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N.Y.'s First Lady Sets The Record Straight

Michelle Paige Paterson Addresses Several Controversial Topics During An Exclusive Interview With CBS 2 HD

NEW YORK (CBS) ― She is the new first lady of New York, and now Michelle Paige Paterson is talking only to CBS 2 HD.

The working mother of two, an intensely private woman, has been thrust into a very public role.

In an exclusive interview, she spoke candidly about the controversies, the adjustments and the opportunities ahead.

Paige Paterson was like every other New Yorker that March day when the Elliott Spitzer bombshell dropped – stunned.

"It all just happened so fast that we didn't have a chance for it to sink in," Paige Paterson said. "It was very upsetting and shocking."

But unlike most New Yorkers this new shift in state politics would shake her world to the core…

"It really didn't sink in that the governor may have to resign and that meant David would be the new governor," she said. "I just remember during the swearing in, I'm standing there holding the bible thinking I can't believe this is happening. This is so surreal."

However, within 24 hours the swearing in, the Patersons dropped their own bombshell -- that each had been unfaithful in their marriage.

"I betrayed my commitment to my wife several years ago," David Paterson said at a press conference after the story broke.

His wife said she was not prepared to openly discuss their private lives with the state.

"You know, you see these things on television and you never really see yourself in that situation. And to have to go out there and talk to all those reporters…" Paige Paterson said.

When asked if she was able to prepare her children for the infidelity stories, she said, "No I was not because I really didn't know myself what was going to happen. All I could do was talk to them and listen to them and try to be supportive."

Paige Paterson said her children are fine these days, what with all that has happened, and she doesn't regret being straightforward with the truth.

"Oh most definitely. I feel that it was best for the people to hear the story from David and I than from others," she said.

While the pre-emptive confession may have worked in that sense, there were plenty of other questions surrounding the new first family, including their place as role models.

The latest issue is their apparent meager contributions to charity -- only $150 in clothing donations last year, according to their tax return.

"I think that is a private issue and really no one's business where we give our money," Paige Paterson said.

Despite the ongoing issues, Mrs. Paterson is slowly working her way into the first lady role, making public appearances while still maintaining her own career in health care development.

The first challenge she plans to tackle as first lady is childhood obesity.
 
"It's a real problem. It's an epidemic in this country," Paige Paterson said.

And while she has no plans to give up her job, she knows her role as a working mother has gotten much more demanding.

"I think most women today have to work and take care of family and multi-task," she said. "I always tell people when David became governor he got one job and I got five. But I only get paid for one."

There's no doubt the tests of this past month have been difficult for the Patersons, but the first lady believes it's time move forward.

"What doesn't kill you will make you stronger," Paige Paterson said. "God put us here for a reason and we have work to do."

Paige Paterson says one of the hardest things to get used to is the lack of privacy. On a long-planned trip to Hawaii next month to visit a friend, she will be joined by a three-person security detail.

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