Odds on Caroline Improve

The news that Governor David Paterson’s aides were encouraging him to duck the Caroline Kennedy controversy and opt for a stop gap senator to fill Hillary’s soon-to-be-empty Senate seat caused a flurry over the New Year. But the Princess of Camelot has shot back to the top of the likely list now that the governor has ruled out such a compromise. "I'm actually opposed to that," he told reporters at his New Year’s bash. "It would cause New York to lose seniority, and in the United States Senate, the most effective senators are the ones that have seniority. So, I'm hoping that the person I select wins a primary." Paterson’s New Year's resolution? "Not to talk about the Senate."