Even before the events of the past week, this administration was heading south. McGreevey put much of his political capital behind the push to preserve the Highlands, then torpedoed his credibility with a sop to developers, allowing them to fast-track environmental permits. He balanced the state budget with the biggest sleight-of-hand in the state's history, proposing to borrow $2 billion to pay for daily operating expenses.

Now McGreevey is besieged by numerous guilt-by-association distractions, except these can't be dismissed as distractions. The governor might be called to testify.

Real estate developer Charles Kushner, who helped bankroll McGreevey's election, is accused of interfering with a federal inquiry by hiring a prostitute to blackmail a witness. David D'Amiano, a McGreevey friend and campaign supporter, was indicted on charges of taking $40,000 in kickbacks to broker the purchase of a Morris County farm by the state. Then, on Wednesday, state Commerce Secretary William Watley resigned in response to reports that he funneled state funds to businesses he owned and to members of his family.