Einstein once observed “the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” So it is with more than a little wonder that at least three politicians in the news now think that they can do the same thing that other politicians have done with disastrous effect and expect a different result.

• Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg: Until last week you looked to be on track to be New York's future junior senator and then you not only took a tour, but started to give your views -- well kind of. Your goal seemed to be being seen with several regional politicians, including Syracuse Mayor Matthew Driscoll (in that case you mostly avoided questions by the press) and the Rev. Al Sharpton - and not with voters. A few days later your press person released answers to some questions posed by the press - in one case answering only seven of eight and in some of those cases with the most vanilla of answers.

Apparently while you are a great supporter of President-elect Barrack Obama. Did you miss the part of the fall campaign, when the Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin avoided interviews for most of the campaign? When she did start to do interviews, she fumbled badly and drove her approval numbers down. Maybe you don't get it yet. New Yorkers, and especially our press, expect you to be open and specific. In your case, there was no need to open up to questions - you only had to appeal to one person, Gov. David Paterson, who has to appoint you. Now that you have answered some questions more will be expected. Pulling a Sarah Palin just won't work.

• Illinois Gov. Rob Blagojevich: So let's get this straight - for five years the federal government has been probing corruption in your state and you have likely been a target of investigators. On top of this more than a dozen people have been dragged into court with arrests and/or convictions and you didn't think to worry about being wire tapped?

In a world where almost everything is caught on tape, by accident or deliberately, not thinking the references that you made, even innocently (we know you have yet to be formally charged), wouldn't look bad both legally and in the public's eye, is beyond belief.

• New York Gov. David Paterson: You came from the New York state Senate as the Minority Leader. For years you saw that every governor who submitted a budget would have the Legislature then add millions in spending. So you submitted a budget last week, in light of a budget gap you previously estimated to be close to $14 billion, and you didn't make drastic cuts, knowing that the Legislature will restore something. Do you expect them not to increase spending by more than the 1.1 percent you already increased it?

Cosentino is a former mayor of Auburn and can be contacted at cozguytho@aol.com