How's He Doin'?

Former Mayor Ed Koch has launched a crusade to make New York State Government more democratic. Will the 87-year-old firebrand be able to slay the Albany Dragon? By[ Allen Houston] Ed Koch has never been one to hold back his opinions. The fiery former mayor has had a long and illustrious post-political career, but at 87 he finds himself, once more, thrust into the spotlight as the face of NY Uprising, a group pushing for non-partisan redistricting of the state, as well as an ethics reform bill. The iconic mayor, whose catchphrase "How"m I doin"? was a familiar refrain to New Yorkers during the late 1970s and "80s, also recently became memorialized in the landscape when the city council voted to rename the Queensboro Bridge after him. As if that's not enough, Koch also serves on Mayor Bloomberg's Pension Reform Board and is a law partner, political commentator and movie reviewer. In the midst of the third act of his career, the former mayor is busier than ever. "I hope I die at my desk working," he told Our Town during our interview in his Midtown office. OT: Know where we can buy a good bridge? The City Council voted to rename the Queensboro Bridge after you. How's it feel? EK: Every night I'm going to go down there and touch it to make sure that no one does anything to it. It's a great honor. To have it done while you are alive is wonderful, and I didn't lobby for it. I thought, They'll either do it or they won"t do it. And if they won't, I'm not jumping off the bridge committing suicide. It worked out marvelously well. OT: Redistricting is obviously an issue that you feel very passionately about. Where do things stand at the moment?   EK: We're winning the battle. We started this campaign in March 2010, and everybody said it couldn't be done because the legislature has been trying to do it for 50 to 100 years. I believe the reason we"re on the cusp of victory is because of what I did initially. I called the gubernatorial candidates and said, Would you agree to veto any legislation that does not provide for an independent commission? And all of them said, Of course. That"s my idea! I said, That"s wonderful. It's wonderful it's your idea. [Laughs] So, they each agreed to that. Once you have that, the Legislature cannot win because in this case, it's Gov. Andrew Cuomo, and he has pledged publicly to veto any legislation that doesn"t include independent redistricting. There's a majority of 54 in the Senate and a majority of 84 in the Assembly who have signed our written pledges on redistricting. OT: Some of the people who have signed the pledge have gone back on it now that they're in power. EK: Basically only the Republicans and Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos. I called Skelos last year and I said, I don"t understand why you haven"t signed it. He said, Well, because the legislation gives the Democrats an edge in the number of appointments. And he said, We"re not going to agree to that. So I said, Well, we got them to change it. When that was raised by some of your people, we got them to change it. He said, You did? He called me back and says, You"re right. I"m in. After the Republicans win a majority, they decide that they"re going to renege on the promise. I went to Albany and Skelos saw me and I said, Are you walking away from this bill? He said, Yes. He was honest. He said, We"re going to do a constitutional amendment instead. A constitutional amendment is ridiculous. OT: What"s the problem with having a constitutional amendment? EK: That's for 10 years from now. It's sand in your eyes, a diversion. I was very disappointed because I consider it a dishonorable act. So, then I went to the Assembly Leader, Sheldon Silver, and Shelly had introduced the Governor"s bill, which is basically our bill. While I"m with Shelly, Skelos issues a press release that says he will ultimately satisfy his pledge with New York Uprising. Where we are now is we don't know what Skelos is going to do. But they know what I'm going to do. We are prepared to do robocalls in the districts of those who refuse to sign and to sponsor the legislation. OT: When do you plan on doing that? EK: Shortly. And what I'm going to say is, Did you know that your legislator lied to you? I hope you"ll call him. I hope you'll remember that at the next election. OT: There's an old saying that politics makes for strange bedfellows. A little less than 30 years ago you ran against Mario Cuomo for governor. EK: Right. His son ran his campaign and obviously there was some stuff that went on that was difficult in that campaign. OT: Do you find it odd that 30 years later you're aligned with him? EK: No. Firstly, you're referring to the Vote for Cuomo, Not the Homo slander. OT: Do you believe that Andrew was behind that? EK: He says he wasn't. I accept him at