Observing that “politics is too often a dirty business,” a judge has allowed a defamation claim to go to trial against a veteran Republican political consultant, a former GOP candidate for governor and an owner of a public relations firm.

Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Richard Braun denied summary judgment in favor of campaign strategist Roger Stone, one-time New York gubernatorial candidate Carl Paladino and PR firm owner Michael Caputo, who managed Paladino’s 2010 campaign.