I was initially inclined to oppose any move to impeach David Paterson or force him to resign, if only because the line of succession has become so murky. But now, in light of revelations that he lied about accepting World Series tickets, the constant drip drip drip substantially outweighs any legitimacy questions that would surround Dick Ravitch.
Gov. David A. Paterson falsely testified under oath during an ethics investigation into his acceptance of free World Series tickets last fall, according to the State Commission on Public Integrity, which announced on Wednesday that it had asked prosecutors to determine if criminal charges should be brought against the governor.
The commission said Mr. Paterson sought and accepted five free tickets for Game 1 of the World Series at Yankee Stadium. When inquiries were made about the tickets, he testified that he had always intended to pay for them.
The closest parallel I can draw is with Mark Sanford. Remember? After he went AWOL for six days, the hits just kept coming. Ditto with Paterson since the domestic-violence case. One can only help that unlike Sanford, Paterson has the decency to resign.
Paterson says he's not resigning--at least not tomorrow. But he seems to be wavering a little bit on how long he'll be around.
As Mr. Paterson ducked out of a side entrance to the Yale Club in Midtown Manhattan on Thursday afternoon, he offered a simple "yes" when asked if he would still be governor on Friday.
But when asked whether he would be governor next week, the governor was silent. He ignored other questions posed by a group of reporters who trailed him as a small coterie of his aides hustled him into a waiting Chevrolet Suburban.
Given the official finding that he may have perjured himself, it's probably understandable. Given that it seems pretty clear-cut that Paterson perjured himself, I have a hunch he's taking a few steps closer to the diving board--even as he's being chased toward the edge.