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• Gov. Paterson's official site
• "Spitzer's Successor Has Few Enemies"
• "Gov. David Paterson: I was ashamed to be blind"

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Democratic governor tells Tavis about his recent discussions with former Gov. Eliot Spitzer. (:44)
 

Full Interview (12:01)
 

Tavis: Back in March, Governor David Paterson was sworn in as New York's chief executive following the sudden resignation of Eliot Spitzer. He is now one of two African American governors in the U.S. - quick, quick, the other one? The other one? You got it, Duval Patrick, Massachusetts.

He is the first governor, though, in New York's history to be of African descent, and he joins us tonight from Albany. Governor David Paterson, congratulations, and nice to have you on the program for the first time.

Gov. David Paterson: Thank you, Tavis. I thought if I kept working, you'd have me on your show one day.

Tavis: (Laughs) David Paterson and I have been friends for years, and we just had a difficult time trying to get the schedules align so that he could appear for the first time as governor on this TV program. But a long-standing friend, and I couldn't be more proud of having you in that seat and having you on this program. Let me start by asking, David Paterson, are we having fun yet?

Paterson: I think I have figured out that I'm governor. (Laughter) For the first few days when I was in, it all happened so quickly. I would listen on the radio and they'd say they're trying to place a liquefied natural gas facility and they're waiting for the governor to weigh in. And I'd think and I'd go oh, wow, they're talking about me. (Laughter)

Tavis: Even though you've been around politics for many years, of course, following in your father's footsteps - you, of course, were the first African American lieutenant governor in the state of New York. Now that you've been there for a few weeks, what have you found or what are you finding is even more difficult, more challenging than you thought, never mind your proximity to the problem heretofore?

Paterson: I think what I'm finding, Tavis, is that the process in this country was designed for there to be deliberation. And so as Montesquieu and Thomas Jefferson and John Adams prescribed, things should not happen quickly. There's a series of checks and balances.

But the checks and balances have often been manipulated by those who are antagonistic or antithetical to progress, and even the powers of persuasion don't really help, so you have people suffering, as we see in the subprime mortgage crisis in this country, with no relief.

Or you see situations where we have healthcare delivery in this country failing, jobs going overseas and everyone says they don't like it, but not much is really done about it. And at the executive level, you feel that frustration a lot greater and you understand the checks and balances, but you also understand that it often means diminished quality of life for too many Americans.

Tavis: When the story, Governor, first broke that you might, in fact, ascend from lieutenant governor to the top spot and that Mr. Spitzer's resignation was imminent, the first thing I thought when I thought about you was that old adage that nice guys finish last. And I raise that, with all due respect, because you are about as nice a person as one will ever meet, and I was trying to figure out how you were going to survive in the rough-and-tumble nature of New York politics at the top of the heap.

And so as you know, much has been written, much has been said about the fact that your style is very different than that of your predecessor Eliot Spitzer. How are you finding being such a nice guy as governor of New York? Is that working for you, or are you going to get a little tougher and a little meaner as time goes on?

Paterson: Well, reporters said to me, "You were sworn in on March 17th and the budget was due March 31st; it's been late 23 out of 25 years in New York, and we passed the budget a week after it was due." And he said, "But it was late." And I told him that I got there eight weeks late and got it passed one week late, so I think I'm ahead of the game.

The point is that I think people think that you have to be rude, you have to be nasty, dishonest, disingenuous, a conniver and a backstabber to succeed in business or political affairs, but the fact is that we're elected by the public to discharge duties, and showing off like you're big and bad when you know that you need other people in government to cooperate and get things done, really, in my opinion, is more farcical than the adage that cooperation, which is what we stress - this is what we tell children.

And maybe one of the reasons that children aren't cooperating with their parents, are winding up in gangs or escaping from life is because life is so cruel. So I try to operate graciously, but I've always conducted myself in the spirit of probably my favorite person growing up, Muhammad Ali - I'll float like a butterfly, but I will sting like a bee.

Tavis: (Laughs) I ain't mad at you, Governor. Let me ask how much - as long as you and I have known each other, I don't know if we've ever drilled down on this particular part of the conversation that I want to go to now. But I wonder how powerful your brain really must be, how powerful and how good your memory really is.

I was watching, as many of us were, John McCain on the night that Obama secured the Democratic nomination - at least the delegates - to make him the presumptive nominee, and much has been said, as you know, about how horrible John McCain was that night at trying to read a teleprompter.

Here again I thought of you, because you, because you're legally blind, cannot read a teleprompter. And yet whenever you stand up you do a good job of knocking it out the park when you make presentations. But when you're talking about policy issues, and we're so used to Republicans and Democrats, politicians, relying on the prompter to read the information, how do you do this every day?

