Spin Cycle

Gov. Paterson and his spokesman, in response to a NYPost story yesterday, contended that he stayed in Albany hotels instead of his nearby home 13 times during the past 15 months because his intense and rigorous responsibilities as LG required him to be close to the Capitol.

Apparently, though, the records don't really support that explanation.

The NY Sun checks his official schedule:

"A copy of Mr. Paterson's 2007 official schedule obtained by The New York Sun shows that sometimes Mr. Paterson opted to stay at a hotel the night before a day that was free of official morning activities.

"Records suggest that many times Mr. Paterson's day did not begin until 9 a.m. On one occasion, he did not have his first scheduled meeting until 2 p.m."

The stays cost taxpayers about $2500. Another explanation, hypothetically, would be that Paterson stayed in Albany because he was out womanizing and carousing. But he denies that hypothesis. He said yesterday that he stayed at hotels for "early morning meetings or press conferences" in order to "accommodate" Governor Spitzer.