Summary
David A. Paterson is the 55th Governor of the State of New York. In a series of events few of us could have imagined, this son of Harlem has risen to make history as the Empire State's first Black governor. As I sat in the Assembly Chamber of the State Capitol, surveying the audience of legislators and dignitaries who had assembled to witness Lt. Governor Paterson take the oath of office, I could not help but be reminded that as much as we try to shape our destiny, history has a way of settling the score.
Then, without warning, the state's politics was turned on its head with the revelation of Governor's Spitzer's misbehavior. It was a tragic downfall for an individual who had received an overwhelming mandate from voters and was positioned to bring about much needed change in our state. That thing called fate stepped in and, despite our shock and disappointment, a young man born in Brooklyn and who came of age in Harlem, was waiting in the wings for his date with destiny.Surveying the scene in the Assembly Chamber, I thought about how within minutes the "experts" would be proven wrong once again. Two years ago the conventional wisdom was that David Paterson had erred in giving up his state Senate seat and position as Minority Leader. After all, he was on a roll and had clawed the Democrats back to relevance in the upper house by narrowing the Republican's majority to the point where many thought Paterson could finally end the GOP's reign. His decision to join [Eliot Spitzer]'s ticket as the candidate for Lieutenant Governor was widely viewed as a strategic error. Why settle for being second fiddle in a largely ceremonial post when you could conceivably wield real power as one of the "gang of three" - Governor, Speaker, and Senate Majority Leader - that really sets policy in Albany?Whether it was Lyndon Johnson taking the oath of office as President aboard Air Force One after a young John F. Kennedy was tragically assassinated in Dallas or Gerald Ford occupying the Oval Office after the Watergate scandal, history has taught us that serving in the second seat requires a readiness that is habitually overlooked.See the full content of this document
Extract
From Harlem to Albany - the Path to Power
David A. Paterson is the 55th Governor of the State of New York. In a series of events few of us could have imagined, this son of Harlem has risen to make history as the Empire State's first Black governor. As I sat in the Assembly Chamber of the State Capitol, surveying the audience of legislators and dignitari...
See the full content of this document
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