Mistress-gate expands

It turns out that Judith Nathan, now the third Mrs. Giuliani, got NYPD police protection even earlier than thought. Before anyone seemed to know she was having an affair with the Mayor, the police were guarding her and driving her around everywhere.

A law enforcement source familiar with mayoral protection said Nathan got bodyguards as far back as 1999, shortly after the affair began.

"If she had to go shopping, errands, that's where you went," the source said.

Other residents at the building said they often saw Nathan coming and going with two well-dressed drivers, who occasionally toted her packages.

"She was always coming back with shopping bags from the different well-known stores in New York," said Jacqueline Elman, a building resident for 12 years who walked her dog regularly and often spotted Nathan, who became the third Mrs. Giuliani in 2003.

Degenstein said he doesn't remember the exact date that cops started showing up for Nathan, but he's certain the rides started before May 10, 2000. That's the day Giuliani dramatically informed his wife, Donna Hanover, via a news conference, that he wanted a separation.

"It was prior to this whole thing with Donna Hanover," Degenstein recalled.

With stories like this oozing out, no wonder that the Giuliani campaign is worrying about his sinking lead and prepping hard for his appearance on Meet the Press this Sunday. Suddenly his strategy of bypassing the early states doesn't seem so sure anymore.