The Politicker

An unserious footnote to the story of Vito Fossella's mistress and love child: technically speaking, in her home state of Virginia, adultery is still a crime.

Out of curiosity, I asked a spokesman for the Alexandria Police Department, where Fossella was arrested for D.U.I. last week, about the law, and he said off the top of his head that it sounded correct but declined to speak further about it.

I spoke with Fossella's Washington D.C.-based lawyer, Barry Pollock, who told me that particular law "has not been enforced in years" and "it could not be enforced. I'm his lawyer and as far as I'm concerned, it's not a legal issue."

Pollock, added "Legally, it's not a viable angle. Even if the statue were enforceable, this is not the 1950s. The idea of someone prosecuting it is remote anyway."

"It's just an old law left on the books," explained Richard Dennis Balnave, who taught Virginia family law at the University of Virginia Law School for 16 years. "It's a criminal offense in Virginia [but] I've never heard of anyone getting prosecuted for it." 

I asked why it was still on the books.

"It's probably a no-win situation for elected legislative members to take a vote on repealing it or not," he said.

Here is Assemblyman Karim Camara of Brooklyn saying the City Council’s slush fund scandal should prompt state lawmakers to review their own use of member items.

“What I’m saying is that this is not just a City Council issue. We have to look in state government, State Assembly, and State Senate and say that individuals have too much power in how money is spent.”

Camara, a recently elected member from a high-needs district, says that discretionary funds, like member items, should be doled out based on need and not on seniority.

Charlie Rangel said the proof that Hillary Clinton can still win the Democratic nomination is that she is still pursuing the Democratic nomination. Either she has a chance, he said, or she’s nuts.

"If mathematically she couldn't get the nomination it would mean that Obama has won and so she wouldn't be in the race," said Rangel. "And so obviously mathematically she can."

When asked how she could win the nomination, Rangel replied. "I don't know, but if mathematically she cannot win then why aren't we declaring Obama the winner? I mean it doesn't make sense. It is not my job to explain how, if she put $6 million of her money, the team is still together, the campaign is still going on, why do I have to explain mathematically why she can't win? If mathematically she can't win then they are crazy. They ought to go to an insane asylum."

He added, "Anybody who really knows that they can't win and they won't quit, there is really something wrong with them."

Clinton is still in the race. So by that logic she must see some way of winning. What is it?

"I have no clue" said Rangel, explaining it wasn't his job as Chairman of the House's Ways and Means committee to chart or analyze Clinton's path to the nomination.  read more »

The editorial board of The Staten Island Advance, a hugely influential paper in Vito Fossella’s district, wants him to resign.

As of 6:39 a.m., 147 Advance readers commented on the story.

Peter King says people are encouraging Fossella, telling him, “Hang in there, you can win.”

The subhead in this New York Post article says Fossella won’t resign.

A Republican congressman from Florida said, “If his district is anything like mine, I suspect that it’s over.”

Lou Young says Fossella’s carreer is “all but destroyed.”

The Daily News thinks Young is correct.

They say leading candidates to replace Fossella include Dan Donovan and Andrew Lanza.

The News covers The News' coverage of Fossella.

The Washington Post cushions the blow, saying Fossella was already vulnerable.

Alan Colmes notes that Fossella’s other woman is single.

Chris DeBello says the only thing left for Fossella to do now is become a Democrat.

Nicholas Kristof says Hillary Clinton “just doesn’t have a plausible route to the nomination.”

Clinton may not be able to recoup the $11 million she loaned her campaign if she drops out before the convention.

The New York Times editorial board isn’t impressed with Christine Quinn’s new budget reforms, writing, “They do not pass muster as real reform” and that “it still allows a council member to funnel money to an organization with personal or political connections.”

David Paterson said he’ll review police procedures in the wake of the Sean Bell verdict.

NBC’s Jonathan Noel captures the real news, saying Paterson “sympathizes with both sides.”

The West Side Rail Yard plan is dead, reports Eliot Brown.

It’s because the developer wanted to wait until the entire site was rezoned.

The son of Assemblyman Anthony Seminerio couldn’t get enough signatures to run in the June 3 special election in Queens.

The openly gay candidate in that race still isn’t happy that he was attacked by Elizabeth Crowley for denouncing a piece of hate mail.

Bloomberg is on this blogger’s short list of V.P. candidates.

The Washington Times editorial board carries a column by Cal Thomas, who doesn’t like the Time magazine list of influential people, and asks, ‘Why is Mayor Michael Bloomberg on the list? Most of the world's people don't live in New York City, though on Friday afternoons while trying to escape by plane or car it sometimes seems they do. Maybe he is influential because of the high taxes and tolls over which he presides.”

And Mike Barbaro has a dispatch from his trip to Ireland with Michael Bloomberg, Christine Quinn and Bill Thompson.

