The New York Times tightened the screws on David Paterson today, with yet another report detailing the governor’s alleged role in covering up a domestic abuse incident for a senior aide. An editorial calls it "gross abuse of office" and urges him to resign unless he can clear himself. A Times source says that Deneane Brown, a friend to both Paterson and Sherr-una Booker, the woman accusing the aide of domestic abuse, has spilled the beans to investigators, telling them that the governor used her as a go-between to pressure Booker.
According to the source, Brown said that Paterson told her to relate a message to Booker: “Tell her the governor wants her to make this go away.” Brown later set up a phone conversation between Paterson and Booker. The next day, Booker missed a court appearance, and the case was dismissed. It’s the most explicit description yet of Paterson’s involvement, and comes amid ever-louder calls for his resignation. A Times editorial called it a "sordid" tale, noting that neither the governor nor any of his aides should have been talking to Booker.
(More David Paterson stories.)