Lieutenant governor needed in ‘fragile’ truce, Paterson says
ALBANY — As his lawyers fight in court to defend the legality of his controversial move to appoint a lieutenant governor, Gov. David A. Paterson said the state still needs a second-in-command in place even with Thursday’s resolution in the monthlong Senate stalemate.
“I would say that the Senate has resolved its conflict, but it is fragile,” Paterson said.
Noting the 32-30 margin Democrats now hold over Republicans, the governor suggested that harmony is not a top commodity in the Senate Democratic conference after the return of dissident Sen. Pedro Espada to its fold.
“I’m sure there’s quite a few people who don’t like the way things turned out [Thursday],” Paterson said, pointing to Senate “tension” after a month of nasty battles, especially among Democrats.
The lieutenant governor can break some ties in the Senate—though not on actual legislation — and is first in line of succession. Critics accused the governor of taking an illegal step to try to look tough before voters, who rate his job performance in recent months deep in the basement. With the Senate chaos apparently ended for the time being, some lawmakers say Paterson’s move was both premature and a hollow gesture.
Paterson implied that his new lieutenant governor — Manhattan lawyer Richard Ravitch, 76 — could be needed to serve as the official presiding officer of the Senate over the next year before all statewide offices go before voters again.
The governor’s lawyers are due back in court this morning in Nassau County trying to toss out a case brought by Senate Republicans alleging that Paterson has no authority to unilaterally appoint a lieutenant governor. Republicans won a restraining order barring Ravitch from carrying out any duties of the office, but an appeals court later Thursday overruled that decision.
With the urgency of the lieutenant governor’s appointment now over because of the break in the Senate gridlock, the case could end up taking months to resolve. Paterson had Ravitch secretly sworn in Wednesday night in a Brooklyn steakhouse. Republicans accused Paterson, who expected a legal challenge, of trying to do an end run around the state constitution by swearing him in before the case could go to a judge.
The governor pointed to a little-used section of law that permits governors to fill certain undefined vacant positions in government. But the only three specific examples his office provided go back to 1964 and beyond, and they were only to local — not state — government posts.
Paterson acknowledged that this is a gray area. “It’s not the clearest delineation of duty that the constitution can find,” he said, “but we are ready to stand any court action to demonstrate to the court that this is legal.”
Thursday, Ravitch appeared with Paterson in an ornate room filled with reporters and Cabinet members. “I have to thank you for the honor. Whether I’m going to thank you for the fun in the next 18 months, I’m going to defer,” Ravitch joked of the Senate turmoil that could drag on past the 2010 elections.
Ravitch pledged he will not seek political office in 2010 or involve himself in political campaigning.
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