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Dec 3, 2008 6:20 am US/Eastern
Paterson Reveals Advisors On Clinton Successor
New York Governor Has Some Time To Make Up His Mind Because Clinton Will Stick Around Until Confirmed
WASHINGTON (AP) ―
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At some point, Gov. David Paterson is going to have to pick someone to replace Hillary Clinton in the Senate. Just don't ask him now because he's not going to tell you what he's thinking.
AP
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New York Gov. David Paterson isn't close to naming a successor to Hillary Rodham Clinton's senate seat, but on Tuesday he told The Associated Press which Democrats will help him decide.
Paterson rattled off a half-dozen names of influential New Yorkers whose counsel he would seek. Paterson came to Washington for an afternoon meeting of Democratic governors.
The first people Paterson named were obvious: Sen. Charles Schumer, who will serve with Paterson's pick, and Rep. Charlie Rangel, a longtime political friend and the dean of New York's congressional delegation.
"I'll talk to Congressman (Greg) Meeks because he's my life-long friend who's in Washington," Paterson told The AP. "I'm going to talk to Congresswoman Nita Lowey because she was someone I didn't offer (the job), but I asked her was she interested and she said she wasn't."
Paterson said he valued Lowey's opinion because she had once planned to run for the Senate. That was in 2000, when Lowey decided to step aside when Clinton made her historic bid for the seat as first lady.
Lowey "has a lot of insight," Paterson said. When President-elect Obama formally announced Monday he would nominate Clinton as his secretary of state, Lowey said she was not interested in going to the Senate, because she has seniority in the House and a powerful position overseeing the federal budget.
The governor also named staffers William J. Cunningham and Charlotte Hitchcock.
Then, of course, there's his wife.
"I always get Michelle's advice," he said.
Earlier in the day, Paterson was in Philadelphia for a meeting of Democratic and Republican governors with Obama, where he said he was not in any rush to make a decision, despite the rampant speculation and political guessing games.
"I think I can take time and make the right decision. One thing that any business leader, any government official or any bride or groom ever learned is it never hurts to take a little more time in the selection process," Paterson told reporters.
He said that in general terms, he was looking for someone "who sees crises as opportunities, who sees the imagination as more important than history."
Whoever Paterson picks would serve two years, and be up for re-election in 2010. That same year, Paterson will be running for re-election as governor, and Schumer will be campaigning for a third six-year term in the Senate.
(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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