Gov. Paterson: I'm Not Resigning

NY Gov. David Paterson says the rumors of his drug use and womanizing are untrue and he has no intention of resigning.

Governor David Paterson is fighting back as rumors continue to swirl about a still-unpublished New York Times article that some say could lead to his resignation. On Monday, Paterson told the Associated Press that allegations of recent drug use and womanizing are not true. He insisted that he has no plans to resign. The Governor says the politicians and press corps in Albany have hit new lows. Paterson told the AP that a January 30th New York Post article that says New York State Police found him with another woman in a room at the Governor's Mansion is a fabrication.

The governor also says that the utility closet in which he was supposedly found does not exist. Meanwhile other rumors are swirling that Paterson awarded a multi-billion dollar casino gambling contract in return for the promised re-election support of Rev. Floyd Flake, a notoriously anti-gay nutcase who has a tiny stake in the company that won the bid. Flake is one of the most popular religious figures in NYC.

Flake, an influential former congressman, owns a .06% stake in Aqueduct Entertainment Group, a politically connected company that won the lucrative deal to run the slots. The Aqueduct slots could bring in as much as $6 billion a year, experts predict, with AEG taking home about $180 million annually. Flake insisted the company beat out other bidders to win the racino deal fair and square - and he touted the project as a godsend that will bring much-needed jobs to the community.

In 1990 Flake and his wife were indicted on 17 federal counts of conspiracy, tax evasion, and fraud over accusations that they had embezzled money from a federally funded senior citizen housing center built by his church. The charges were later dropped when the judge dismissed the testimonies of most of the prosecution's witnesses.

UPDATE: Local television reports that Paterson is meeting with the editors of the New York Times today. Their story on Paterson is now set to be published tomorrow.