I suppose no list of Congressmen that need to be fired would be complete without Charlie Rangel. Charlie began life in Harlem, New York in 1930 as the second of three children. Rangel’s father was frequently unemployed and absent from the home until he finally left his family in 1936. At first, this didn’t seem to affect Charlie and he appeared to do well in elementary and intermediate school; even holding a job at a neighborhood drug store at the age of eight. By high school, Rangel began losing interest in school, was frequently truant and often driven home by police. Rangel’s maternal grandfather worked for the courts and knew many of the local judges and lawyers. He managed to keep Charlie out of serious trouble while he struggled with life in his early teens trying to come to grips with his own identity. Rangel would eventually drop out of Dewitt Clinton H.S. at the age of 16 and began working at a number of menial and low paying jobs.
Charles Rangel would eventually enlist in the Army and served from 1948 through 1952. During the Korean War, Rangel was part of the all-black 503rd Field Artillery Battalion in the 2nd Infantry Division. Rangel distinguished himself during the battle of Kunu-ri in North Korea. Despite heavy fighting and relentless air strikes, Chinese forces flanked the U.S. 24th Division and the U.S. 35th regiment forcing them into retreat. During the retreat, Rangel was part of a vehicle column that became trapped and fell under attack by Chinese forces. Wounded by shrapnel from Chinese shell and facing sub-zero cold, Rangel found himself fighting the elements as well as the Chinese. As U.S. soldiers were being cornered and captured, a number of men from Rangel’s unit looked to him and his reputation for leadership. It took three days but Rangel managed to extricate roughly 40 men out of a battle that would kill nearly half the battalion. They manage to escape the Chinese encirclement and return to American held territory. For his wounds and bravery, Rangel would receive the Purple Heart, the Bronze Star for Valor, a Presidential Unit Citation, The Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation and three Battle Stars.
Rangel considered his time in the military as a formative period in his life and made himself a promise that he would not return home to the same life he left behind. Rangel left the military with an honorable discharge at the rank of Staff Sergeant. Rangel returned home and immediately finished high school completing two years of study in a single year. Rangel went on to earn a B.S. from the New York University School of Commerce in 1957, where he made the dean's list, and on full scholarship, obtained a Juris Doctor from St. John's University School of Law in 1960. His college experience also moved him into the realm of racial and social activist Rangel is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha, the first intercollegiate Greek-letter fraternity established for African-Americans. He is a member of the fraternity's World Policy Council, a think tank whose purpose is to expand Alpha Phi Alpha's involvement in politics, social and current policy regarding international concerns.
After passing the Bar Exam, Rangel began work with Weaver, Evans & Wingate, New York’s most prominent black law firm where Rangel earned a reputation for providing legal representation for black civil rights activists. In 1961, Rangel was appointed as an assistant U.S. Attorney for New York’s Southern District by then, U.S. Attorney General, Robert Kennedy. With a number of new positions in and around the Democratic political scene, Rangel developed a greater interest in politics and with Percy Sutton, formed the John F. Kennedy Democratic Club in Harlem which over time would be re-named the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. Democratic Club. After several unsuccessful bids for elected office, Rangel would get his big break when his friend and mentor, Percy Sutton, was appointed as Manhattan Borough President leaving a vacancy in the New York State Assembly. With Sutton’s help and endorsement, Rangel won that seat in 1966, serving two terms during which; he became friends with New York Governor, Nelson Rockefeller.
Emerging as a leader among black legislators in the Assembly, Rangel supported many ideas that were not widely viewed as popular or in the best interest of the City. He proposed the legalization of gambling, specifically the “numbers” game; saying that for the average Harlemite, playing the numbers was “moral and a way of life.” Rangel opposed harsher penalties for prostitution stating it was ineffective. Curiously, Rangel proposed holding drug pushers criminally accountable for the actions of drug users. While he claimed illegal drug use was a national security issue he also believed that Harlem drug users were principally victims and wanted to move the criminality of drug related crime a little further up the ladder. This way he could claim to be tough on crime while sparing his constituents from harsher penalties. His reputation and friendship with Nelson Rockefeller paid off in 1970 when he defeated long term NY Congressman Adam Clayton Powell for NY’s 18th Congressional District’s seat.
Rangel is a skilled speaker and an adept politician but like his predecessor, has remained in Congress long enough to develop an air of elite entitlement. Powell found himself deeply embroiled in scandal and by the mid-1960s, Powell was being increasingly criticized for mismanagement of the Education and Labor Committee budget, taking trips abroad at public expense which included travel to his retreat on the Bahamian isle of Bimini. He was also under attack in his district, where his refusal to pay a slander judgment made him subject to arrest. He spent increasing amounts of time in Florida and gained a reputation for absenteeism during the meetings of his own committee. In 1967, the House Democratic Caucus stripped Powell of his Committee Chair and the entire Congress eventually voted 307-116 to exclude him from Congress; a move that the Supreme Court would later call improper. Powell would eventually win reelection and was seated with the 91st Congress but was also fined $25,000 and denied seniority.
