DONOHUE, LIKE PATAKI, TRIED POT

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Former state judge Mary Donohue, Gov. George Pataki's
new running mate, confirmed Friday that she smoked marijuana as a college
student.

That means the two Republicans at the top of the GOP ticket this year have
both tried pot.

But while Donohue inhaled, Pataki has said he ingested it with a can of
baked beans.

``She was a child of the 60's and she tried it,'' Donohue spokeswoman Eileen
Long said.

Donohue, a former Rensselaer County district attorney, told the New York
Post that she tried pot during her days as a student at the College of New
Rochelle. She graduated from there in 1968.

``I tried it, but didn't like it. I smoked it and probably inhaled. But I
never got into it,'' the former state Supreme Court justice told the Post.

Long said Donohue was kidding about ``probably'' inhaling.

``Of course, she inhaled,'' Long said. ``She smoked pot and she inhaled.''

While Pataki has admitted to trying pot during his days at Columbia Law
School, he used a novel approach. Not being a smoker, Pataki said he and
some friends mixed their marijuana in with a can of beans and ate it.

Donohue, little known statewide, was plucked off the state trial court last
month to become Pataki's running mate.

Last year, the governor dumped current Lt. Gov. Betsy McCaughey Ross from
his re-election plans, saying she wasn't a team player. McCaughey Ross
switched to the Democratic Party in September and is seeking its nomination
to challenge Pataki in November.

Checked-by: Melodi Cornett