Paterson: Well, I try to have the information read to me. I have voicemail that people record documents for me, and I go over it and over it as much as I can. But it's true; when you get out there, it's like being in the high wire at the circus. There's no net, and you're out there by yourself, and so if it doesn't work out you'd better be astonishingly creative (laughter) or somehow humorous in distracting people from the fact that you have lost your way on the script.

But I think that there are three basic values to being able to speak publicly without notes: preparation, preparation, and preparation.

Tavis: I'll take all three of them. To your point about being humorous and being funny, if your friends know anything about you it is the fact that you have a wit that is quick and certain. How did you develop that, and how does it, in fact, serve you in politics to be so funny and to be so quick-witted?

Paterson: Well, I don't know that I developed it as much as it's just my personality. When you're dealing with so many serious issues - poor housing, substance abuse, crime, unemployment and underemployment, poor, inadequate healthcare facilities and times of failed educational system, and you're trying to improve people's lives, it involves an intensity that is steadfast and disciplined.

But there are times that the late reggae singer Bob Marley said that you have to forget all your troubles and dance. So I can't exactly do that in public, but sometimes you can forget all your troubles and being able to laugh about some of the situations you're in.

I know we were talking about the budget, and it was my third or fourth day in office, and I started arguing with the budget director. And I hadn't worked on the budget all year. This was not one of the areas that the governor had me working. So here I am, basically a novice, trying to negotiate a budget, and I kept arguing with him.

My assistant said to me, "Well, if you don't know anything about this, how can you be arguing with him?" And said, "Did you see those 'Indiana Jones' movies? I'm making this up as I go along."

Tavis: (Laughs) I know it's early and this might be an unfair question this early in the process, but have you figured out yet what it is that you want your legacy to be? I mean your legislative legacy.

Paterson: Well, I think that you touched on it in the beginning of the show, Tavis. I want to prove that you can get things done without being the kind of person that makes everyone dislike you - also known as a politician. (Laughter) And a second thing is that I want this country to address the fact that we have huge debt.

In other words, while we blame poor consumers for running up credit bills and not paying it back, as our government in the United States, we have leveraged out almost all of our resources to other countries. Our investment banking community is held hostage and had to raise capital from other countries in order to survive.

So we have an out-of-control fiscal policy, and on the lower frequencies of society, it means great unemployment, it means an inability to buy and live in a home, and it means the inability to get a decent education, and no healthcare. So those are some of the issues that I'm trying to address, but most of all what I want people and the public to know is that you can do this, and as much as we in public service say we care about people, you can actually act like you care about them, and it might (unintelligible) to your benefit.

Tavis: I got two minutes; let me see if I can squeeze out two quick questions. Number one, have you talked to Mr. Spitzer since you've taken over as governor?

Paterson: I called him up to see how he was doing. Actually, the other day was his birthday and I called to wish him happy birthday, and he warned me about a few people in government (laughter) I guess we jointly felt were obstacles, and he talked a little bit about some of the issues. Didn't talk very much about what he was doing. But he was very encouraging to me and he said something that added a little levity to the discussion.

He said, "When I chose you, I told you if I wasn't around I wanted someone who could handle government. So now I have the pleasure of saying, 'I told you so.'"

Tavis: Finally, you mentioned earlier, you referenced your party and you talked about the country. Obviously we're in a presidential election; you supported your senator, your junior senator early on, Hillary Clinton. She didn't finish the way she wanted to; Mr. Obama, of course, again, the presumptive nominee. Give me your sense of how he's going to run this fall and what your party's chances are of taking back the White House, Governor Paterson.

Paterson: Well, we had two outstanding candidates who also were two representatives of two disempowered groups: women, who are over half of the country's population and systematically discriminated, and African Americans, who after being brought here as chattel slaves and then segregated for another hundred years, still have not reached what I would call true equality in our society.

And those two candidates battled it out to the end. A lot of people were afraid of that confrontation. I thought it was showing true democracy. And now, an alumni of Columbia University, as I am, Senator Barack Obama, who's made everyone at Columbia forget that I ever even went there, (laughter) is our party's candidate for president.

And I think that no one has impacted on the political scene such as Barack Obama that I've seen in my lifetime. And no matter what party you're in, he is another person who's shown graciousness but strength of character, and I think he's making a point that we need to talk to our enemies. But I'd like to add to that point.

You don't just talk to your enemies; you're talking to the world, showing the difference between you and your enemies. And that's why I like his plan.

Tavis: Well, that's why I like you, because you are gracious and you have courage and conviction and commitment, and because of it you are now in the governor's chair, and I again, along with many other Americans, could not be more proud of you. And I want to thank you for coming on, and I look forward to seeing you in New York on my next trip.

Paterson: Well, thank you, Tavis. I'm tired of being a nice guy. I think I should have been given some more time tonight.

Tavis: (Laughs) He'll be here all weekend, people, all weekend - two shows nightly. The governor of New York, David Paterson. Governor, nice to have you on, I'll talk to you soon.

Paterson: Thank you.

Tavis: Take care.