All Over Albany

Is this the rumored NYT Paterson article?

The New York Times posted a long-ish article Tuesday night about David Johnson, the former intern and driver who reportedly has become one of David Paterson's closest advisors. From the piece:

David W. Johnson has worked for Gov. David A. Paterson for much of his adult life. He began as a young, ambitious intern from Harlem when Mr. Paterson was a state legislator. He rose to be Mr. Paterson's driver, serving as a kind of protector and scheduler.

In recent months, however, Mr. Johnson's ascent has been striking: he is now one of the most senior people in the governor's administration, paid $132,000. He is described as Mr. Paterson's closest confidant, a man with a designated room in the Executive Mansion, and a broadening role in areas like campaign fund-raising, government initiatives and the management of the governor's staff.

The story highlights Johnson's two arrests on drug charges as a teen -- and more recent accusations of altercations with women. It also features a photo of Johnson in ominous light (literally).

If this was the much-buzzed-about "bombshell," it's underwhelming. But, hey, read the whole thing and decide for yourself. The story credits six different reporters, so it would seem NYT has been working on this for a while. (For what it's worth, the NY Post reported last week that Paterson aides have "groused" about Johnson's influence in the administration.)

This post has been edited. We removed the photos because we couldn't be 100 percent sure they depicted Johnson.