Spitzer Almost Gone, but Lawsuit Carries on

NEW YORK —Governor Spitzer is on his way out of office, but his state lawyers are still arguing that efforts by a hostile Senate committee to subpoena confidential executive branch documents are simply meant to "harass and embarrass" the governor's office.

The three subpoenas issued by the Republican-led committee are part of a "political operation" that had nothing to do with its duties and should be quashed, an attorney, Dietrich Snell, told a state Supreme Court judge today.

A lawyer for the Senate Investigations Committee, David Lewis, countered that the subpoenas are in the public interest as the committee probes a scheme by Spitzer aides to embarrass the Senate Majority Leader, Joseph Bruno, Mr. Spitzer's chief political rival.

"We're not out on a frolic for the purpose of humiliating the governor," Mr. Lewis told Justice Richard Braun. "This hasn't come up because we decided to get the governor and the executive chamber. It came up because of their actions."

The committee investigation is one of several into the actions of Spitzer operatives who used state police to compile records on Mr. Bruno's use of state aircraft and state police drivers on trips that mixed meetings with lobbyists and Republican fundraisers.