High life
Meeting Mr Koch
Taki
New York I have met Ed Koch, the bald, vulgar, effete and publicity-seeking mayor of New York only once, and that was enough. Although Koch was an opponent of the war in Vietnam (in the immortal words of Miss Rice-Davies, he would, wouldn't he) he showed up at the Trump Tower atrium during the Vietnam veterans dinner celebrations. This was 1984, and Koch was running for a third term.
I was sitting with Norman Mailer, Chuck Pfeifer, and our women, when Koch sud- denly appeared in front of our table and began pressing flesh in the graceful manner of Tip O'Neil, i.e. shaking hands while looking around the room to see where more important people were sitting. (The Tip O'Neil handshake is known as the Weidenfeld in the UK.) Mailer, of course, was a good photo opportunity, as they say in elegant places such as Hollywood, and that made Koch stick around. In fact, our filet mignons got cold while the mayor downed it up next to an embarrassed Norman and a stunned table. I thought he had the stature of an Ortega, and the dignity of a Ken Living- stone. He finally moved on when he spotted Bill and Pat Buckley, I believe.
Now Koch is not the worst mayor the Big Bagel has ever had, not by a long shot, say some of his supporters. What everyone agrees, however, is that during his adminis- tration there have been some pretty crooked dealings in New York.
Consider the following: since early last year, 11 top men of the Koch administra- tion have pleaded guilty to charges related to a graft and bribery scandal. At least nine other top officials have been granted im- munity in exchange for their testimony, while 14 others, including two judges and Taxi and Transportation commissioners, are under indictment and awaiting trial.
Here are the top names: Donald Manes, the Queens Democratic leader and borough president who was sworn in two days, before trying to kill himself after his scam was discovered. Manes had bragged that once he took over from his close friend Koch, 'that's when we'll really make big money'. Manes, at least, had the decency to kill himself on his second try.
Stanley Friedman, the Bronx Democratic leader, close friend of Koch, who in November was convicted of acting as a broker for bribes to officials to win their help in obtaining city contracts. He faces 50 years when sentenced next month.
Michael Lazar, city councilman and chair- man of the Taxi and Limousine Commis- sion and Transportation Bureau. Lazar was convicted of paying bribes in return for city business for his real estate interests. Lazar is one of the most disgusting men I have set eyes on, which happened when I sat next to him in an Italian restaurant last week.
Marvin Kaplan and Lester Shafran, two proteges of Lazar and Friedman, who were top Citisource officials and who both now face years in the slammer.
Last but not least, John Zaccaro, the husband of Geraldine Ferraro, the liberals' darling who, had the Democrats won in 1984, would have been a heartbeat away from the presidency. Zaccaro is under indictment for bribery.
As I was not born yesterday, I am not shocked that most of Koch's cronies might be crooks. What angers me is that despite the scandals, influence peddling by rich real estate speculators is as prevalent as ever, and Koch, rather than resign or hide his bald head in shame, is out there still looking for photo opportunities. Just con- sider what happened late last month, about Christmas time, or better yet, Hanukkah. Donald Trump, a man who makes Saul Steinberg seem the quintessential gentle- man, wrote a public letter to Koch com- plaining about the street peddlers who were congregating on Fifth Avenue. Ira Neiman, the chairman of Bergdorf Good- man, a department store that caters for the Miami Beach brigades, echoed Trump's charges, but went further by comparing New York to Istanbul. Both Donald and Ira demanded a crackdown on the poor Somali street peddlers who, in their words, were choking the sidewalks.
Koch reacted instantaneously. In two `Swiss Family Robinson ahoy!' days flat there were as many peddlers on Fifth Avenue as there are honest politi- cians in New York. Koch managed it by sending 120 men to police Fifth Avenue full time. Why did Koch act as quickly es he did? Why that's as easy to guess as who is buried in Grant's Tomb. It seems that the top contributor to Koch's campaign and to the Democratic Party's coffers is., who else but Donald Trump, having contn- buted $350,000 only last year. No wonder the mayor jumped when Trump told him to. What might he do for Guterman, Cohn, Rosenwald, Perelman, Milstein, Kalikow, Glick, Schneider, Stern and Litwin, who are the biggest contributors, in descending order, to his political campaign? In the meantime, the Somalis are not allowed to be mini-entrepreneurs, which after all, is the American way. I feel for the Somalis, especially as they are hard work' ers and never — unlike the locals — mug anyone.
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