ALBANY, N.Y. – Could New York’s state Capitol building become the next Trump Tower?
Republican sources said The Donald – who in 1999 toyed with the idea of running for the White House on the Reform Party line – is mulling a bid to persuade New Yorkers to hire him as their next governor.
Senate GOP leader Joseph Bruno tantalized reporters this week by declaring a wealthy mystery candidate is “thinking” about seeking the party’s backing to replace Gov. George Pataki.
Bruno – a longtime Trump admirer who has gained new clout within statewide GOP circles as Pataki prepares to leave state politics – wouldn’t name the potential candidate.
“When it gets public, you are all going to become excited, interested, and will want to write about it,” said Bruno. “This person is thinking about it, and I bet you you’ll vote for him if he ends up running.”
A billionaire Republican, real estate developer, casino mogul and TV star, Trump has been a big supporter of the Bruno-controlled troupe of Republican state senators.
But he also has sent donations to Attorney General Eliot Spitzer, the current Democratic front-runner in the governor’s race.
Trump could not be reached for comment.
In 1999, while considering a run for president, Trump put up a Web site that declared: “Donald J. Trump may be the experienced, decisive can-do businessman America needs as President in the new millennium.”
He later opted against making his candidacy official, calling the Reform Party “a total mess.”
A Trump candidacy would “generate a huge amount of attention,” said Baruch College politics professor Doug Muzzio. “It would certainly energize the governor’s race.”
Several Republican insiders said Bruno is struggling to get a “big name” for the race because he’s concerned upstate billionaire Tom Golisano – often mentioned as a potential GOP candidate for governor – may decide against running a fourth time.
Another businessman who has been nudged to run for governor is Time Warner Chairman Richard Parsons, whom Pataki tried to recruit for the race, sources said. But Parsons “is not running for governor,” a Time Warner spokeswoman said.
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