Stepping aside from the scandals at the statehouse, New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo decided on Thursday not to lead the investigation into Gov. David Paterson’s woes.

When Cuomo decided to step aside and let former Chief Judge Judith Kaye take over two investigations of Paterson he said it was the best way to handle cases involving a sitting governor.

“A thorough, expeditious investigation conducted in a manner that inspires public confidence is imperative,” Cuomo said.

But he also did himself a gigantic political favor. Since he began the Paterson investigation his poll numbers have tumbled.

Cuomo’s approval rating was 67 before Paterson suspended his campaign, according to a Marist poll. This week he slipped 13 points to 54.

More upsetting to the would-be Democratic gubernatorial candidate is his support slipped 17 percent in New York City, 22 points among non-white voters.

“If there was no merit to either of these referrals then I could have saved everyone a lot of time and dismissed them,” Cuomo said.

That was bad news for Gov. Paterson. Cuomo said his preliminary investigation of two cases — the domestic violence case involving Paterson’s top aide and charges he lied about World Series tickets — needed to be pursued.

The news did not rattle Paterson.

“It’s no different as far as I’m concerned. It’s an investigation. I’ll continue to cooperate and hopefully the truth will come out,” Paterson said.

Cuomo was coy about when he’ll throw his hat into the gubernatorial ring. He said he had several cases he has to complete before he turns to politics. One of those may involve Bronx Sen. Pedro Espada.

(Source: http://wcbstv.com/)