By Jon Ralston

Sat, May 17, 2008 (2:01 a.m.)

You have to marvel at Mayor Oscar Goodman’s ability to captivate the media. The governor’s race is a cycle away but all he has to do is come up with some palaver about considering it and his wife saying he can and he gets two stories in one week! Name one other politician who could do such a thing. Just one. You can’t. Nobody can. Even though most people in the political world don’t take what he says seriously — it can change so often — the media love affair has not abated. And that is exactly why Goodman cannot be taken for granted if he decides to run for governor. I doubt he would take on Barbara Buckley — he has said as much about the Assembly speaker — but if he runs, he’s a factor. And the media will love it.