Word: patersons
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...Eliot Spitzer's peers will miss his style now that he has been felled by scandal. Disdain for the governor's bellicosity was the one thing that united both parties in New York's fractious state government. His successor is Lt. Governor David Paterson - Spitzer's diametric opposite. With his mellow voice, humor and self-deprecation, Paterson has become a popular speaker in New York's political circles. "He has a winning personality," says State Senator Bill Perkins, a Democrat whose 30th District seat Paterson used to occupy. "He's very funny, very witty, and he makes an effort...
Many believe Paterson's collegial approach to governance could soothe a legislature rubbed raw by Spitzer's abrasiveness. His affability will be an asset in combative Albany. What's unclear is whether it will be enough to effectively lead a state whose government may be one the nation's most dysfunctional...
...some ways, Paterson seems a born politician; in others, he's anything but. On one hand, he comes from political stock - the New York State Senate seat he assumed in 1985 was formerly held by his father, Harlem political leader Basil Paterson. On the other, he is legally blind (a disability that did not prevent him from completing the New York City Marathon in 1999). When the Columbia University and Hofstra Law School graduate became the State Senate's minority leader in 2002, it marked the first time an African American assumed that position. As governor, Paterson will...
...Paterson - who will serve out the three years remaining on Spitzer's term - is respected on both sides of the aisle. "We're fortunate that he's the one," says Perkins. He notes that Paterson maintains a strong relationship with Spitzer nemesis Joseph Bruno, the Republican State Senate majority leader, who now assumes the lieutenant governorship...
...Paterson's personal charms are not in question, but he faces massive political challenges. He inherits a budget gap of more than $4 billion, a sagging economy and an atmosphere beset by partisan gridlock. His temperament suited the state legislature, where he supported stem-cell research and alternative energy and championed female- and minority-owned businesses. Will it play as well in the chief executive's seat? "David Paterson is going to be overwhelmed. He's never had any executive experience whatsoever," says Wayne Barrett, who reports on state politics for the Village Voice. "He's an incredibly congenial...