Paterson Guardedly Optimistic About Gay Marriage Bill

During his rousing introduction of gay marriage legislation, Governor Paterson emphasized, "Our work to correct injustice cannot depend on factors like timing or guaranteed success." And that's a gamble he's taking—in an interview with the NY Times, Paterson admitted he's not sure if the bill will pass through the State Legislature, "I’m more optimistic that it gets done. I’m not necessarily sure that it can be done." He also thinks some Republican Senators (the Assembly already passed the bill in 2007) might end up supporting it. Sen. Kemp Hannon (R-LI) told the Times he would probably oppose the bill—"It’s a difficult decision because it has so many people locked in on both sides. It may not seem like that from the epicenter of the world called Manhattan. But out here in the suburbs, there are mixed emotions."—but also admitted his colleagues might be flexible, "This is a serious matter, and it deserves serious consideration." And on Thursday night, Paterson told CNN's Wolf Blitzer the gay marriage bill was not an attempt to help his horrible approval numbers: and besides, he's still running in 2010, "The real desire is to have me not run, because they know, if I do, I will probably win."