Rangel to taxpayers: “Mind your own [expletive deleted] business”

By Jason Matera, Examiner (DC)

March 11, 2009

That was Rep. Charlie Rangel’s response when I recently confronted him about his mounting ethical and financial scandals. Rangel’s uncouth snit began in the Longworth House Office Building after I asked the New York Democrat about his publicly-subsidized luxury vehicle, shady property deals, and unpaid taxes.

Americans are struggling just to pay their bills. While the economy contracts by the month, politicians like Rangel are helping grow the government—and the taxes of those Americans with it.

As proof, Rangel, who chairs the tax-writing House Ways and Means Committee, frolics around in a 17-foot, 300-horsepower Cadillac DeVille paid for by you, the taxpayer. What’s it costing us? According to official House records, $777 a month.

Is it too much to ask that he lease this lavish car with his own money and not ours? He is worth between $566,000 and $1.2 million, after all, according to his official financial disclosure reports.

Rep. Rangel, what say you? Why should you drive a Cadillac paid for by tax dollars? He gave us his answer during our recent encounter: “Why don’t you mind your g-------d business?”

To be fair, there are other House members—125 to be exact—who squander public treasury for their private transportation. But Rangel’s thick docket of improprieties doesn’t stop at the Caddy.

While fancying himself as a defender of the powerless and weak, he grabbed four rent-stabilized apartments set aside for low and moderate-income residents. One of these apartments was even turned into a campaign office, directly violating a New York statute stating rent-controlled apartments must be for primary residency only.

But that’s not all. The Olnick Organization, which owns the apartments, reportedly blessed Charlie Rangel with a 50 percent below market discount, which saves him $30,000 a year. How did Rangel induce such a jaw-dropping markdown?

Could it be that the owner of he Olnick Organization contributes to Rangel’s political action committee or that Rangel himself acquired permits for Olnick’s owner to expand the apartment complex? Let’s ask the man of the hour: how did you receive four rent-controlled apartments below market rate? “Why don’t you mind your g--------d business?”

While these examples may be stomach-turning, they’re not his most egregious sin. There is also his failure to pay taxes on rental income generated from a villa in the Dominican Republic that’s worth up to $500,000. Now, keep in mind that Rangel is chairman of the House committee responsible for writing and implementing tax measures.

His defense of tax evasion was to plead ignorance, sighting cultural and language barriers between the two countries. Here’s a thought experiment. Try botching your tax returns to the tune of $75,000—Rangel’s omission—and offer the Rangel excuse. How much leniency are you expecting from the IRS?

Don’t expect the Rangel treatment, which entails never-ending “investigations” by his buddies in Washington. So, Rep. Rangel, how do you write the tax code and neglect to pay your own taxes? “Why don’t you mind your g--------d business?”

Newsflash, Rep. Rangel: How you spend our tax dollars is everybody’s business, including mine as a blog correspondent covering Congress. You took an oath to serve the public, not vice versa.

And speaking of pledges, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi promised in 2006 to clean house, making her Congress the most “honest,” “open,” and “ethical” in history. Perhaps she should start by making Charlie Rangel her business by demanding his resignation.