“With results – not rhetoric,” is how Atty. Charlie King expects to convince voters, including wary upstate white folks, to elect him as the first Black attorney general this fall.
The personable “people’s attorney,” King is banking on his record as an activist and as attorney who has won legal battles addressing education and property taxes and fighting for “our newest New Yorkers – the Katrina survivors.” This, he said, puts him in good stead to win the hearts and minds of the active voters of New York state.
“Those who have a lot and those who should have more are looking for someone who will be about results not rhetoric,” he told the Amsterdam News .
Asked if upstate New York is ready to vote in a Black attorney general, especially with Sen. David Paterson (D-30th District) as would-be governor Eliot Spitzer’s declared running mate for lieutenant governor, King said he is convinced that racism will not kick in at the voting booths.
“People know my record,” King said. “People want the best person for the job.”
A NY1 news poll put attorney general candidate Andrew Cuomo’s numbers at 27 percent, and Mark Green at 21 percent, with 38 percent undecided. King, the poll stated, was last with 1 percent.
“The undecided would win in a landslide right now,” said King, rejecting the results of the poll, which declared that the race was already a two (white) man race. “I have raised more money than Mark Green,” alluding to monetary support that ranges from $25 checks from everyday people to bigger amounts from politicians, professionals and their ilk.
Arguing that polls can be massaged to produce any result, King said, “I would hope that the media would show more responsibility in explaining their system. I believe that if a candidate has name recognition like the two candidates have, that’s what the polls reflect.”
Oftentimes, the person with the best name recognition is defeated by a lesser-known candidate, he said, citing the races of Geraldine Ferraro and Charles Schumer, and Andrew Cuomo and Carl McCall.
“Sometimes the underdog, the unknown dog, someone not initially known by the voter, can do quite well,” King said.
He said that he has raised more money than any candidate but Cuomo. From July 2005 to January 2006, King raised just over a million dollars, for a grand total of about $2.5 million. Mark Green, the former New York City public advocate, said he had raised $800,000 in the last six months, and has more than $1.7 million in his war chest.
“This is a people’s campaign for a people’s lawyer,” said King, who has run twice for lieutenant governor, the last time in 2002 as Cuomo’s running mate. “When I am attorney general I want to be able to give the American dream to the people, to ensure that they can look forward to retirement without the stress of money (worries), with health care protected, with their children better off than when they grew up. It’s a very simple dream. I want to protect that dream and ensure that the gains made in their life are not illegally taken away. That is why people are supporting my campaign. I want to do the right thing for New York and New Yorkers.”
King served in the administrations of Gov. Mario Cuomo and President Bill Clinton. King proudly retells how he represented Sherrill’s 3,100 residents. King sued the Oneida Indian tribe for refusing to pay property tax to the town. His bio announces that for the last three years he has sued New York City to force its Education Department to allow students who are in failing schools to transfer to new schools, assisting 4,000 children in failing schools to do just that in the spring semester in January 2005.
“Eliot Spitzer wants to be sheriff of Wall Street; I want to be sheriff of Sesame Street,” he said with a wry smile. “I will fight to ensure that every child is able to attend a safe and successful school,” King told the Amsterdam News. “I will create an education integrity unit that will root out waste, fraud and corruption so that taxpayers’ dollars will be spent renovating classrooms instead of renovating people’s homes.”
King is currently CEO of Praxis, a $9 million not-for-profit housing organization that provides transitional housing to the homeless. King gave a disapproving nod toward the recent Roslyn, Long Island scandal, where five officials were accused of stealing $11 million from the school district.
As for New York State’s largely ignored (except by grassroots activists) political prisoners, King said: “I will look at every case and make decisions based on the facts.
My activism hasn’t stopped just because I’m running for attorney general. I fought against city area hotels in their attempt to illegally evict Katrina survivors from their temporary homes.”
When the Radisson Hotel thought that they were going to put out some relocated Katrina survivors last month, King said forget it; he, Rev. Sharpton and the Legal Aid crew made them ponder some more. As for upcoming litigation, King said, “They can try,” but the defense for the displaced Gulf Coast region residents will be formidable.
He said that he blames FEMA for how they have chosen to handle the whole issue, adding, “When our newest New Yorkers received eviction notices on Dr. Martin Luther King’s birthday, it was a defining moment when Rev. Sharpton and I and others stood up with the families and prevented that action.”
King and his wife, Vanessa, currently live in Rockland County with their two daughters, Nicole and Caroline. “I’m very excited,” said King. “I know I can make a difference. I feel it in my bones and I know that New York is going to give me that opportunity. I look forward to it. My candidacy brings all New Yorkers together, from the grassroots to the tops of the trees. I am committed to equally protect the American dream for all.”
No campaign fatigue yet? “Any campaign is rigorous, but it’s been wonderful,” he said. “I started my campaign in January 2003. I have traveled all over the state, meeting with community leaders and elected officials. An important aspect is the ability to raise money, and I have been successful in doing that.”
There are five other candidates vying for the Democratic nomination, including Assemblyman Richard L. Brodsky, Sean P. Maloney, Denise O’Donnell, Andrew Cuomo and Mark Green. The only declared Republican candidate is former Westchester County District Attorney Jeanine F. Pirro.
A politician already, King stated, “I think all six candidates will be on the ballot in the fall, and all deserve to be on the ballot.”
