ABANDONED: Among those who’ve ditched Spitzer are Rich Baum (above), Darren Dopp and Paul Francis, here with the then-gov.
ABANDONED: Among those who’ve ditched Spitzer are Rich Baum, Darren Dopp (above) and Paul Francis, here with the then-gov.
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Nearly all of Eliot Spitzer’s once fiercely loyal aides have abandoned him as he seeks political redemption through his race for city comptroller, key Democrats have told The Post.
One of the state’s best-known Democrats noted the stunning lack of experienced strategists and policy makers from the Spitzer administration among the staffers supporting the former governor’s last-minute campaign to become the city’s chief financial officer.
“Where are all of Eliot’s friends now?” the high-profile Democrat asked. “Those who know him best have forsaken him the most.”
The source specifically cited former Spitzer lieutenants Rich Baum, Darren Dopp, David Nocenti, Sean Patrick Maloney and Paul Francis as among those conspicuously missing.
The top Democrat, who once had considerable dealings with the Spitzer administration, also ripped the disgraced ex-governor for repeatedly suggesting as a newly minted candidate for comptroller that the only real problem during his brief tenure running the state was the prostitution scandal that forced him from office.
“Not so fast,’’ said the source.
“Forget the prostitutes — how about ‘Troopergate,’ his tax increases, his ‘steamrolling’ of others, the driver’s licenses [for illegal immigrants] and ‘Comptrollergate,’ ” the Democrat continued, referring to Spitzer’s initially supporting disgraced state Comptroller Alan Hevesi, then losing a battle with the Legislature to name Hevesi’s replacement.
Of those former aides identified by the source, only former spokesman Dopp returned a request for comment yesterday.
Dopp called it an “interesting situation” that “nobody from the old team” was working on their ex-boss’ Democratic primary campaign against Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer.
But Dopp, who took the fall in the “Troopergate” effort to smear then-Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno for his use of State Police helicopters and police cars, said he spent several years estranged from Spitzer before they started speaking again about a year ago.
“A lot of us from the old days were surprised when he decided to run, but it’s much more a pragmatic thing than anything else,” Dopp said.
Miriam Hess, Spitzer’s current senior strategist, said, “I’ve talked to dozens of friends from Spitzer-world and they’ve all been incredibly supportive of our effort.
“The powers that be may not like it, but what the people of the city know is that they’re about to get back an old friend.”
Perhaps fearing the “steamroller,” some of Spitzer’s old enemies are already backing down.
A Republican activist who filed a challenge to Spitzer’s petitions said the wealthy donors who could bankroll the challenge are suddenly hesitant.
“People are afraid of retribution,” E. O’Brien Murray said. “Spitzer gets a free pass on this,”
Additional reporting by Bruce Golding