Albany DA Under Fire Over Troopergate Reports

Today, a Newsday editorial suggests Albany DA David Soares was either "afraid" or "just incompetent" when it came to reporting about former Governor Eliot Spitzer's involvement in using the state police to smear his political rival. Well, that's what happens when you initially say Spitzer had nothing to do with the Troopergate scandal, and then issue another report saying Spitzer was actively involved.

Yesterday, the Daily News's Michael Goodwin added Soares to the list of "boobs in Albany," calling his second report an embarrassing "self-indictment." And the Post thinks the second report is another cover-up, suggesting there are still "key questions unanswered" like why did Soares get it so wrong in the first place?

But don't worry--everyone has plenty of time to ponder the Troopergate situation because the state Commission on Public Integrity's investigation is still ongoing. And there's Soares' request that Governor David Paterson allow the release of previous grand jury testimony. Since Paterson would revealing details under Spitzer's executive privilege, the new governor asked Attorney General Andrew Cuomo for advice. Cuomo's all for it: "It is in the public interest that the former Governor withdraw his privilege claims for the sake of the public's right to full disclosure and transparency."