged domestic violence incident involving one of his closest aides. Three Paterson administration officials have already resigned, but the Governor has declined to discuss his specific role in the incident because he does not want to impede the ongoing investigation by Attorney General Andrew Cuomo. Paterson has reiterated that he plans to remain in office through the end of this term and not seek re-election.
However, some state legislators and leaders believe that Paterson should allow Lieutenant Governor Richard Ravitch to lead the budget negotiations. Ravitch is currently floating a proposal centered on borrowing – a similar strategy the state employed during the financial crisis in the 1970s. Ravitch is currently working on a four-year financial plan for the state, which will have nearly $60 billion in budget deficits to deal with during that period.
Although Paterson and Mayor Michael Bloomberg both spoke out against the idea of borrowing to solve the deficit problem, Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver seemed more receptive to the idea.
“If there’s a way to deal with the issues that includes borrowing on a limited basis, we would consider such a proposal,” Silver said on Monday.
Meanwhile, Paterson did receive a bit of good news about finishing this term as Governor on Monday, March 8 as a Siena College Poll said that 55 percent would prefer Paterson serve the remainder of his term, compared to 37 percent who would like him to resign.
However, that same poll showed that Paterson’s favorability ratings had dipped to an all-time worst 21 percent compared to 67 percent who gave him an unfavorable rating. Just two weeks ago his favorability had inched up to 35 percent with 55 percent giving him a negative rating.
“Republicans and downstate suburbanites are evenly divided on the resignation question, however, a majority of Democrats, Independents, New York City and upstate voters all favor the Governor staying on the job, and at least 65 percent of voters from every party and region oppose impeaching Governor Paterson, ” said Siena pollster Steven Greenberg.
