After the NY Times broke the story last week that Congressman Rangel has four rent stabilized apartments in one building he responded with all the bluster worthy of a small child in a temper tantrum. The only problem with that and some of his friends' comments defending him was that one of those four apartments was undeniably illegal. With a few days to cool down, and a stern talking-to (most likely) by his lawyer, Rangel is doing the legal thing and getting rid of his campaign office/apartment.
From The NY Times:
In a fiery news conference on Friday, Mr. Rangel said he saw nothing improper with having three rent-stabilized apartments — all adjacent on the 16th floor — for his family’s residence, but said he would review the propriety of using the fourth apartment as an office.
Mr. Rangel’s spokesman said the congressman would not discuss details of his decision.
“Mr. Rangel has indicated that he is not willing to say any more,” the spokesman, Emile Milne, said.
The congressman’s announcement that he will move his campaign office came as he faced widespread criticism from tenant advocates who said it was improper for an elected official to accept multiple rent-stabilized apartments when the city is facing a shortage of moderately priced housing.
On Monday, the National Legal and Policy Center, a watchdog group in Washington, filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission, charging that the discounted rent was in essence an illegal corporate contribution from the Olnick Organization, which owns Lenox Terrace, on 135th Street near Lenox Avenue.
The FEC complaint must have been the shot across the bow for Rangel. Of course, this isn't really a case of him doing the right thing with the city's shortage of rent-controlled apartments, just the correct measure to avoid the glare of the FEC. As long as he keeps the three apartments he may be within the law, but Rangel is still ethically-challenged, despite all the good work he has done for Harlem and our country throughout his career.
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