Ah, the new class. Harlem this summer is sort of like the movie Dazed and Confused. The seniors are on their way out, and it’s time for the juniors who sat quietly to make their presence known. Instead of beating up freshmen or throwing parties at the water tower, however, they are announcing their candidacy against more well-known incumbents.

And so things continue on in Harlem, and it looks like we’re going to have another interesting throwdown in the area that comprises the 15th. One of the main criticism of Charlie Rangel and his cohorts have been that they haven’t  spent much time prepping a new class. Professor Barbara Fife, who formerly served high up under David Dinkins, echoed this sentiment, and it’s been a common theme in newspaper articles about the end of the Gang of Four. Basil Smikle, 38, has been mentioned as one of those younger Harlem generation types who typically would have run for office.

Geraldine Baum wrote less than two months ago, in article that focused heavily on Smilke:

The collapse of this dynasty has pained Harlem, and there are no rising stars to carry on. The new political elite is less interested in getting elected than in having influence in a broader sphere of the community. With their Ivy League educations, button-down shirts, blazers and jeans, the next generation represents a victory of sorts for the previous one, because the younger men occupy a place in society that the old guard could not have imagined.

They’re busy as consultants to black and white politicians and as lobbyists. They teach at majority-white universities and are regulars on political talk shows. They’re connected to an array of ministers, educational reformers, community leaders, politicians and entrepreneurs across the city, not just to a handful of men from central Harlem.

Basil even said, referring to a meeting to decide what to do about Governor Paterson that place among black leaders at Sylvia’s Restaurant,

“It’s so old-school and somewhat insulting,” Smikle said, “to have a ‘summit’ like that when much of the electorate does not live in a world where they blindly abide by decisions made in smoke-filled backrooms by a few people.”

It seems, however, that Basil might have been sitting in some of those smoke-filled backrooms himself. When State Senator Bill Perkins, who wears a fedora even better than Charlie Rangel wears a bow-tie, made his power play against Rangel and Governor Paterson around the timing of that meeting, criticizing them for their transgressions, there was insider talk of Harlem and black democrats trying to find a suitable candidate to take out Perkins. It seems that everyone decided on Smilke, who himself acknowledged that he had a long meeting with including Deputy Parks Department Commissioner Larry Scott Blackmon and political consultant Rodney Capel and they both decided that he was gong to be the guy to go after Perkins.

Even before Perkins took a shot at Rangel and Paterson, he was considered a bit of a rebel for siding with Obama against Hilary, while most Harlem leaders actually supported Hilary. A key issue in the race is going to be charter schools. Smikle supports them, and Perkins is very outspoken about his opposition. While Rangel hasn’t publicly gone after Perkins, it’ll be interesting to see how he handles this situation. No more than a few weeks ago there some people assuming Perkins might make a run at Rangel’s congressional seats.

All I know, it sounds like there’s going to be a lot of heavy conversations in smoke-filled backrooms this summer, and I want in.

A lot of the times a  filthy rich Congressman that seems out of touch with the common man and has his own villa huffs and haws about the oppressed members of society, it can seem a little disingenuous. Charlie Rangel has made a career out of fighting for the little guy, and despite his current fat cat status his fighting words still seem to come from a genuine place and a genuine understanding of the poor and the downtrodden.

It’s important to remember that Charlie, as much as we love to give him a hard time for his recent transgressions, and despite him dressing like the monopoly man, has been down and out. Raised by a poor single mother in the slums of Harlem, he fought his way to the top. Whether it was dropping out of high school or being shipped out to fight in Korea, he made something of a terrible situation. Perhaps that’s why he still gets a lot of love in Harlem and from those of lower socioeconomic means despite the bow-tie.

In the past week alone, he helped introduce a bill to speed along Haiti’s recovery, voted for a bill that helps to provide care and support for veterans, and fiercely criticized the Arizona immigration bill. Though he’s not exactly taking a controversial viewpoint, and though some may assume he’s only providing lip service, throughout Rangel’s entire career he’s made a habit of embracing similar legislation, whether it’s veteran benefits or providing tax relief for low-income families.

Despite all his errors, Rangel still comes across as being true to roots, and that’s what people who question his support and power don’t seem to understand.

One of Charlie Rangel’s main advantages in his upcoming Congressional race will be the high amount of fund-raising cash he can pull in. Unfortunately he might have to spend that cash on something besides his campaign for re-election. It seems Rangel has raised $108,000 in the first quarter of 2010, but has had to spend $60,000 of it on legal fees in the first three months of the years. In total, he’s spent ab out $1.5 million in legal fees, according to opensecrets.org.

Rangel also spent $26,000 on illegal poster fines in New York City. According to the Daily News, he’s actually spent over $240,000 so far this year. In the past few elections, Rangel has raised $5 million, $2 million, and $2 million, and spent $4.2 million, $2 million, and $1.7 million, respectively. He’s still sitting on a nice campaign chest of $600,000 though he’s already spent a total of $2.6 million while only raising $1.9 million. It’s not exactly worrisome yet, but Rangel’s campaign is spending money left and right without bringing in enough. The prized bow-tie collection may even have to be sold on e-bay if things continue down this path.

