President Obama has sent a request to New York Governor David Paterson (D) that he withdraw from the New York governor’s race. (source) With Paterson's approval rating hovering around 30% and strong speculation that the very popular former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani will enter the gubernatorial race on the Republican side, it's not surprising that the president would be concerned. But to directly request that Paterson step aside? That's more than concern. That's fear.

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The problem for the president is that there is much more at stake than the New York Governor's office. Should Mr. Giuliani run, Republican turnout for the 2010 contest could be much stronger than usual for a mid-term election and that could cause a coat tail effect that would not be good for all Democrats including the president as they fear losing their congressional majorities next year.

Evidently those nervous Democrats believe that New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, who has been considering taking on Governor Paterson in a Democratic primary, would be better for their party than the current governor. With Paterson out of the way, it would be clear sailing for Cuomo to take on Giuliani without being tarnished in a primary fight.

Governor Paterson's spokesman has declined comment on the request so far but I would be shocked if the Governor does not comply. After all, this is Chicago-style politics as usual and what the boss wants, the boss gets.

How comforting it must be to the citizens of New York to know that they needn't bother with voting in any pesky primaries. Barack Obama is deciding who can and can't run for elected office in their state.