his word. I never saw him put the fliers up that said that. I have no doubt that people with his campaign put them up, but he says he had nothing to do with it. I accept him at his word and I supported him for attorney general and I supported him for governor. He made every effort to get my support. I have no grudges. I've given those up. I'm Jewish, not Irish. They're even tougher when it comes to grudges, I'm told. OT: How do you think Andrew's done so far as governor? EK: I think he"s really stood up. OT: Why was redistricting the issue that moved you back into the political forefront? Why is this such an important issue to you? EK: When I announced that we were doing this, I referred to the fact that I had gone to lots of dinners and listened to lots of people complaining about the State Legislature. I decided since nobody was doing anything, I would do something. That"s number one. Two, you can only do it this year and then the issue won't be around for another 10 years. What does non-partisan redistricting do? It allows the people who vote to choose who's going to be elected, as opposed to allowing those who are running and are incumbents to choose the people who will vote for them. It's totally crazy the other way. Historically, both Houses have said to one another, You, Republicans, you redistrict the Senate, we Democrats will redistrict the Assembly. That"s not right. If you have lines that are fairly drawn and not special, there should be more people losing elections. I mean, only in New York could less than 3 percent of the people who run [end up] defeated. OT: Are you surprised by the amount of criminal activity, particularly in the legislature in Albany? Senator Carl Kruger being the most recent example. EK: Yes. I have always taken the position that legislators are probably more honest than the society from which they come because opponents are constantly watching them, by newspapers and by law enforcement. Apparently that has not deterred them to the extent that I thought it would. OT: Who do you want to see run for mayor in 2013? [caption id="" align="alignleft" width="400" caption="Photos by Andrew Schwartz"][/caption] EK: I'm for Ray Kelly, but he says that he's not running. If he doesn't run, I am for Christine Quinn, the city council speaker. I think she's done a terrific job. OT: For the last five terms, the mayor has been Republican. Is there a potential Republican candidate in 2013? EK: No. The only way you could get a Republican is someone like Bloomberg, with an enormous amount of money so he gets his positions out there and convinces the public. OT: Were you against the Mayor"s changing term limits so he could serve out a third term? EK: There are three ways you can change a law in New York City. One is a referendum, another is City Council and the third is the State Legislature. No one of the three is better than the other. I found nothing wrong in going to the City Council and allowing it. OT: The Mayor has had a harder time than he had in his first two terms. Is it inevitable that third terms go wrong? EK: It's not. The normal thing in New York City is to say the third term is jinxed, and it's ridiculous. You can get a lot done. I got a lot done. I mean, we had a corruption crisis and it didn't stop my administration from producing a housing program that created 250,000 housing units, 150,000 new ones for low-income people. It didn't stop us from passing legislation that provided for public financing. That took place in my third term. We also started the ban on smoking in restaurants in my administration. A third term does not have to be a nothing term. You can do a lot. And Bloomberg will do a lot. OT: You came out in favor of Rep. Peter King's hearings about the Radicalization of American Muslims that he held recently. Do you still support it and do you think it accomplished its goals? EK: It's not over. He"s going to hold more. I think he could have come up with better witnesses. And I think he could have done better in the way he framed the debate. If he had framed it, let's say, The rise of home-grown terrorists, it would have been better. But I'm for it and I praise him as being a courageous member of the house. OT: Speaking of another Republican, there have been whispers Rudy Giuliani might run for president again. Do you think that he has any chance? EK: I like Rudy Giuliani. People think I don"t like him because I wrote a book Giuliani: Nasty Man. I think he was a great mayor and I have said that. But there's a flaw that is best demonstrated by the way he responded to the request of [former] State Comptroller Carl McCall and former Borough President Virginia Fields. They both asked to meet with him on their concerns about the black community and he wouldn't do it. A year went by and they kept mentioning it and