Outside of Sylvia’s Restaurant two weeks ago, Congressman Greg Meeks promised he’d soon discuss the scandal surrounding his involvement in the Queens charity that allegedly stole $31,000 of tax-payer money.

“Watch me on NY1 on Monday,” he told me and other reporters who maybe wondered why he was so eager to do so. Since the news broke, he’d hardly spoken about his problems. So I tuned in.

Meeks wasn’t a guest that day on “Inside City Hall”, the obvious choice of shows to present his side of the story. Instead, the political talk show had City Council Speaker Christine Quinn and Department of Education head Joel Klein.

He wasn’t on NY Tonight, the news recap show at 8. There was no Greg from Far Rockaway calling or emailing in to “The Call” (that night’s topic: Governor Paterson). He wasn’t talking about Broadway shows on the theater show, either, or the 11 o’clock news.

Congressman Greg Meeks stood up every eager and curious (and Time Warner Cable-subscribing) politico by canceling his appearance on “Inside City Hall”, citing an unexpected “family conflict.” He rescheduled an appearance for March 15th, but the surprise cancellation perhaps says a lot more than if he had actually appeared on the channel.

It was easy for Meeks to deflect attention while the Governor was under such scrutiny. But as the media begins to slowly move away from Paterson’s problems–it turns out his evidence tampering case is flawed, and he’s pretty firm about not resigning–they will begin to move on another scandal. And Meeks’ case has all the makings of the perfect news headline: the suspicious missing money from a charity meant for poor kids and Hurricane Katrina sufferers. And not just any money–YOUR tax dollars!

While the story’s made the front page before, it never lasted more than a day. But now that Paterson’s back to just being an (allegedly) incompetent Governor, and as long as Eric Massa goes into hiding and stops talking about his top-bunk shenanigans, reporters will just have to move on to the next one. That next one looks to be Congressman Greg Meeks.

When the EPA announced last Tuesday to designate the Gowanus Canal a Superfund site, while Clarke accepted the federal intervention, it was Velazquez who embraced it – drawing a contrast on the role the Gowanus Canal plays in each district.

Rainbow lines of oil and sludge dance along the surface of the Gowanus Canal in Brooklyn. The canal’s cloudy green water snakes through most of Congressional District 12 before  the last 1,500 feet stretches into the 11^th Congressional District.

Over in district 11, where Rep. Yvette Clarke, a Democrat, represents the tail-end of the canal, the streets are quiet and the buildings are mostly windowless concrete blocks.  Nearby is a newly developed residential building with dusty windows and a “sale” sign. This part of the canal seems closest to the boutique-shopping-and-coffee-house hub booming along 4th Avenue in Park Slope.

In district 12, however, the image is different – and a more compelling portrait of the need for federal intervention. In this area of the canal, represented by Rep. Nydia Velazquez, also a Democrat, a rigid skyline of garbage and waste that bustles with big diesel trucks emerge here. An empty, muddy lot about half the size of Union Square park – owned by Whole Foods Market – sits opposite a mountainous pile of scrap metal.

From the beginning Clarke was cautious, if not skeptical, about the EPA’s involvement last April as she focused on “stakeholders” in the Gowanus Canal area, whereas Velazquez immediately saw the Superfund nomination as “an important step toward reclaiming the canal for valuable community development, and restoring contaminated waters to health.”

Clarke seemed to favor the Bloomberg administration’s business-friendly approach to the clean-up, which would rely on companies to admit they polluted into the canal and, then, expect them to voluntarily pay for the clean-up. This, Bloomberg officials said, would avoid a “Superfund” stigma that might deflect new business development and economic activity around the Gowanus Canal.

“I am glad a decision has been reached on this issue,” said Clarke, as the EPA made their Superfund announcement.

Velazquez, on the other hand, striking a victorious tone, said, “The EPA has the proven expertise to oversee a comprehensive clean-up, while holding accountable those responsible for the pollution.”

There’s never a dull moment in Congressional District 15 these days. Charlie Rangel has stepped down as chairman of the Ways and Means Committee, albeit temporarily, until the ethics investigation is resolved. Reports say Rangel stepped down voluntarily, though it came after a closed door meeting with Nancy Pelosi.

