OBIT

Former NY Gov. Hugh Carey Dies

Helped rescue city from financial crisis.

He helped rescue New York from the brink of financial collapse and reined in a culture of ever-growing spending. Sounds like just the guy we need now. Hugh Carey, the 51st governor of New York from 1975 to 1982, died at the age of 92 at his summer home on Shelter Island. Carey, a liberal Democrat, reversed spiraling borrowing and spending that pushed New York City to within hours of filing for bankruptcy. President Gerald Ford had vowed to veto any federal bill that would bail out the city, leading to the famous Daily News front page: "Ford to City: Drop Dead." But Carey convinced the president that he had the situation under control, successfully weathering the crisis.