The REAL NY Governor Scandal-Spitzer's Abuse of Power

For almost a month now, scandals surrounding NY State governors have been front page headlines. First it was the Spitzer/Hooker scandal, then it was Patterson/affair followed by Spitzer enjoying watching hookers have sex with others and having hooker sex with his socks on. Then as if he was trying to get back into the papers, NEW NY Governor Patterson decided to spew out EVERYTHING he ever did wrong, had more than one affair, took cocaine as a kid--- I am afraid that next time I pick up the paper the headline will read "NEW PATTERSON ADMISSION-MADE POOPY IN IS DIAPER." or " NY GOVERNOR: ATE CHALK IN KINDERGARTEN" To be honest, all of this is just a distraction from the REAL scandal. Elliot Spitzer abused his power in an effort to go after State Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno:

The Other Spitzer Scandal March 27, 2008; Page A14 Cultural sophisticates lament that Eliot Spitzer was driven from office this month by a mere sex scandal. Yet now that he's gone, we're learning that he also had far more to do than he's admitted with a scheme to smear Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno. Prior to the revelations about the Democratic ex-Governor's assignations with prostitutes, it appeared that Mr. Spitzer had stonewalled everyone on the scandal known in New York as "Troopergate." Albany County District Attorney David Soares exonerated Mr. Spitzer last year after an initial investigation of the scheme to get state troopers to track his political opponent. But inconsistencies in the testimony of long-time Spitzer enforcer Darren Dopp sent Mr. Soares back to revisit his earlier whitewash. And now that Governor Steamroller is Private Citizen Spitzer, leaks from the DA's office are making clear that Mr. Spitzer was deeply involved in the smear campaign, even repeatedly calling Mr. Dopp at home to ensure that the leaks would produce a damaging story. Mr. Soares got Mr. Dopp to talk by offering him immunity from prosecution. But there's no question that every public employee in the state -- from Attorney General Andrew Cuomo to the Public Integrity Commission to Mr. Soares himself -- was, at a minimum, treating the question of Mr. Spitzer's involvement with kid gloves as long as he remained Governor. That the truth is only coming out now underscores how corrupt the political culture of Albany is, and how reluctant the political class was to question the malfeasance of a powerful and vindictive Governor. Now that he's out, we may finally learn the truth. But New York voters can consider themselves fortunate that a sex scandal ended Mr. Spitzer's career before his sense of righteous entitlement did far more harm to their state.