Liu acknowledges he won't be NYC mayor

City Comptroller John Liu knows that plenty of people are predicting his political breakdown, saying that with his campaign finances under federal investigation there's no way he can become the next mayor of the nation's largest city.

And Liu, the first Asian-American to win major elective office in New York, sees their point.

"That's certainly an understandable assessment," Liu told The Associated Press in an interview in which he defended his fundraising practices while claiming he had "no dealings" with the campaign's compliance with election law.

Still, the Democrat did not talk like someone who was merely running for re-election. He referred repeatedly to unnamed rivals. And he said those rivals were likely to reach the maximum contribution level allowed by campaign regulations -- a prediction cited among insiders discussing the race.

Liu noted more than once that many months remain before the 2013 primary.

Analysts no longer see the comptroller as a top contender to replace independent Mayor Michael Bloomberg next year. The arrests of his campaign treasurer and a fundraiser, accompanied by allegations from prosecutors that his campaign made use of straw donors who funneled illegal contributions from wealthy people, have cast a shadow over his future.

"If he survives this process, which is still in question . . . then the test will be whether he can be nominated and re-elected to his current position," said Gerald Benjamin, a political science professor at the SUNY New Paltz.

Voters are bound to have questions about how a mishandling of funds, if proved true, could happen on the watch of the comptroller, the official charged with guarding the city's finances and unearthing government waste.

Liu's poll numbers have shifted downward. A Quinnipiac University survey this month found his approval rating at 40 percent, down from 51 percent before his campaign troubles became public. His disapproval rating has more than doubled to 37 percent.

Liu said his campaign had acted appropriately and that, because he was aware of the history of allegations regarding straw donors in the Asian-American community, he had instructed his staff to take specific precautions. He insisted his campaign shouldn't be held responsible for confirming information provided by donors; but the city's Campaign Finance Board says compliance is the campaign's responsibility.