Governor Paterson’s Senate Options

How strange life can be. One day, you’re a low-profile lieutenant governor of New York, little known beyond Albany. Then the next day, the governor himself gets caught up in a prostitution scandal, you become chief executive, your state’s superstar junior U.S Senator is chosen to become the next Secretary of State and YOU get to name her replacement with the whole world watching. Whew!

Well, all that didn’t actually happen on one day, but I sort of telescoped things for dramatic purposes. Not that Governor David Paterson needs any more drama on this succession question. If you’ve been following the news, you know it’s up to him and him alone to name Hillary Clinton’s replacement after she moves to the State Department next month. Naming a U.S. Senator: that’s quite a responsibility, considering it’s a call made with no oversight by either voters or other elected officials. But what oversight there is, in a manner of speaking, comes from the complex web of political considerations that will go into Paterson’s choice. Who does he want to please with his selection? Who does he NEED to please? What are the considerations for his own political future? What pressures is he feeling from the national democratic party and the U.S. Senate leadership?

That would be enough to keep me awake at night, although since Paterson IS a politician, he must be enjoying all the attention. So let’s try and get inside his head and speculate about what he might be thinking.

Start with Andrew Cuomo. The state Attorney General his been raising his profile dramatically over the last two years, crusading against, among other things, crooked college loan programs and, more recently, keeping an eye on executive compensation for the New York-based financial firms receiving billions of dollars in federal bailout money.

As the son of a former governor, Cuomo might have an edge. Then again, it could work against him. The sorry end to the Bush Administration could well have New Yorkers down on any more political dynasties for awhile. Cuomo likes good publicity, as does New York’s senior senator, Chuck Schumer. Could that end up being a factor in this decision? Schumer will be bidding farewell to one person who’s much more famous than he is. Is he whispering in David Paterson’s ear to not bring in another new senator with an already-legendary name? (File both those factors into the considerations of Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. getting the nod).

Then there are those urging Paterson to make his choice from upstate, or a woman, or a Latino, or a Latino woman from upstate. New York City congresswoman Nydia Velázquez is on many people’s short lists, as are other veteran congressional representatives in the state.

But I’m going to make my prediction from slightly off the grid, although his name has been mentioned. I’m talking about Nassau County executive Tom Suozzi. He brings a lot to the table. He’s young, a family man, he’s popular in a county notorious for eating its political young (not to mention, he helped turn one of the nation’s most stubbornly Republican areas over to the democratic side). Suozzi is a good speaker, and he’s shown he’s not afraid to take stands on some pretty touchy issues.

In addition, it could get Suozzi out of Paterson’s way when Paterson runs for a full term as governor, which actually is another advantage of naming Cuomo. But maybe Suozzi WANTS to be governor, more than he wants to be senator. He would be a formidable opponent for Paterson.

Ah, so many political considerations, so little time. But look for Suozzi. If I’m wrong, I’ll deny this entire conversation ever took place.