Cuomo 2016? Too soon?

In the 24/7 news media cycle, people are always looking for the next subject to grab their attention. They start to say what about tomorrow. What is the next big thing to emerge? Who will be running for president not in 2012, but in 2016. President Barack Obama is on a collision course with former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney this November. However, some are starting to scout the field and fantasize about the race in 2016 when this race is still in progress. As part of that 2016 conversation, there is the popular choice of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. She was viewed as early as 2005 as the potential Democratic front runner in 2008. She was that front runner until an unknown juggernaut named Barack Obama appeared and passed her by on his way to the Democratic nomination. Of course, with Obama running again; she is not running this year. However, several of her loyal supporters are hoping she has a change of heart and starts to consider another run; where she will be the favorite again and likely could finish what she started in 2008. But, with the emergence of Obama four years ago or even then-Arkansas Governor Bill Clinton in 1992 or then-Georgia Governor Jimmy Carter in 1976; Democrats as well as Republicans are always looking for that next hidden gem who could pave a route to the White House. One such popular name is another governor in New York Governor Andrew Cuomo. Cuomo has the name recognition with his famous father who also was New York Governor and ran for president the same year as Bill Clinton. Cuomo has made a name for himself in New York as its Attorney General and has been slowly garnering national attention through the early part of his tenure as governor. A recent NY Times article takes a peak into Cuomo's mindset regarding the race. Here is a hint: he is content with being governor. ALBANY — Even Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo acknowledged that there was something familiar about the situation. The scene: The Red Room at the Capitol. The audience: The Albany press corps. The question: When will you discuss whether you are running for president? Two decades ago, it was Gov. Mario M. Cuomo answering, or not answering, that question. This time, it was his son. “I’ve seen this movie before,” the younger Mr. Cuomo, a Democrat who took office last year, said. “Actually, in this room — there’s like a whole little déjà vu going on for me.” Addressing for the first time speculation in political circles that he might be a candidate for president in 2016, Mr. Cuomo said, “In one regard, the speculation is flattering,” but added that it could also be “totally distracting.” Mr. Cuomo made his remarks regarding the 2016 campaign after a reporter asked him about his reluctance to take questions on the subject. The governor suggested that he would only hurt his ability to run the state by talking about his future. “Once you start saying, ‘Let’s talk political, my own politics, my own aspirations,’ it can become not just distracting in that it takes time, but it can become confusing and frustrating, and is this now a political agenda or a governmental agenda,” he said. He added: “All I’m working on is being the best governor I can be. That’s where I am, because that’s where I am — that is really, really where I am in my heart. And that’s where I’m going to stay.”