Rudy Giuliani, Lawrence Ray, & The Mafia
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Another hit for “America’s Mayor” as more details of his alleged relationship with mafia-connected Lawrence Ray via Bernard Kerik drips out.
That evidence, reviewed by The Washington Post, shows that Kerik brought Ray into contact with Giuliani on a handful of occasions documented in photos and that he invoked Giuliani’s name in connection with a New Jersey construction company with alleged mob ties that is now at the heart of the criminal cases.
You can almost hear the Sopranos theme song in the background.
31 Responses to “Rudy Giuliani, Lawrence Ray, & The Mafia”
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Nice. Way to go with those ethnic stereotypes there Oliver.
Jay is really sensitive on this ethnic stereotype crap. What don’t you like Jay, the word MAFIA because of it’s Italian, or the reference to the Sopranos a pop icon TV show about an organized crime family that happens to be Italian?
Oh I’m not sensitive to it. I just find it surprising that a guy that shouts RACISM! at the drop of a hat is engaging in the same kind of stereotyping he’s always bitching about.
Well, what is racist about the post? The word ‘mafia’ or the Sopranos reference?
Improve your reading comprehension. I didn’t say it was ‘racist.’ I said it was stereotyping. If Giuliani’s last name were ‘Goldberg’, I doubt we’d see any references to the mafia or the Sopranos.
Actually, Jay, if Giuliani’s last name were Goldberg AND he had the same ties to the Mob, then the Sopranos reference would likely still be apt. There are plenty of examples of Jewish gangsters doing business with the Italian Mafia, after all…Lansky with Luciano, for example.
Nice deflection, Ricochet Rabbit.
I think Jay is engaging in his own stereotyping. He assumes that Oliver’s objection to Guiliani being connected to mobsters stems from his being Italian. In fact, it is probably from his being a former Mayor and Presidential candidate. Would Oliver point out if Romney was connected to mobsters? Probably.
Again, Jay is caught on the wrong side of bigotry. Interesting that it’s against his own kind this time.
Wow, Jay. Get some reading comprehension of your own. You are the one that likened the stereotyping to racism, not me.
Then you fail to explain how its stereotyping in any way. Oliver is talking about a mafia (DiTomasso family?) connected person (Ray) and that is what spurs the Sopranos reference, not Guiliani’s Italian name. Get real. You had the same complaint when Alito was nominated and the subject of him having the biggest ever screw up on an organized crime prosecution was dragged out to rebut his competence. Get real.
If Mr. Giuliani didn’t apparently associate with a mafia guy, maybe he wouldn’t have this problem, eh?
Spider, I didn’t say whether such a thing would be ‘apt’ or not. I said he wouldn’t have made the reference.
And Oliver, Guiliani didn’t “associate with a ‘mafia guy’”. Kerik worked for Giuliani who was friends with Ray who knew guys at a construction company that had ties to the mafia in New York. Yeah. That’s some association. To make such a claim and to throw in cracks about ‘The Sopranos – which by the way makes no sense since the construction company had ties to a NEW YORK crime family) is evidence of:
1. Your stereotyping of Giuliani because he’s Italian.
2. Your own ignorance.
Take your pick.
Seriously? You think it’s all about Giuliani’s Italian name, and not the shady connections?
You’re the one making wild assumptions about what Oliver would and would not do if any politician were similarly connected to the Mob and using them as a knee-jerk stereotype accusation.
The Sopranos are being referenced because THE MAFIA is involved in this story, not because Giuliani is involved.
I’m surprised you haven’t been nailing Oliver for his obvious stereotyping of whatever the hell Kerik’s race is as a mafia hanger-on.
Kerik wasn’t just a friend of some guy. He accepted money and hundreds of thousands of dollars of work from that guy’s mob company, as well as getting his brother a job in the mafia controlled company.
Stereotype: a simplified and standardized conception or image invested with special meaning and held in common by members of a group
Yes, I’m sure that Giuliani’s last name had nothing to do with references to the mafia and The Sopranos. For crissakes Spider, Oliver says, “If Mr. Giuliani didn’t apparently associate with a mafia guy, maybe he wouldn’t have this problem, eh?”
Where’s Giuliani’s association with a mafia guy? Where?
He accepted money and hundreds of thousands of dollars of work from that guy’s mob company, as well as getting his brother a job in the mafia controlled company.
Yeah…HE…as in Bernard Kerik. Not Rudy Guiliani.
The best is when Jay observes that Oliver’s reference to the Sopranos makes no sense because Kerik’s connection leads to a NEW YORK crime family. Christ Jay, you must watch the Sopranos. Why would you watch the show if you believe it reinforces a negative Italian stereotype?
Why would you watch the show if you believe it reinforces a negative Italian stereotype?
You’re a moron. As if this has anything to do with my opinion of ‘The Sopranos.’
Perhaps you can explain exactly what Giuliani’s associations with “a mafia guy” are. Apparently it’s common knowledge around here.
Of course, if he were to pay attention to the Sopranos, the New Jersey family is subordinate to New York so the Sopranos are part of the New York Mafia.
So we have two options: Either Jay knows that hiring someone as their police commissioner that deals with mobsters is suspect, and Jay is just being a douchebag, or he is ignorant and a douchebag.
Yeah…HE…as in Bernard Kerik. Not Rudy Guiliani.
Fine, Jay, I guess you got me. Giuliani must be clean as a whistle, here. Sure, Bernard Kerik was somebody he considered such a stand-up citizen and close friend that he once recommended him to run the DHS, but Rudy must not have known what his bosom buddy Bernard was up to at all.
