Paterson: Kennedy Is Not a "Front-Runner" For Senate

Between now and late January, you can bet that Governor Paterson will be harassed by the curious public—and the media, of course—about who he will choose to take Hillary Clinton's Senate seat. But don't tell him that Caroline Kennedy is a front-runner!

At LaGuardia Airport, where reporters met him on his return from a trip to Iraq and Afghanistan, a reporter referred to Kennedy as a "front-runner," to which Paterson said, "How is she a front-runner?" Good question, since he's reportedly annoyed at Kennedy's supporters who have implied her ascension is a "done deal." The Daily News reports that Paterson added that chatter about Kennedy's chances was "sounding more like the prelude to a high school prom than the choosing of the United States senator."

And today, at the Reverend Al Sharpton's House of Justice, Paterson continued to criticize the speculation, "Many of those who are calling for a quicker decision would probably help the decision if they would refrain from all the gossip and, I think, the atmosphere that has been created." And Sharpton, a Kennedy booster, said, "The governor should not be coerced or intimidated or timetabled by anybody. It's his decision to make... I don't know why others would interfere with his unless they have an ulterior motive."