This week also saw political media outlets publishing a barrage of articles on the decline of political power players in Harlem. Both the NY Times and The Economist had write-ups on the fall of the big four. Many marked David Paterson’s recent scandal, coupled with Rangel’s fallback, as the decline of the Old Harlem Guard. Rangel is the only member of the gang of four still in office but Paterson was a product of this Harlem machine. His father was one of the original members and Rangel has served as a mentor of sort.

Challengers like Vince Morgan have been quick to distance themselves from the “Harlem Clubhouse,” launching grass roots campaigns and calling for a change of guard.

So what’s left for Rangel? Some have questioned whether the 79-year-old would seek re-election if he lost the power and prestige that came with his chairmanship and had to revert back to being a regular old congressman. Rangel has been adamant about running for re-election, however. At a recent get-together at iconic Harlem restaurant Sylvia’s (the same restaurant that held a meeting of black community leaders Thursday night to decide whether or not to support David Paterson) a number of politicians made it clear that they still support Rangel and so does the Democratic Party in Manhattan. The Daily News even referred to the meeting as a “love fest.”

Still, there appears to be blood in the water, and other politicians besides Rev. Faulkner and Mr. Morgan are said to be sniffing around, among them State Senator Bill Perkins, Assemblyman Keith Wright, and Joyce Johnson, who is the only one of the three to announce her candidacy. It’s look like there might be a big run-off in the 15th with a lot of people throwing their hats in the ring, with or without Rangel seeking re-election, though probably fewer if he stays in the race.

Walking around Avenue J in Midwood it’s sometimes hard to understand the connection between Anthony Weiner and his voters.

The 9^th congressional district is a very difficult constituency to pigeonhole.  Half of it is Brooklyn by the ocean; the other half is land-locked Queens.  It has been held by Democrats since 1923, but in 2008 John McCain took 44% of the Vote. It’s 71% white, but, it’s difficult to discover whether there are more Italians, Jews, Irish or Anglos among them.

But if there is a core of Wiener’s constituency it is probably the orthodox Jews of Midwood Brooklyn. It is a stable, politically active community. Weiner is himself Jewish, his mother taught math at Midwood High School.

Somehow the Jewish men in long dark coats and impressive hats pensively waiting in line at the Chaimowitz Food Store or leaning on the counters at Hechts Hebrew Books and Religious Supplies up the street don’t seem like natural supporters of Anthony.

Yesterday, for example Weiner took a stand with the Food and Drug Administration by sending an open letter demanding that men who have sex with men be allowed to donate blood again.

The letter stated that an FDA ban, which was instituted in 1983 to protect the blood supply at the height of the AIDS crisis, had become “medically and scientifically” obsolete, and was impairing the ability to replenish blood supplies.

The co-signers of the letter make a roll call of the most liberal membership of the Senate: Daniel Akaka, Mark Begich, Michael Bennet, Sherrod Brown, Rolland Burris, Maria Cantwell, Bob Casey, Dick Durbin, Russ Feingold, Al Franken, Tom Harkin, Carl Levin, Bernie Sanders, Mark Udall and Sheldon Whitehouse.

An additional aggravating circumstance is that Weiner is the only person to sign the letter who is not a member of the Senate. He has clearly gone out of his way to be a part of the effort.

Why is the elected representative of men and women for whom homosexuality is “to’eva” (usually translated as “abomination”) arguing along side the most liberal members of the Senate about a matter of homosexuality that hardly rises to the level of fundamental civil rights?

The answer may lie in the diversity of the district. When there is no real ethnic or socio-economic coherence voters know they can’t get too picky and compromise to get some of what they want. Weiner is after all explicitly pro Israel.

But then again the answer may also lie in the values of the orthodox community itself.

After several attempts to solicit opinions in the neighborhood, I found a man who was willing to tell me what he thought of Weiner’s letter to the FDA.

“Just politics” he said.  That was unfortunately the extent of the conversations I was able to have about Weiner before it was time to head home.

On line I discovered a vigorous debate was occurring within the orthodox community about the role of homosexuals in Orthodox Judaism.

One article was by an orthodox Rabbi from Riverdale New York, who was preparing to chair a forum on the future of orthodoxy of in America at Yeshiva University this month. His article was plea that orthodox communities not allow themselves to be split asunder by their differences… one of those differences being the acceptance or rejection of homosexuality. I have to admit it surprised me that he finished his article with a poem by William Butler Yeats:

Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;

Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,

The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere

The ceremony of innocence is drowned;

The best lack all conviction, while the worst

Are full of passionate intensity.

