Holy Mother of God, please let it not be true.

Gov. Eliot Spitzer has informed his most senior administration officials that he had been involved in a prostitution ring, an administration official said this morning.

Mr. Spitzer, who was huddled with his top aides inside his Fifth Avenue apartment early this afternoon, had hours earlier abruptly canceled his scheduled public events for the day. He scheduled an announcement for 2:15 after inquiries from the Times.

Mr. Spitzer, a first term Democrat who pledged to bring ethics reform an end the often seamy ways of Albany, is married with three children.

Devastating. Apparently, Spitzer's announcement was prompted by the New York Times and this morning's piece in the New York Sun. Money quote:

Prosecutors specializing in government corruption cases are leading the investigation into what authorities say was a prostitution service that charged up to $5,500 an hour — suggesting that the U.S. attorney's office in Manhattan may have evidence that a public official hired a prostitute.

Somewhere, Joe Bruno is tap-dancing.

[Update]: CBS2 now reporting the governor may resign and swear in Lt. Governor David Paterson at 7 PM today.