Politics

Rep. Rangel to Run for 23rd Term

Has been representing Harlem forever

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So what if he was censured three years ago? Rep. Charles Rangel, the Democrat who has represented Harlem since 1971, will run for reelection next fall. Why? Well, he writes in a Daily News op-ed, "The President needs an ally who commands the attention of Congress when he speaks."

Rangel explains, "Over this past year, I have been one of the most outspoken defenders of the President and Democrats' agenda. I was there to lead the historic healthcare reform bill into passage and fought hard against Republican obstructionism to repeal it. I am fighting hard against their antics to derail our efforts to implement it and will continue to do so."

The 83-year-old Congressman was censured for numerous ethics violations, like his multiple rent-stabilized apartments, financial mishaps and his work to solicit donations for a City College center named after himself. Rangel had pointed out his misdeeds were not corruption or other things ("I did not go to bed with kids, I did not hurt the house speaker, I did not start a revolution against the United States of America") but he did, as chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, do things like preserve a tax loophole that saved an oil company hundreds of millions (the company's executive promised $1 million to the CUNY school being named after Rangel).