Hung Out to Dry

"The lack of news from the governor's office seemed to steadily increase tension throughout a day in which questions about the state leadership swirled through New York State's avenues of power. Albany seemed to hold its breath as both political parties speculated about the governor's next move, and crowds of reporters flocked to the Capitol Building . . .

"A law enforcement official said the governor spent tens of thousands of dollars on the service. Mr. Spitzer, 48, a first-term Democrat, was said by aides to be considering resigning."

And the embarrassing details keep on coming: "Disgraced Gov. Spitzer dropped up to $80,000 on sex with prostitutes, sources revealed tonight," the New York Post reports.

"Spitzer, a millionaire, was hopping into bed with harlots for as long as 10 years and traveled as far as Florida for call-girl trysts, sources said."

And the News turns its investigative energies to one of the harlots:

"A brunette knockout with the name and looks of Gov. Spitzer's hooker has gone into hiding -- at least in cyberspace.

"A New York escort 'model' named Kristen took down two of her Web sites less than 24 hours after the scandal broke, and her photo disappeared from another site.

"Before that, she revealed plenty about herself and her services. 'I deeply enjoy indulging the desires of successful and discriminating gentlemen with whom I have a mutual connection,' she wrote. 'So whether we meet for a sumptuous meal in Manhattan or choose to order in, my goal is that our encounter be simply spectacular and undeniably worth repeating.'

"She boasted of being an 'intelligent, sensual woman -- a college-educated 27-year-old who is 5-feet-8, a size 2 and almost a D-cup. She likes peonies and will never go skydiving again."

How long before she's chatting up Barbara Walters?

Could all this hurt Hillary Clinton, who Spitzer endorsed? Slate's Christopher Beam sees far broader damage:

"Addressing the Spitzer flap raises the ghosts of scandals past, namely Monica Lewinsky. Clinton has so far managed during this campaign to avoid public mention of her husband's diddling. If the Spitzer controversy drags out, it could become a painful reminder of the final White House years. (Of course, you could argue that it would make people sympathize with her all over again.)