NYPD Reviewing Davis' Leadership The New York City Police Department is now reviewing whether newly elected District Leader James E. Davis must give up his office to keep his badge. In 1998, Davis faced a similar battle when he was booted from the force for being listed on the Independence line in the general election. The NYPD has a rule prohibiting its officers from receiving the nomination of a political party. After challenging the department's 1998 decision, Davis was reinstated last year with back pay. He used part of that money to finance his 2000 campaign. Now, he faces the prospect of another fight.

"I shouldn't have to choose (between being an officer and a district leader) because of the simple fact that this is a party position," said Davis. "I was not nominated by any political party. The people won't have a determination to make in November. Never before has a police officer been a district leader, but it's not against the law." Davis said he and his lawyer have scoured the City Charter and NYPD rulebook and found nothing to prevent him from holding his job and the leadership. He added that he would fight in court to retain both posts. Davis works the midnight shift out of the 69th Precinct in Canarsie. He is, however, an avowed political junkie. "I love this stuff. It was just a tremendous experience to be at the table with these guys," he said after attending his first nominating convention. He said that if push comes to shove, he would give up his job on the force to keep his no-pay district leadership. "If there is a choice, the district leadership wins by far. It's not even a decision. I've fought too hard, too long, to get my foot in the door," he said.

Lt. Stephen Biegel said that there was no set timetable for the NYPD decision. "It's still under review," he said. "We haven't made a decision." Meanwhile, Davis is eyeing a 2001 run for Mary Pinkett's soon-to-be-vacant City Council seat. "I think I am by far the front runner for City Council," he said.

Of course, Letitia James may have something to say about that. James, who heads Attorney General Eliot Spitzer's Brooklyn office, is rumored to be interested in the seat. Both she and Mark Peters, another Spitzer aide interested in running for a different Council seat, are keeping mum about their intentions due to a policy requiring them to take a leave of absence from the job as soon as they announce their candidacy.

To Run Or Not To Run? On the heels of a landslide defeat to Rep. Anthony Weiner, Councilmember Noach Dear may not run on the Republican line in the general election. Dear was given the ballot line by Republican leaders who had no realistic candidate to field. Some insiders believed that Dear's strategy was to pick off conservative Democrats during the primary and then consolidate them with Republicans and Conservatives in the 9th Congressional District general election. But in the wake of the primary, in which Weiner garnered 77 percent of the vote, Dear may be rethinking the viability of his candidacy.

"Noach Dear is seriously considering running in the general election, and at present he is organizing a campaign and putting the pieces together to make any bid an effective one," said spokesperson Jeff Hoschander. Harris Leitstein, Dear's campaign manager for the primary, no longer works for the campaign, said a woman who answered the phone at the campaign headquarters. She added that staffers were currently in the process of "cleaning up."

Unanimous For Norman Assemblymember Clarence Norman was unanimously reelected county leader by the Kings County executive committee. "The fact of it is that unless you count the votes and you have a shot, no one's going to challenge him," said one district leader. "You saw what happened to (Assemblymember Michael) Bragman and (Speaker) Shelly Silver. There is some dissatisfaction with Clarence. The fact that he didn't support (Senator) Chuck Schumer (in 1998)-that's a rift that still hasn't healed. But on the whole, when the time came when he could have been a demagogue (during recent high profile police incidents) and make a name for himself as another Al Sharpton, he was prudent and spoke for calm and was a very positive force. He showed terrific leadership there."

Judicial delegates also breezed through their convention with no sign of war or power plays. The half-hour affair was chaired by state Senator Martin Connor. Quipped one wag: "Connor runs through it faster than my Uncle Al ran through the Passover seder."

Clintonmania While Hillary Clinton wars with Rick Lazio over who's money is the softest, the first lady and senate candidate has at least one thing going on for her with everyday Brooklynites: The cult of celebrity.

During Clinton's recent appearance at a Brooklyn civic association, she was mobbed by hungry locals acting like a group of teenyboppers at a pop concert. Grown adults actually asked for her autograph, pushing and pulling just to get close enough for a picture or to thrust a pen toward her mug (if the Secret Service doesn't toss them first). The scene was a replay of an earlier Clinton visit to Lundy's in Sheepshead Bay, where she addressed a group of elected officials and community leaders. Of course, both venues were packed with Clinton supporters-a fact that led to some criticism of the event's organization -- but the level of devotion among those supporters almost vaults Clinton to God-like status in their eyes.

"The best thing she's got going for her is this star quality," said one insider who attended both events. "It's too bad she's got to deal with this Secret Service (stuff), because plunging into the crowd-it really is like The Beatles. People want their children to touch her."

Kings H'way Dems To Salute Mayor District Leader Michael Geller plans to give the first swan song to Mayor Giuliani at the 87th annual dinner of the Kings Highway Democratic Club held on the first Saturday in February. "The theme is thank you mayor," said Geller. "We generally have between three and four hundred people. I would estimate that we'd have close to 600. He's very, very popular."

Geller was one of the first Democrats to endorse Giuliani, and has since run an efficient, effective machine in pulling votes for the Republican mayor. A quick fact: The Kings Highway Democratic Club is the second-oldest political club in New York City, behind only the Seneca Club.

Borough Politics Archive
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