The budget scandal, Powell’s absenteeism and a personal scandal where it was found that Powell’s mother was on the payroll of his staff from 1961 until 1967 even though she left the U.S in 1961 to reside in Puerto Rico made him an easy target in the 1969 election. Rangel used the accusations against Powell to forward his campaign for Congress. While Rangel only defeated Powell by a mere 150 votes in the Democratic Primary, he won the Congressional seat with 88% percent of the vote over his Republican challenger.
One would think the fall of Adam Clayton Powell would have served as a notice to other presumptuous demagogues but I suppose those lessons are only apparent if you haven’t enjoyed overwhelming reelections for nearly forty years. Now, Charles Rangel has just had to resign his position as Chairman of the House Ways and Means committee because of allegations of scandal that are curiously similar to Powell’s committee budget fiasco. Additionally, Rangel has failed to pay taxes on rental properties that he owns abroad and has misused New York’s rent control assistance by joining three rent controlled apartments together for an office and an additional rent controlled apartment as a residence; all while listing his permanent address as a home in Washington. I suppose what makes the allegations against Rangel even worse is that he was the Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee; the Committee that writes the tax regulations the rest of us have to live with or else.
Charlie counted on his Parties dominance in Washington to protect him and they tried their best until public opinion demanded that he be removed from the chairman position and fully investigated. Charlie was so secure about his Parties protection that when an independent video journalist saw Rangel in the Capitol building and asked about the allegations, Charlie laughed at him and said “Why don’t you mind your own God damned business” before boarding an elevator. Apparently Charlie forgot that the Congress is our business. That tax cheat Congressman should expect serious questions from tax payers when there are questions of wrong-doing. That the reasons he is being questioned by the ethics committee is because even after 39 years in Congress, we still expect that the people that write the rules actually follow them too.
Today is shopping day and I have already checked the expiration date of the perishables in my refrigerator. I think it’s about time we put an expiration day on our Congressmen too. It only took 15 years for Adam Clayton Powell to take advantage of his position but Rangel has been there more than twice that time and is apparently, twice as corrupt. His answer to that video journalist only proves that he believes Congressmen, especially senior Congressman, are the elite and no longer need to address the questions posed by mere peasants. Charlie’s expiration date came and passed decades ago and it’s time to dump out the stale and bring in someone new (and honest). Sorry Charlie…it’s time to go.
Paul
Charles Rangel would eventually enlist in the Army and served from 1948 through 1952. During the Korean War, Rangel was part of the all-black 503rd Field Artillery Battalion in the 2nd Infantry Division. Rangel distinguished himself during the battle of Kunu-ri in North Korea. Despite heavy fighting and relentless air strikes, Chinese forces flanked the U.S. 24th Division and the U.S. 35th regiment forcing them into retreat. During the retreat, Rangel was part of a vehicle column that became trapped and fell under attack by Chinese forces. Wounded by shrapnel from Chinese shell and facing sub-zero cold, Rangel found himself fighting the elements as well as the Chinese. As U.S. soldiers were being cornered and captured, a number of men from Rangel’s unit looked to him and his reputation for leadership. It took three days but Rangel managed to extricate roughly 40 men out of a battle that would kill nearly half the battalion. They manage to escape the Chinese encirclement and return to American held territory. For his wounds and bravery, Rangel would receive the Purple Heart, the Bronze Star for Valor, a Presidential Unit Citation, The Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation and three Battle Stars.
Rangel considered his time in the military as a formative period in his life and made himself a promise that he would not return home to the same life he left behind. Rangel left the military with an honorable discharge at the rank of Staff Sergeant. Rangel returned home and immediately finished high school completing two years of study in a single year. Rangel went on to earn a B.S. from the New York University School of Commerce in 1957, where he made the dean's list, and on full scholarship, obtained a Juris Doctor from St. John's University School of Law in 1960. His college experience also moved him into the realm of racial and social activist Rangel is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha, the first intercollegiate Greek-letter fraternity established for African-Americans. He is a member of the fraternity's World Policy Council, a think tank whose purpose is to expand Alpha Phi Alpha's involvement in politics, social and current policy regarding international concerns.
