Paladino Promises a Relentless Attack Against Cuomo

New York Times ^ | DAVID HALBFINGER AND ELIZABETH A. HARRIS

[reaganaut1]

BUFFALO — Fresh from having romped to a lopsided victory in the Republican primary for governor, Carl P. Paladino vowed Wednesday to attack Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo “like General Patton,” saying he would exploit Mr. Cuomo’s “immaturity” and his “ego.”

“We’re going to charge, charge, charge,” Mr. Paladino said in a wide-ranging 40-minute interview with The New York Times on Wednesday morning. “General Patton, when they told him to get up there to the bulge and bring his Third Army and help those soldiers up there — it didn’t matter who was in his way. He charged, charged, charged.” Sitting in the corner office of his real estate company in downtown Buffalo, with his late son Patrick’s gray pit bull, Duke, at his feet, Mr. Paladino said he would assail Mr. Cuomo’s record as federal housing secretary. And he would seek to blame Mr. Cuomo, a Democrat, for the broader dysfunction of state government.

“This guy Sheldon Silver, who he calls one of his best friends, was first to endorse him,” Mr. Paladino said referring to Mr. Cuomo. “I hold him as very much a part of this last government.”

Later, Mr. Paladino referred to Mr. Silver, the powerful Assembly speaker, as a “dictator.”

And, echoing a widespread conservative argument, he asserted that Mr. Cuomo had “lit the fuse” on the nation’s housing crisis by pushing to lower lending standards at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the two quasi-public mortgage giants.

Asked what he saw as Mr. Cuomo’s vulnerabilities, Mr. Paladino replied: “His immaturity. His ego. I think insular is a very good word for him.”

[MrDem]

I don’t even live in NY and yet I will send this guy money. I WANT GO FOR THE JUGULAR AND WILL PAY FOR IT!

[SuziQ]

And, echoing a widespread conservative argument, he asserted that Mr. Cuomo had “lit the fuse” on the nation’s housing crisis by pushing to lower lending standards at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the two quasi-public mortgage giants.

And he was helped along by Chris Dodd in the Senate, and Barney Frank in the house, pushing the legislation requiring banks to make those loans, and making it easy for the financial houses to take on the loans without risk.

[Fitzy_888]

Paladino can start with Cuomo’s tenure at HUDD and oversight of the subprime mortgage program:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ivmL-lXNy64