Governor David Paterson will meet with state leaders later this morning to address the $2 billion budget deficit that the governor says is worsening.

Paterson says he wants to fill the budget gap by cutting spending, not by increasing taxes or fees.

The governor yesterday spoke about his encounter Monday with President Barack Obama and said all the speculation surrounding his future is hampering his ability to lead the state.

“There’s a lot of confusion, a lot of innuendo,” he said. “I have had conversations with the White House. I am concerned about the Democratic Party, but I’m also concerned with my ability to govern.”

Paterson did get some good news yesterday, when the state’s highest court ruled his appointment of Richard Ravitch as lieutenant governor is legal.

Ravitch says he hopes to bring to the state the same financial stability he brought to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority in the 1980s.

Source: NY1