Representative Charlie Rangel has a very meta take on Vito Fossella's predicament, seeing it as another example of an ongoing Republican implosion.

"They are self-destructing," Rangel told me, referencing the president's vetoes of what he said was bi-partisan legislation and ethics lapses by Republican elected officials. "I have to write a letter to Fosella saying the delegation wants to express its sympathies during this period of your life and move on." Rangel said that none of the delegation was pressing him to step down. "I'm writing it now, from the delegation. He's a member of our delegation and we feel for his family and that is all we can do."

He then said that Republicans were "dropping off, people are quitting, they have given up."

Weirdly few event listings today; if you have anything to add, please do so in the comments section.

9 a.m. As part of "Million Trees," Citi Cards, with 40 company volunteers, plant trees; Thomas Jefferson Park, 114th Street and Pleasant Avenue.

5:15 p.m. Congressman Edolphus Towns holds news conference to recognize the achievements of the principal and teachers at Bedford Academy High School; Prospect Park Picnic House, 3rd Street and Prospect Park W.

Hillary Clinton send a "personal" letter to Barack Obama about the Florida and Michigan delegates.

Obama calls comments John McCain made about Obama and Hamas "offensive."

Obama, who happens to have the ability to raise nearly limitless amounts of money in small increments, floats the Rasiej-esque idea of voluntarily capping the size of his contributions in the general.

Maybe Harvey Weinstein really is strong-arming Nancy Pelosi.

Obama took a North Carolina superdelegate after a meeting in Washington.

On Vito Fossella, Elana Schor of The Guardian writes, “A bad year for the Republican party got worse today.”

The Los Angeles Times blog is also watching Fossella.

Real Clear Politics accesses the race for Fossella’s seat, and says Democrats may consider candidates other than Steve Harrison and Domenic Recchia.

Commenter Clutchkill, on the ABC News web site, wonders if this will get as much coverage as Eliot Spitzer’s scandal.

Gail Robinson of Gotham Gazette says, “[T]hanks to the congressman and his wife for sparing us the 'stand by your man' news conference—at least for now.”

Intern Em Whitney reports that last night, Bill de Blasio brought the city to Gowanus.

The federal study of Newtown Creek might get more money.

The Economist considers Harlem charter schools.

Richard Gottfried and Richard Brodsky do not want the Moynihan Station project to be moved under the control of Port Authority.

The developer for the West Side Rail Yards project missed the deadline again.

Harper’s does a sort of unbelievable Silda-and-Eliot-inspired photo spread.

The Gotbaums sue Phoenix.

Sewell Chan reports from David Paterson's meeting with Al Sharpton and the Bell family.

Paterson is skipping a Marty Connor fund-raiser.

Roberta McCain stars in her son's new ad.

It seems like New York Times reporter Mike Barbaro is already starting his stint on the City Hall beat [added].

And pictured above is a new ad from the Working Families Party, which would probably like to add Vito Fossella to the list of retiring New York Republican members of Congress.

One of Vito Fossella’s Democratic challengers, Steve Harrison, just released a public statement saying that if Fossella runs for reelection, “The people will decide in November if his recent behavior and revelations should disqualify him from continuing in office.”

It's a slightly different approach than Harrison took yesterday, when he told me Fossella's D.U.I. arrest spoke to the congressman's "character" and decision-making ability.

Here’s the statement:  read more »

In the latest in a string of outer-borough events, one of which recently took Scott Stringer to Queens, today the Manhattan borough president was in Brooklyn filming an appearance on Brooklyn Community Access Television (BCAT), a public affairs channel that serves viewers outside Stringer's home turf.

Stringer is in his first term in office, but it's widely speculated that he will make a citywide bid next year. Before winning a crowded race for borough president, Stringer had run unsuccessfully for public advocate.

Stringer spokeswoman Carmen Boon emails:

“The Borough President was invited by Assembly Member Cymbrowitz to participate in his program 'Local Perspectives' on BCAT to talk about citywide issues including go green initiative, borough construction watch and construction safety and school overcrowding report along with community board reform. From time to time this kind of exchange helps the discussion of issues that are important all over the city."

Hillary Clinton just sent a formal public letter to Barack Obama calling on him to work to find a resolution to the Florida and Michigan question that reflects the votes in those states and seats their delegations at the convention. She also attempts to shame him for what she calls his failure to "support those efforts" in Michigan, and for the Obama campaign's opposition to revotes in Florida. "In Florida a number of revote options were proposed. I am not aware of any that you supported," she writes.

As pointed out in a conference call yesterday, it is not clear that the Clinton campaign picks up enough support to change their dire position even if both states are counted. But as long as the Obama campaign doesn't budge, it's a talking point for the Clinton campaign.

Here's the letter:  read more »