Monday’s Briefing: The Aubertine Job Offer, Again

Was he or wasn’t he? State Senator Darrel Aubertine said at first that he’d been offered the job of running the New York Power Authority by the Governor. If true, it would have been a strange move. Democrats had just spent more than $2 million to get Aubertine elected to the open State Senate seat covering Oswego, Jefferson and part of St. Lawrence counties, in a year in which Democrats are very close to flipping the Senate to Democratic control.

But Gov. Paterson may have been trying to close a deal with then-Republican Senate leader Joe Bruno to get Paterson’s school property tax cap passed. Or not.

The Gov. denied, forcefully, that there had been an offer. At least three Democrats told several Albany and New York City newspapers anonymously at the time that there had absolutely been a job offer, and they were ticked with Paterson for hanging Aubertine out to dry.

Aubertine, playing the role of good soldier, issued a statement saying he could have misinterpreted the discussion and has said nothing more.

Over the holiday weekend, Paterson shed a little more light on the story, though it just muddies things up even more.

On the one hand, Paterson told the Syracuse Post-Standard:

“We didn’t make him an offer, we never made him an offer.”

On the other hand:

“Senator Aubertine was certainly given the idea that this (job) was a possibility and, you know, this would have tripled his salary…”

Well, then. That clears it up, don’t you think?

More News Of Scandals, Major And Minor:

• Paterson’s former affair-mate has quit her state job.
• Ex-Gov. Spitzer’s ex-aide says it’s funny, now that he thinks about it, how much his boss complained about having a State Police security detail.

Department Of Real News:

• Another 100-days appreciation of Gov. Paterson.
• Call the state’s 211 line to get the 411 on why the line’s in a 911 situation.
• It was a good legislative year for open government advocates.
• Gov. Paterson soon gets to put his mark on New York’s courts system.
• Legislators consider the problem of false confessions.
• You’re a State Legislature staff member. You don’t get overtime, though overtime work is routine and expected. Good news: You get comp time instead. Bad news: You’re expected to use it campaigning for your boss’s reelection. Worse news: A plan to fix the mess is dead, again. Suck it up and keep working.

Department Of Parks:

• Rules, rules, rules.
• It’s safe to go back into the water at Darien Lake State Park.
• The state’s not the safest place to ride an amusement park ride, but it’s no Alabama.
• A piece of a park closed by the 9/11 attacks may reopen.

Cash Money:

• Economy sinks, coupon use rises.
• Milk’s as expensive as gas.
• Oh, the problems of the very, very rich.

Apropos Of Not Very Much:

• Here’s a debate I’d love to see.
• It’s not even safe in New York City for a massive airplane.

The Quote Of The Day:

“I’m just a normal guy eating hot dogs on the Fourth. You can’t overcomplicate it. Burp!”

–Joey Chestnut, who won the annual hot dog eating contest on Coney Island in overtime, after he and six-time champ Takeru Kobayashi tied at 59 dogs in 10 minutes. Chestnut won a 5-dog playoff to claim the Mustard Belt, given to eating’s annual champion. The burp at the end of the sentence was real, and well-timed.

What did we miss? Drop a link in the comments below.

[Note: Though it should be fairly obvious just by reading this daily summary, it needs to be pointed out once in a while that this is not a product of so-called “straight news”. It’s a slightly skewed look at the day’s straight news from elsewhere. Take it for what it is, or ignore it.]

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