The last episode of "New York Now" hosted by Susan Arbetter aired last night (repeats Sunday), and had a folksy feel from the state fair in Syracuse. It also had an interview with Gov. Paterson, who as usual came across as a more capable chief executive than he is commonly given credit for. But Paterson, who is scheduled to be in Saratoga today for the Travers Stakes, did not impress in his answers about horse racing issues. Arbetter asked him about this Featherstonhaugh fund-raiser, and he in effect said he didn't know about the potential conflict. Then he seemed to blame Dean Skelos for the delay in awarding the Aqueduct VLT contract, which is a bit rich since Skelos was only Senate majority leader for a few months last year, and the Aqueduct VLTs were authorized in 2001 (as the state's ludicrously off-kilter fiscal response to the 9/11 attacks).
After a slightly shaky start, Arbetter's public television show became a worthy successor to "Inside Albany." You can keep up with her in the blogosphere.
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