I said, Would you mind if I ask him? And they told me it was OK. So, I asked Giuliani why he wouldn't meet with them and he said, I don"t agree with them. I said, You only meet with people you agree with? That"s crazy. But that's his personality. OT: Speaking of New Yorkers who might run for president, Donald Trump has been getting a lot of attention lately. EK: Oh, he"s ridiculous. He's now joined the group that questions where the President was born. It"s outrageous. OT: Do you think that Andrew is going to be successful in helping pass gay marriage? EK: Yes, I do. Remember, it's passed the Assembly several times. I think this time it will pass the Senate as well. OT: In terms of domestic politics, how would you rate the President"s performance for his first two years in office? EK: Terrible. I support the comprehensive medical legislation, but I thought he handled it badly and it's a terrible bill. I supported it because I wanted the concept established of universal medical. But he didn't do it right. I mean, instead of screwing with the policies of the vast majority of people who had policies like me, he should have concerned himself with those who didn't have policies. You don't have to reinvent the wheel. Universal medical care has been around now for 75 years in Europe. Get the best legislation from there. Instead they came up with a couple of good things, the three or four things that they tout, [such as] kids remain on the policy until they're 26 and you can't get your policy canceled if you have a pre-existing condition. OT: Do you think Hillary Clinton would have been a better president than Barack Obama? EK: Yes. Based on what he's done and what I think she would have done, she would have been better. OT: Are there any Republicans that you think could beat Obama in the upcoming election? EK: Oh, I think Mitt Romney has a good chance. Nevertheless, it would be a tough battle. I believe that if the election were held tomorrow, Barack Obama would win. OT: How would you rate the Mayor"s performance vis-à-vis pensions and unions? And what would you do about pension reform? EK: Well, I"m part of the Mayor"s group seeking to get pension reform. I'm for a constitutional amendment that would allow us to affect heretofore granted pensions. But it"s not going to happen. You have to realize that the New York State Constitution, unlike most state constitutions, can"t in any way decrease an existing pension, no matter whether you can afford it or not, if you're a municipality. So, the way you have to deal with it going forward is with a new tier and so forth. I'm for all of that and also for, wherever you can, making the benefits, pensions and salaries comparable to the private sector. They are not. The public sector, when you add all the benefits and the salaries, is far ahead, in my judgment, of the private sector. OT: Do you think that Andrew Cuomo has ambitions to run for president? EK: Yes. He's never discussed them with me. But a lot of people are talking about it. OT: Can you imagine a scenario where Mike Bloomberg runs for president in two years? EK: He says he's not. I believe it's more likely that he will be in a presidential cabinet. I think he'd be a fine president, but more likely that he will be secretary of treasury or something like that. And the country will be blessed to have him. OT: There are a lot of people in the city who are concerned about rent stabilization expiring. What is your take on rent stabilization? EK: I believe that when the current occupants leave or die, that the apartment should be market rent. And I point to the fact that more than two-thirds of all the apartments in the City of New York are market rent. I would not change it once again, for those who are already in there, because it would cause suicides. People would be overwhelmed, in many cases economically and in other cases emotionally. I think at the end of the occupancy of all the people who are in rent-stabilized apartments that rent control should end. OT: What are your goals for the next 15 years? EK: My goal for the next 15 years is not to fall. [Laughs] That"s the greatest danger for someone in my age category. I have a balance problem. Thank God I've never fallen. OT: The Mayor has made education his signature of his three terms in office, the same way that Rudy Giuliani made lowering crime his goal. Do you think Mayor Bloomberg has been successful in reforming education? EK: No. But he did something that I couldn't do: He got the power to do it. It's a very difficult issue to take on, and I believe that no one could do better and that ultimately he will prevail. OT: In 20 years, when The New York Times runs your obituary on the front page, what would you like the first paragraph to say? EK: He hoped people loved him because he loved the people.