New NY gov could further Spitzer's reform agenda

By Joan Gralla

Albany, NEW YORK (Reuters) - Disgraced New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer's stillborn crusade for government reform may move ahead under his successor, whose collegial style may help quell the spats that taint state politics, top officials said on Wednesday.

Political battles, particularly a bizarre one between Spitzer and the state's top Republican, Joseph Bruno, helped doom the outgoing governor's self-described quest to introduce more fairness and transparency to state government.

Lt. Gov. David Paterson, a longtime legislator who represents Harlem, becomes governor on Monday when Spitzer steps down amid a scandal over a high-priced prostitute.

Paterson "can hit the ground running," said Democrat Sheldon Silver, state Assembly speaker.

"He has the intellectual capacity, he has the ability, the humor, the charisma and the personality to be one of the finest governors New York has ever had," Silver said.

Spitzer, who as state attorney general waged high-profile probes of alleged financial malfeasance on Wall Street that earning him wide publicity and deep resentment, was elected governor in 2006 on a vow to reform state government.

Whether he even came close to that goal in his aborted term in office is debatable, observers say.

"The reformer isn't the reformer we thought he was," said Republican state Sen. Betty Little, who acknowledged that Spitzer helped push through laws to help the state meet budget deadlines and force agencies to reveal more information.