2008 Woodie Awards
Paterson, N.Y.'s first black governor, sworn into office
By: THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Issue date: 3/18/08 Section: Nation
ALBANY, N.Y. - David Paterson was sworn in as New York's governor yesterday, becoming the state's first black chief executive and vowing to move past the prostitution scandal that has rocked the state Capitol.
Paterson, who is legally blind, was interrupted at several times during his address with thunderous applause. Before he spoke, lawmakers gave him a two-minute standing ovation and chanted: "David! David! David!"
"This transition today is an historic message to the world: That we live by the same values that we profess, and we are a government of laws, not individuals," Paterson said.
Paterson, 53, rose from the lieutenant governor's office after Eliot Spitzer resigned last week amid allegations that he hired a call girl from a high-priced escort service. It was a dramatic fall for Spitzer, who was elected with an overwhelming share of the vote and who had vowed to root out corruption at the Capitol.
Spitzer was not in attendance at the ceremony.
"We move forward. Today is Monday. There is work to be done," Paterson said. "There was an oath to be taken. There's trust that needs to be restored. There are issues that need to be addressed."
Paterson spoke without notes for 26 minutes - about half of it engaged in the banter and self-deprecating humor that helped define him as a lawmaker and lieutenant governor. It seemed aimed at smoothing the damage Spitzer did with his adversaries in the Legislature.
Paterson drew howls from the audience when he poked fun at his disability and deadpanned that he would accept an invitation to dinner with the state's top Republican, Sen. Joseph Bruno, only if his "taster" could come along. He playfully teased Assembly Minority Leader James Tedisco, a former small-college basketball star, that he is ready to school him on the court. And he told the story of how Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver stopped him from accidentally bringing his gavel down on a glass, saying he didn't want him to turn the Legislature into a Jewish wedding.
Paterson, who is legally blind, was interrupted at several times during his address with thunderous applause. Before he spoke, lawmakers gave him a two-minute standing ovation and chanted: "David! David! David!"
"This transition today is an historic message to the world: That we live by the same values that we profess, and we are a government of laws, not individuals," Paterson said.
Paterson, 53, rose from the lieutenant governor's office after Eliot Spitzer resigned last week amid allegations that he hired a call girl from a high-priced escort service. It was a dramatic fall for Spitzer, who was elected with an overwhelming share of the vote and who had vowed to root out corruption at the Capitol.
Spitzer was not in attendance at the ceremony.
"We move forward. Today is Monday. There is work to be done," Paterson said. "There was an oath to be taken. There's trust that needs to be restored. There are issues that need to be addressed."
Paterson spoke without notes for 26 minutes - about half of it engaged in the banter and self-deprecating humor that helped define him as a lawmaker and lieutenant governor. It seemed aimed at smoothing the damage Spitzer did with his adversaries in the Legislature.
Paterson drew howls from the audience when he poked fun at his disability and deadpanned that he would accept an invitation to dinner with the state's top Republican, Sen. Joseph Bruno, only if his "taster" could come along. He playfully teased Assembly Minority Leader James Tedisco, a former small-college basketball star, that he is ready to school him on the court. And he told the story of how Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver stopped him from accidentally bringing his gavel down on a glass, saying he didn't want him to turn the Legislature into a Jewish wedding.
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