'The Spitzer Defense'

Understandably, Eliot Spitzer has become the punchline for a lot of jokes. But I think this is more than a stretch.

It's the Spitzer defense.

A homeless ex-con accused of sex attacks on prostitutes is defending himself by claiming he was really a customer, not a rapist - and hey, anybody from bums to governors can be a john.

"Rovell Washington has sex with prostitutes," defense lawyer Kevin Canfield told a Manhattan Supreme Court jury yesterday. "People of all walks of life have sex with prostitutes. We know that from recent news events."

"You can call it the Spitzer defense," the lawyer said outside court.

Washington, 56, has a long record for robbery, burglary and assault, and has been linked by DNA to seven alleged rapes in Manhattan and Brooklyn. He faces 50 years to life on the three Washington Heights rapes for which he is on trial.