Borough President? Try "Assemblyman" Charles Barron

A lot has been made in the press about controversial councilmember Charles Barron's 2009 bid for Brooklyn Borough President, but Barron might not go through with it after all.

The Brooklyn Optimist's inside sources tell him that Barron might opt out of the race for BP to run for embattled Assemblywoman Diane Gordon's seat if Gordon ends up in prison after her pending trial on extortion charges. Gordon, who represents parts of East New York, Brownsville, and Canarsie, was indicted in 2006 for allegedly offering contractors her favor in Albany in exchange for a $500,000 bribe.

Gordon has pleaded not guilty to the charges, but her prospects in court look bleak, since it appears that the Assemblywoman was caught red-handed on tape soliciting the contractor. You can judge for yourself:



If Gordon were to end up out of office, Barron, who is immensely popular in his district, would certainly be a favorite for her seat if he wanted it. Moving to the Assembly would let Barron, who is term-limited out of the City Council, stay an elected official without having to pull off an unlikely win in a costly and bitter primary battle for Borough President.

Of course, nothing is certain with Gordon, who was re-elected in 2006 despite the fact that she was already indicted, but even in Brooklyn, the law seems to catch up with crooked politicians eventually. Just ask Clarence Norman, Gerald Garson, and Angel Rodriguez.

The Optimist stops short of an outright prediction, but if Charles Barron winds up an Assemblyman, remember, readers, you heard it here first.

DeBlasio vs. Barron: Round 1

Elizabeth Benjamin at the News had an article in her blog yesterday about the first dust-up in the race for Brooklyn Borough President in 2009. It seems that one of Councilman Bill DeBlasio's supporters, Rabbi Joseph Stamm, accused DeBlasio's only announced opponent, cantankerous Councilman Charles Barron of being anti-semitic to raise funds for DeBlasio's campaign. Though DeBlasio came with the usual yada-yada denials about not condoning the Rabbi's invite, Barron predictably used the opportunity to skewer DeBlasio and get his candidacy in the paper.

DeBlasio, who managed Hillary Clinton's successful bid for Senate in 2000, should know better. Doesn't he understand that the only way to run against a savvy media-manipulator like Barron is to pretend he doesn't exist?