Update: Nineteen minutes after the Academy Awards began, ABC (or Cablevision?) announced that it was returning service in blacked out areas.

If Eliot Engel is in the Bronx tonight, and he has Cablevision, he isn’t watching the Oscars. Most of New York’s 17th District is without ABC tonight as Disney and Cablevision collude to spare the region three hours of monotony.

Engel sent a letter to the FCC on Thursday requesting that they consider a “regulatory fix” that would prevent cable subscribers from losing their service when cable companies and television networks have disputes.

From multichannel.com:

He called viewers pawns in game of dividing up millions of dollars between the two companies: “Sadly, it is no coincidence that this deadline coincides with the morning of the Oscar broadcast, annually one of the most-watched programs. Again, the consumer winds up held hostage as a result,”

Engel Pushes FCC For More Retrans Oversight

But Engel’s motive in calling out Cablevision might be more than just annoyance at the channel blackout. Two years ago the Bronx became a veritable television war-zone when Verizon received approval to put in lines in the borough. Perhaps not coincidentally, since FIOS was launched in late 2005, Verizon has been Engel’s biggest contributor.

In fact, over the course of his career, Engel has received over $100,000 from Verizon Communications.

As for Engel’s constituents — the one I talked to said he appreciates that the channel’s blackout affects many of Engel’s constituents, but would prefer that his elected representatives stay out of business disputes.

“It’s aggravating in general not to have a channel that I watch,” said Dan Dash, of Rockland County. “But I don’t think it’s the government’s business to get involved.”

Of course, Dash’s sentiment might have been different had he planned on watching the Oscars. “I’ll be annoyed if I can’t watch Lost on Tuesday,” said Dash.

Congressman Greg Meeks agreed to a brief interview this week with Howie Schwach, editor of Rockaway’s local newspaper, The Wave.  The interview, which is available until next week only in print, has Meeks denying every allegation stacked against him.

“I feel bad for the charities involved,” he said, repeating many times how devoted he is to the community he represents.  “We have to focus on more important things, like jobs.”

But in bigger news, Meeks attended Reverend Al Sharpton’s second emergency summit on Governor David Paterson at Sylvias, and so did I.  As soon as I heard over the AP wires that the meeting was happening, I grabbed my flip and set out uptown.  I wanted to find a way to talk to Congressman Meeks, and I’d never been to the iconic Harlem restaurant.  Even if I was shut out I could get some banana pudding out of it.

What I found uptown was a media frenzy over what essentially amounted to nothing: a consensus, sort of, by Black leadership and other politicians that Paterson should remain as Governor.  They offered their support and said they wanted to clear the way for “due process” with allegations against the Governor, which now include “soliciting an unlawful gift” in the form of five tickets to a World Series game at Yankee Stadium.  The show of support in the community where he was raised, by some of his oldest friends, like former Mayor David Dinkins, was a surprise to many who thought Paterson would be out by Friday.

But unlike the rest of the reporters waiting with me, my focus was on the man standing behind Al Sharpton at their table in the back room of the restaurant, smiling ear to ear–Congressman Greg Meeks.   After the meeting broke hoards of reporters surrounded Reverend Sharpton and Dinkins, around the corner to 126th Street where Dinkins parked his white Dodge Charger.  Yes, Sharpton and 50 cameras and microphones all had the decency to escort him to his car, although neither would answer questions or say a word.  On the walk back to Sylvias I managed to ask Sharpton on camera about the other allegations of the people in the room–notably Greg Meeks.  Sharpton looked at me and said, “Huh?”

By the time Greg Meeks came out it was close to midnight and I’d almost gone home (the security guard at the front of the restaurant told me he’d “been gone!”).  But he sauntered out and spoke to reporters, throwing his support behind the beleaguered Governor and echoing the due process statements made by Sharpton.  He added that he has three daughters of his own, and would never support violence against women, or anybody; but the Governor was owed his own investigation before people started forcing him out.

And before he dipped into his black town car, I managed to ask him the question I came up and waited hours to ask :

At least the banana pudding was good.