A New Meaning for 'Day One'

Before Client no. 9 had any idea he'd one day become Client no. 9, he told an interviewer his wife didn't think it was worth being governor of New York State if his family had to endure the personal pain of the Troopergate scandal.

"She looks at me and says: 'Do you really want this stuff? And do you want this for your kids and do you want them to see this stuff?'" Governor Spitzer lamented. "She says, you know: 'What was wrong with going into the family business? That wouldn't have been so bad.'"

Mr. Spitzer now may find himself forced to head into the family real estate business, or any business other than politics, and his children are seeing far worse than their mother ever imagined. The prostitution scandal is a personal tragedy for the Spitzer family that is already leading to political maneuvering in Albany, where the balance of power for the near term is shifting firmly toward the Legislature.

The Senate majority leader, Joseph Bruno, is the most immediate beneficiary of Mr. Spitzer's problems — and not just because his chief oppressor may leave office in disgrace. Republicans rule the Senate by a margin of just one seat, 32–30. In his role as lieutenant governor, David Paterson would have cast a decisive tie-breaking vote for Democrats. If he becomes governor, Mr. Paterson will have no say in the Senate's internal deliberations — so a loss of one seat to the Democrats in November wouldn't mean a total loss of control for Republicans.

Mr. Paterson is well-liked across the political board. He's legally blind, but he has a keen view of Albany politics. If he takes over from Mr. Spitzer, Mr. Paterson would be smart to let lawmakers drive the budget process over the next few weeks, letting them take credit for any successes and attracting blame for any failure during the first recession-year budget in some time. Mr. Paterson would gain power by presiding over the inevitable shift of power.

Mr. Paterson would have no mandate to serve: His first priority would be to win confidence. As he settled in, the Assembly speaker, Sheldon Silver, would become the de facto Democratic leader in Albany.

Over time, Mr. Spitzer's self-destruction could prove to be the seminal event that brings about the changes he promised on Day One but failed to deliver while in office.

Campaign finance reform, ethics reform, lobbying reform — all kinds of reform are now front-and-center. Voters will rightly wonder: If the Sheriff of Wall Street is just another slimy politician, how can they trust anyone? Mr. Spitzer went into office saying he was different from the typical Albany hacks. Now Albany lawmakers will seek to prove how different they are from Mr. Spitzer.

Look for Attorney General Cuomo to take the lead in that reform effort — beginning with demanding financial disclosure for lawmakers whose "part-time" status allows them to earn outside income. Mr. Bruno will likely be unable to resist calls for this change, given the ongoing investigation into his private enterprise. And Mr. Silver will be reluctant to be the lone opposition, especially if passing this change is tied to the first raises for lawmakers since 1999.

Mr. Spitzer consistently approached Wall Street as a strict disciplinarian, cracking down on industry practices that were long a way of doing business. He also consistently played fast-and-loose with the rules that applied to him. First, he lied about funding for his attorney general campaigns — defending himself by claiming the self-defense that lying was his only option. Then he allowed his staff to sic the state police on his political nemesis — defending himself by saying he wasn't in the loop.

Mr. Spitzer wanted the feds to look into Mr. Bruno's conduct. Now the feds have caught him on tape negotiating how to replenish his account with an escort service while arranging for a prostitute to visit him in Washington, D.C.

Mr. Spitzer planned to change Albany on Day One. He never planned for Day One to be the day he was shamed out of office.

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