Maffei’s Hero Worship for Rangel

Ask Dan Maffei about the trouble his friend Charlie Rangel finds himself in and you can see his jaw tighten. The usually loquacious congressman appears pained to have to address what he calls an “unfortunate” circumstance that has become a “political football.”
Dan Maffei: Finds himself in a precarious position with his friendship with the ethically challenged Charlie Rangel.

Maffei worked for Rangel early in Maffei’s Washington career. He has decided not to distance himself from Rangel, even as the Washington legend heads toward a rare House trial on ethical matters. Specifically, Maffei has declined to return the donations Rangel helped raise for his campaign. He can’t even say he wouldn’t take money if it were offered today, calling such a possibility “too theoretical.”

When asked about his relationship with Rangel, Maffei replies that Rangel is his friend, and he is not about to turn his back on a friend. “You deplore the sin, but love the sinner,” says Maffei.

But Rangel (D-New York) has not confessed to any sins, and seems determined to bluster his way through the charges by blaming the media and his political opponents for his downfall. Rangel has come to symbolize what many people see as what is wrong with Washington, and for good reason. His are not the worst offenses Washington has seen in recent years, not by a long shot. But his actions and attitudes awaken the fear in many of us that those we send to Washington end up with lifestyles that remove them from understanding how the rest of us live.

Read more: (Ed Griffin-Nolan, “Hero Worship,” Syracuse New Times, 09/01/10)