Cuomo has named former State Chief Judge Judith Kaye to look into the two scandals plaguing the governor.

Reports say that Paterson allegedly helped cover up a domestic violence investigation involving his top aide and allegedly lied under oath about asking for free tickets to a World Series baseball game.

Cuomo insisted he had no technical conflict in the case, but said the current "political atmosphere" could complicate matters. He also voided reports that claimed the investigation into the domestic violence case had reached conclusions.

"We have determined that there are credible issues that need to be resolved. In addition, an immediate resolution of these matters does not now appear to be at hand. Therefore, the question becomes what is the best way to conduct the investigation," said the attorney general in a conference call. "An investigation of a sitting governor of the State of New York is a complex, weighty matter indeed. It is further complicated in this case, due to the political atmosphere and circumstances that now exist."

"Given the political climate that exists out there that it was a right thing, given the fact that he's rumored to be running for governor, for him to step aside," said Dick Dadey of the government watchdog group Citizens Union.

Kaye remarked in a statement saying, "I thank the attorney of the state of New York for entrusting me with this serious and important matter. I promise that the public will have a full, fair, and independent accounting of the facts."

Some lawmakers previously said that Cuomo's heading the probes represented a conflict of interest, as the attorney general is said to be contemplating a run for governor of New York."

This is a Cuomo-engineered distraction.  "It's all so complicated", says Cuomo.  That's nonsense.  Of course Andrew Cuomo is running for governor.  And of course President Obama's political operatives and Cuomo, assisted by the New York Times, orchestrated the exposes that embroiled Governor Paterson in scandal, forcing him to abandon his race for the Democratic nomination for governor.

The only remaining question is whether Paterson now is indicted for his alleged crimes, and forced from office.  As Attorney General of New York, that's Andrew Cuomo's responsibility.  But doing his job by prosecuting Paterson raises the toxic issue of Cuomo's own involvement in Paterson's downfall.  That's "toxic", not complicated.

 If Andrew Cuomo, in conjunction with the White House and the New York Times, already has wielded the assassin's dagger secretly (speaking figuratively, not literally) to stab Governor Paterson in the back, that's the kiss of death for Cuomo politically.  The Democratic black political community in Harlem is close-knit, and knows when one of its own has been betrayed for political gain. (As an aside, The New York Times, allied with someone in Harlem who aspires to Rangel's seat, also is after Harlem's Democratic Member of Congress Charlie Rangel.)

Scrambling to sidestep the backlash from the Harlem political community, Cuomo now assigns responsibility to Democratic former Chief Judge Judith Kaye to make, in her words, a "full fair and independent accounting of the facts".

Excuse me, but hasn't the State Ethics Commission already made such an "accounting" as to the allegations about the free World Series tickets?  And Governor Paterson doesn't deny the facts of his, and the State Police, contacts with the woman who is the alleged victim of abuse at the hands of a senior Paterson staffer, does he?  So what additional "accounting" by Judge Kaye is necessary here?  Isn't the only remaining prosecutorial task to present the current facts to a grand jury?  Isn't it the job of a grand jury to determine whether "reasonable cause" exists to believe that crimes were committed by Governor Paterson?

With due respect to Judge Kaye, isn't handing her a meaningless task an insult to her?  Isn't this a shell game designed to distract from Cuomo's own involvement in the downfall of Governor Paterson?  And doesn't this shell game serve only two purposes, both of them political?  First, it delays presentment of the case against Governor Paterson to a grand jury.  Second, it keeps the timing of any grand jury action against Paterson under Cuomo's control, ideally until after election day.  To avoid indictment, Paterson has every incentive not to upset the apple cart for Cuomo, as do his allies in Harlem.