After passing the Bar Exam, Rangel began work with Weaver, Evans & Wingate, New York’s most prominent black law firm where Rangel earned a reputation for providing legal representation for black civil rights activists. In 1961, Rangel was appointed as an assistant U.S. Attorney for New York’s Southern District by then, U.S. Attorney General, Robert Kennedy. With a number of new positions in and around the Democratic political scene, Rangel developed a greater interest in politics and with Percy Sutton, formed the John F. Kennedy Democratic Club in Harlem which over time would be re-named the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. Democratic Club. After several unsuccessful bids for elected office, Rangel would get his big break when his friend and mentor, Percy Sutton, was appointed as Manhattan Borough President leaving a vacancy in the New York State Assembly. With Sutton’s help and endorsement, Rangel won that seat in 1966, serving two terms during which; he became friends with New York Governor, Nelson Rockefeller.
Emerging as a leader among black legislators in the Assembly, Rangel supported many ideas that were not widely viewed as popular or in the best interest of the City. He proposed the legalization of gambling, specifically the “numbers” game; saying that for the average Harlemite, playing the numbers was “moral and a way of life.” Rangel opposed harsher penalties for prostitution stating it was ineffective. Curiously, Rangel proposed holding drug pushers criminally accountable for the actions of drug users. While he claimed illegal drug use was a national security issue he also believed that Harlem drug users were principally victims and wanted to move the criminality of drug related crime a little further up the ladder. This way he could claim to be tough on crime while sparing his constituents from harsher penalties. His reputation and friendship with Nelson Rockefeller paid off in 1970 when he defeated long term NY Congressman Adam Clayton Powell for NY’s 18th Congressional District’s seat.
Rangel is a skilled speaker and an adept politician but like his predecessor, has remained in Congress long enough to develop an air of elite entitlement. Powell found himself deeply embroiled in scandal and by the mid-1960s, Powell was being increasingly criticized for mismanagement of the Education and Labor Committee budget, taking trips abroad at public expense which included travel to his retreat on the Bahamian isle of Bimini. He was also under attack in his district, where his refusal to pay a slander judgment made him subject to arrest. He spent increasing amounts of time in Florida and gained a reputation for absenteeism during the meetings of his own committee. In 1967, the House Democratic Caucus stripped Powell of his Committee Chair and the entire Congress eventually voted 307-116 to exclude him from Congress; a move that the Supreme Court would later call improper. Powell would eventually win reelection and was seated with the 91st Congress but was also fined $25,000 and denied seniority.
The budget scandal, Powell’s absenteeism and a personal scandal where it was found that Powell’s mother was on the payroll of his staff from 1961 until 1967 even though she left the U.S in 1961 to reside in Puerto Rico made him an easy target in the 1969 election. Rangel used the accusations against Powell to forward his campaign for Congress. While Rangel only defeated Powell by a mere 150 votes in the Democratic Primary, he won the Congressional seat with 88% percent of the vote over his Republican challenger.
One would think the fall of Adam Clayton Powell would have served as a notice to other presumptuous demagogues but I suppose those lessons are only apparent if you haven’t enjoyed overwhelming reelections for nearly forty years. Now, Charles Rangel has just had to resign his position as Chairman of the House Ways and Means committee because of allegations of scandal that are curiously similar to Powell’s committee budget fiasco. Additionally, Rangel has failed to pay taxes on rental properties that he owns abroad and has misused New York’s rent control assistance by joining three rent controlled apartments together for an office and an additional rent controlled apartment as a residence; all while listing his permanent address as a home in Washington. I suppose what makes the allegations against Rangel even worse is that he was the Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee; the Committee that writes the tax regulations the rest of us have to live with or else.
Charlie counted on his Parties dominance in Washington to protect him and they tried their best until public opinion demanded that he be removed from the chairman position and fully investigated. Charlie was so secure about his Parties protection that when an independent video journalist saw Rangel in the Capitol building and asked about the allegations, Charlie laughed at him and said “Why don’t you mind your own God damned business” before boarding an elevator. Apparently Charlie forgot that the Congress is our business. That tax cheat Congressman should expect serious questions from tax payers when there are questions of wrong-doing. That the reasons he is being questioned by the ethics committee is because even after 39 years in Congress, we still expect that the people that write the rules actually follow them too.
Today is shopping day and I have already checked the expiration date of the perishables in my refrigerator. I think it’s about time we put an expiration day on our Congressmen too. It only took 15 years for Adam Clayton Powell to take advantage of his position but Rangel has been there more than twice that time and is apparently, twice as corrupt. His answer to that video journalist only proves that he believes Congressmen, especially senior Congressman, are the elite and no longer need to address the questions posed by mere peasants. Charlie’s expiration date came and passed decades ago and it’s time to dump out the stale and bring in someone new (and honest). Sorry Charlie…it’s time to go.
Paul
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