Paterson Joins Crowd, Denounces Non-Diverse Judge Picks
That was fast. Shortly after State Senator-elect Hiram Monserrate complained about the lack of diversity in the list of nominees for chief judge of the state Court of Appeals put forward by the state's commission, Governor Paterson has also denounced it -- but where Monserrate focused on a paucity of Latino names, Paterson is outraged that all the nominees were male. "It seems highly unusual," said the Governor, "that in a class of seven individuals considered to be capable of supervising the Court of Appeals that not one of them would be a woman, not one."
Paterson is asking Attorney General Cuomo for "legal options" to being limited to the list, says the Buffalo News. There may not be any -- as a legal expert told Liz Benjamin at the News, Mario Cuomo had a similar situation when he was Governor, and was unable to buck the committee. But by complaining Paterson has kept from falling too far behind the curve; Assemblyman Peter Rivera has already joined Monserrate in denouncing the selections, as have others. At least the Governor can say he was on the side of the angels.
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