Fossella's luck

If there's one thing that Rep. Vito Fossella can be thankful for, it's that Rudy Giuliani is in Kiev and not the presumptive Republican nominee, or else his name would be on the tips of every news broadcaster in the country rather than just New York.

What New York Democrats will be overheard asking

How do you dispute charges like these without looking like you're defending Eliot Spitzer?

Whitewater whitewash

In New York, Democrats are finished with trying move beyond the scandal over Gov. Eliot Spitzer's improper use of state troopers to keep tabs on his top Republican rival through apologies. Instead, the New York Observer finds that Democrats are attempting to draw a parallel between the persecution of Spitzer and that of the "never-ending" partisan investigations of the Clinton White House.

While Spitzer has yet to personally take part, Reps. Carolyn Maloney and Jerry Nadler have made the comparison publicly.

Cuomo's timing

On this morning's Brian Lehrer Show, Liz Benjamin of the New York Daily News commented on the curious timing of New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's report on Governor Eliot Spitzer's use of state police to dig up dirt on allegedly improper travel by Spitzer's main foe, Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno. Cuomo released the report on a Monday, allowing the bad story for fellow Democrat Spitzer to get a good hold in this week's news cycle. But if he had released it late on Friday, the story may have led the Saturday papers (AKA lowest readership of the week) and been old news by Monday.

Both Lehrer and Benjamin were surprised at the quick turnaround between Cuomo's investigation and the release of the report, remarking that he could have held it for the week and no one would have been the wiser. Yet, the Monday release shows Cuomo is conducting business swiftly and with impartiality to political party. This was an especially swift kick to Spitzer and a boost to Bruno, who continue to duke it out over the state's legislative agenda.