Also, a $100 contribution Thompson received from Kevin Wardally, a consultant with Bill Lynch Associates, was refunded. BLA has not publicly signed on with a mayoral campaign.

Thompson’s rival in the Democratic primary, Anthony Weiner, is no longer using Democratic consultant Basil Smikle, who was hired last year. According to Weiner’s latest campaign filing, Smikle was paid $8,000 for consulting back in August of 2008, and not since.

Smikle and a campaign spokesman did not immediately return emails seeking further comment.

In the latest campaign finance filing period – which ran from July 12, 2008 to January 11, 2009 - Thompson raised $114,848 and spent $258,312.

Thompson’s spending includes $196,509 on consultants, and $15,351 on fund-raising. Also during this filing, $19,500 in contributions were refunded to contributors.

According to Weiner’s latest filing, he raised $165,531 and spent $198,717. Weiner’s spending includes $103,973 on consultants and $57,860 on fund-raising. Weiner also refunded $26,836 in contributions.

On January 11, Weiener received $175 from Assemblyman Mike Cusick of Staten Island, who he worked with back in Senator Chuck Schumer’s office.

Rodney Capel, the former executive director of the state Democratic Party, said that the governor should pick a replacement for Hillary Clinton’s senate seat that benefits his re-election chances.

The new senator should be “someone who has ability to raise money and support the election of the governor with white moderates that overwhelmingly supported Eliot in 2006,” Capel, now with Mercury Public Affairs, said in an IM.

But Capel didn't peg that ability to help Paterson to a specific demographic group: “I would say balance is less important than electability and competence. If the replacement is someone that can’t advance the work of the people of this state and can’t assist the Governor with his own re-election, then region and sex are not as important.”

Another consultant, Kevin Wardally with Bill Lynch Associates, said that Clinton would be tough to replace.

"Whenever Hillary Rodham Clinton opened her mouth on behalf of the needs of NYS, it was local, national and international and whomever follows her will not have that ability, at least right away," Wardally said, also via IM.

When asked about whether Paterson needs to pick someone who helps him reach out to various demographic groups or someone who is considered a strong statewide candidate, Wardally said, "The sad part is he needs both and the combination of those two needs are very hard to find currently in New York. Our statewide elected official bench is not deep."

How competitive is that race? Judging by the hired guns the candidates have, very. (Especially since most folks haven’t even heard of it).

Milton Tingling has two important figures on his campaign: Kevin Wardally of Bill Lynch Associates, and Chung Seto, a Hillary Clinton fund-raiser and former executive director of the state Democratic Party. Tingling already earned an endorsement victory by a landslide when the county Democratic organization met earlier this month, giving him crucial institutional support.

John Reddy, an experienced judge closely associated with the current surrogate, Renee Roth, has Joe Reubens and The Parkside Group working on his campaign. The firm helped elect Manhattan Surrogate Kristen Booth Glen and in Rockland County, they helped Robert Berliner unseat an incumbent surrogate judge.

Nora Anderson, a reform-minded candidate (with neat campaign literature), has consultant Michael Oliva, who successfully managed two other Surrogate's Court candidates, as well as campaigns for judicial candidates in other courts.

Among the event organizers are Luther Smith, the Democratic consultant recently hired by Governor Paterson; Kevin Wardally, who worked with Luther Smith at Bill Lynch Associates, and Matthew Silverstein, a candidate for president of the N.Y.S. Young Democrats.

I asked Lynch about reports that people are coming out of the woodwork to ask Paterson for favors and jobs.

Lynch said he didn't know Paterson's personal feelings on it, but as far as he's concerned, there's been "a wonderful outpouring of support for him and people want to be helpful."

A few feet away from him were Jef Pollock and Risa Heller, consultants from the Global Strategy Group, which helped get Eliot Spitzer elected as attorney general and governor.

"I think it's sad that the dynamic duo of desperation - Obama and Edwards - have sunk so low as to forget what their campaigns are all about and abandon issues, poverty and hope and opt for the campaign of attack and attack alone."