One less thing to worry about, though, is State Senator Bill Perkins going up against Rangel, as he recently declared that he would be seeking re-election for his state assembly seat.

Adam Clayton Powell IV is the most serious contender Rangel is facing so far, unless State Senator Bill Perkins gets involved, and he quickly showed he knows how to play the game by accusing Rangel of conspiring to handpick his successor to Congressional District 15. A nice move, considering Rangel’s accusations of misusing his power and the New York media obsession with poking fun at Charlie.

Powell floated out the theory that Rangel would resign after being elected, something he called thoroughly undemocratic:

“Everybody in political circles knows that [Rangel] doesn’t want to fulfill another two years… I’m not making this up. Absolutely. The fact is everyone knows that the strategy is for him to be re-elected and then resign abruptly to appoint his successor. That would be totally undemocratic. The people in Northern Manhattan — not Charlie Rangel — [should] be the only ones who choose who the next congressman is… The other speculation is that he may collect the signatures and then hand them over to somebody else, like [Manhattan Democratic] County Leader Keith Wright or whoever they pick, much like it happened in Queens, when Congressman Tom Manton did that, and he went all the way through a re-election, collected signatures and then in the middle of July, surprised everybody by giving them to Joe Crowley.”

As for Clayton Powell’s chance, I spoke with Jeff Merritt, president and founder of Grassroots Initiative, a non-profit that helps insurgent campaigns.

“Elections are not always predictable, and I don’t know if the scandals will grow or go away,” said Merritt. “You never know what election day is going to bring.”

Merritt mentions the low voter turnout as a big factor. “A lot of the voters have been there for years, and I don’t think they’re going to change their ways or change on a whim,” he said. “Assuming there’s no big surprises, it’s a pretty big challenge [to beat Rangel].”

April 15 is only a few days away, and here’s hoping Charlie Rangel put some new people in charge of his tax prep because the folks who handled it last time didn’t do what one would consider an adequate job. Might we suggest that Rangel give Turbo Tax a rest this year and possibly contact some of the good people at H and R Block, just to make sure things run a little smoother this year.

Jokes aside, it was politics as usual for Rangel:

• He went on NY1 to blame the press for his ethics violation and to compare opponents of Health Care Reform to those who protested against the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960’s.

• His allies launched a power move to oust the dapper and often hilarious State Sentator Bill Perkins, who I’ve have had the pleasure of interviewing. The man can turn a phrase, and if things heat up it will be exciting to watch these two titans of Harlem politics go after each other. Perkins made the mistake of breaking rank from the Harlem political machine in February, speaking out against the ethics violations of both Governor Paterson and Rep. Rangel. It probably seemed like a good move at the time. Rangel was looking weak, and Perkins was possibly thinking of making a run at Congress. Go after Rangel and Paterson as they head into a downward spiral and show your constituents that you’re not going to put up with scandals and unaccountability from politicians. CD 15 has a ton of new residents, and these newer residents, mostly white and Hispanic, are probably less likely to cling to Rangel because of his legacy as a great Black politician. Unfortunately for Perkins, he now has to deal with the consequences, and that means have Harlem democrats refer to him as a Judas and start parading around candidates to take a run at his seat, which as the Daily News pointed out is a moot point if he decides to run against Rangel.

• And he received word that he’d be facing a familiar foe. Adam Clayton Powell IV announced his candidacy for CD 15. Rangel’s already beaten Powell in the 1994 race, but he gave Rangel the closet scare he’s had in a long time. Rangel won with only 58% of the vote, which, while still formidable, isn’t the usual 90% he usually pulls. He could prove to be much more of a formidable candidate than any of the other challengers, as the Clayton Powell name still holds sway in Harlem and Powell is a much more established member of the Harlem Political scene after serving in the NY State Assembly since 2000 and being active in New York politics for the past 2 decades. Clayton Powell differs from Rangel in that he prefers to get arrested for more routine crimes, like  Driving While Impaired, instead of more complex financial boondoggles.

Things were a little quieter in the 15th this week as Charlie Rangel and his challengers allowed the tumultuous events of the past few weeks to sink in. New scandals involving other local politicians, each more absurd then the next, took the focus off of Rangel’s ethics investigation. Rep. Massa’s tickle monster and snorkeling requests had enough juice to steal some headlines and national attention, something I’m sure Rangel is grateful for as he tries to save face since relinquishing his position on the Ways and Means Committee. Other absurdities included Hiram Monseratte, despite being the Chris Brown of local politicians, continuing a push to run for state senate again.

Meanwhile, Reverend Michel Faulkner, the only Republican challenger to step up in the 15th, issued a bold press statement, saying that he is looking to retire Rangel. Faulkner has been a reverend in Harlem for the past 20 years, and as the National Review pointed out, is used to losing since he played a season with the NY Jets. Forgive them for being skeptical, but Faulkner faces an uphill battle even if ignoring the fact that Rangel is a 20 term incumbent.

The 15th CD in New York is routinely called the second most Democratic congressional district in the country. As the National Review post points out, Faulkner is focusing on changing Harlem’s incredibly low voter turnout rate, and maintaining a grass roots campaign that has him talking to passers-by on Harlem street corners. I had the chance to speak with Faulkner a few weeks ago, before Rangel had been admonished by Congress.

I questioned Faulkner as to how a Republican could stand a chance in the 15th. He called himself a Republican with a small ‘r’ and went on to say that while the GOP had not demonstrated itself to be the best at understanding or outreach towards urban America, voters should look at the man, not the party. “The ideals are there, but they need a shake-up,” he said, and that people need to get beyond party labels.

He pointed out that Rangel had served Harlem as one of the most powerful people in the Congress, and citing the high unemployment rates suffered by Black and Hispanics, said that one would expect the situation in the district to be better. “His policies have failed,” said Faulkner. “He’s spent a tremendous amount of money, but where is it being spent?”

Faulkner thinks that Rangel has lost touch with the community as he got engulfed by the national political system, and now had a disconnect from the community. “I see what’s being done as an abuse of democracy,” said Faulkner. The average citizen sees what’s going on and it tells them their vote doesn’t count, he said, leading to distrust, a disconnect, and apathy. Faulkner compared a voter in Harlem to a sufferer of Stockholm Syndrome.

Faulkner said he hoped to tremendously increase voter turnouts in Harlem and that he planned on going after the disenfranchised voters.

“America is better than this,” he said. “This community deserves better.”

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.

Though his scandals are starting to draw increased attention, Charlie Rangel still claims that he will be running for his 21st term. This could be an example of a politician simply refusing to acknowledge the obstacles facing him, and hoping that his denial leaves his constituency feeling like maybe he isn’t really in that much trouble. Nancy Pelosi has refused to remove him from his powerful Ways and Means position, at least until the ethics panel wraps up the investigation. Though frequently referred to as untouchable, Rangel is starting to look like the negative press might just start sticking to him. Obama has abandoned his defense of Rangel, and four democrats have called for him to step down from the Ways and Means Committee.

Meanwhile, Vincent Morgan has started to ramp up his campaign. The NY Times recently published a profile on Morgan, ratcheting public awareness of Rangel’s democratic challenger. Morgan also released his first campaign commercial, a collection of residents of the 15th Congressional District talking about their differing backgrounds set to a Jay-Z beat.

Still no word on who Hove is endorsing.

“I think people have forgotten what the 15th looks like,” Morgan said, speaking by phone, when asked about the commercial. When asked whether he was trying to reach out to communities who Rangel might have overlooked, Morgan said that he was trying to reach out to the vast majority, and that he believes the vast majority feel overlooked because they don’t come out to vote. “I want them to become a part of the process again because they feel they are part of the process,” he said.

Morgan was a little more animated when talking about Rangel’s admonishment. “New Yorkers are completely fed up with this notion that elected officials get a pass on things that we would get in trouble for. Theres no way that normal citizens would have a pass on things that politicians take for granted,” he said. After the past week, there’s no way to tell which of the many New York state politicians currently enduring a scandal he was referring to, and there’s too little space on the Internet to list all of them.

The lack of participation in the voting process also disturbs Morgan. “One of things that disturbs me, that we’re so apathetic that we don’t come out and vote, then we hem and haw when they get caught…but we don’t vote,” he said.

I asked Morgan how Rangel had managed to keep such a stranglehold on the 15th, and how he hoped to break it. He blamed a combination of voter apathy and Rangel’s being ensconced in the Harlem political machine, as well as a lack of able and willing candidates.

“We’ve never had a candidate that could run against them and not be encumbered by the political machine,” said Morgan. “Now we’re in a different cycle and the stranglehold that the machine has had is being dismantled as we speak.” He was quick to portray himself as an outsider who understood the system because he had worked in it (as an aide for Rangel, no less) but had then broken out of it.

He lambasted politicians who treat political positions as a matter of musical chairs, hopping from one job to the next to increase their power and caring only about their careers. “They’re not running because they have a commitment to the people,” he said.

I pressed Morgan to see if he really thought he had a chance against Rangel. “I do think that we can win this thing, anybody can be beaten. People vote for people, and people vote for people they connect with…What we need to do is get out of this fallacy that rangle wins with 80% of vote. He wins with 80% of the vote that turns out,” he said.

Throughout the conversation, Morgan seemed invigorated and full of energy. Fitting, since Rangel’s admonishment had just been delivered the night before, and as Morgan pointed out, the allegation was only the first of many. If Rangel does follow through with his claims of running for the election, Morgan is still a tremendous underdog, and though he wouldn’t admit it, I think it’s safe to say his best hope is for Rangel to step down.