As to this whole Mafia thing, why, Rudy is shocked–shocked!–to discover what Bernard was up to! If he had only known!
So, at the very least, Rudy’s ability to judge character is suspect. Is that a knock on him, or am I stereotyping Italians as a people with poor choice in friends?
Of course, if he were to pay attention to the Sopranos, the New Jersey family is subordinate to New York so the Sopranos are part of the New York Mafia.
No, they are not subordinate to New York. They are two totally separate families. Carmine/Johnny Sack/Phil Leotardo being bosses of the fictional Lupertazzi crime family. Tony Soprano is the boss of the DiMeo crime family in New Jersey.
If you’re ignorance of a pop culture reference is deep, responding to the rest of your inane drivel is pointless.
As to this whole Mafia thing, why, Rudy is shocked–shocked!–to discover what Bernard was up to! If he had only known!
Oh I see. So you’re suggesting Rudy knew what was going on.
Do you have evidence to support that theory?
Once again, Jay proves that not only is he ignorant of politics, he is ignorant about everything else. Heck of a job, Jay!
He’s got the entire bloodline of the fake families memorized. Give us a break.
What you are failing to do is show us how Oliver is trying to paint Guiliani as a mob boss because of his name. What Oliver is doing is trying to connect Guiliani to his mafia bribe accepting crony. Don’t try to place proving that on me. I am arguing against your claims of stereotyping and racism.
Personally, I don’t see any evidence of Quid Pro Quo between Guiliani and the Mafia, the mafia’s company or Ray. The article that Oliver links to found no evidence that Guiliani’s administration did anything for the mob-company, but that it got turned down for various things. Also there is no evidence that Guiliani knew Ray was mob connected when he accepted favors from Ray. Oliver is wrong to try to pin a direct association on Guiliani. Guiliani’s long support and promotion of Kerik, however, continues to be a serious flaw in his judgement and I think Kerik’s brother suddenly being put in charge of a company looking for city contracts should have raised some red flags.
A final note on pop culture references, it isn’t the cultists in-depth knowledge that makes the pop culture reference apt, it’s the general public’s perception that makes it, such as the Sopranos being about a mafia family. It’s like the old joke: “how is the USS Enterprise like toilet paper? They both search for Klingons around Uranus.” Pop culture suggests the space theme and most people would know that an extra-terrestrial race called Klingons is part of Star Trek. We don’t need a Star Trek geek telling us that at no time on the show did the Enterprise ever search for Klingons around Uranus or anywhere in the Solar System and that perhaps we have confused it with episode 62 “Captain Kirk and the Blue Chick” where the enterprise tries to uncover a Klingon plot on Beta Geekalon 5.
I agree that there MAY not be a quid pro quo, but this story goes to Guiliani’s poor judgment over who he hires, both for the city and for his company. I don’t want him hiring people for his staff in the White House that have ties to the Mafia. And if we can argue that he didn’t know about these ties, I don’t want a president that stands behind such clearly corrupt people when they are found out.
He’s got the entire bloodline of the fake families memorized. Give us a break.
I’m a big fan of the show. It’s not my fault Enlightened Liberal doesn’t know jack-shit about it.
What you are failing to do is show us how Oliver is trying to paint Guiliani as a mob boss because of his name.
I didn’t say he did. But let’s stop pretending that he wasn’t engaging in some ethnic stereotyping by referencing Giulani, the Mafia and the Sopranos all in one shot. Even if he didn’t set out to do so purposely, he did so.
Personally, I don’t see any evidence of Quid Pro Quo between Guiliani and the Mafia, the mafia’s company or Ray. The article that Oliver links to found no evidence that Guiliani’s administration did anything for the mob-company, but that it got turned down for various things. Also there is no evidence that Guiliani knew Ray was mob connected when he accepted favors from Ray. Oliver is wrong to try to pin a direct association on Guiliani. Guiliani’s long support and promotion of Kerik, however, continues to be a serious flaw in his judgement and I think Kerik’s brother suddenly being put in charge of a company looking for city contracts should have raised some red flags.
As for it being a reflection of Giuliani’s judgment, do you really think that every candidate hasn’t had associates, business parters, or appointees of some sort that weren’t involved in shady or illegal activities? A certain Senator from NY surely has issues in that realm.
“As for it being a reflection of Giuliani’s judgment, do you really think that every candidate hasn’t had associates, business parters, or appointees of some sort that weren’t involved in shady or illegal activities? A certain Senator from NY surely has issues in that realm.”
Hey, what happened to the goalposts that were over here- oops! Jay carried them away. To get on point, what appointees of Hillary Clinton were organized crime figures?
As for it being a reflection of Giuliani’s judgment, do you really think that every candidate hasn’t had associates, business parters, or appointees of some sort that weren’t involved in shady or illegal activities?
Rudy is running on his record as a crime-busting DA and tough-on-crime mayor. His hand-picked, buddy-buddy police commissioner has close ties to crooks.
Nothing to see here, right Jay?
I’ve never watched the Sopranos, so I have no idea nor do I care where the family is based. The reason the song came to mind is that Giuliani keeps being connected to these shady characters at the same time he portrays himself as Mr. Law & Order.
Guiliani promoted Kerik to Police commissioner despite the opposition of more than half his cabinet because the position required a college degree. Oh yeah, Kerik also skipped the normal vetting process. Not Rudy’s fault at all.
Besides which, isn’t this the heart of what Guiliani is running on, his record of Law and Order and his record as mayor. His hand-picked Police commissioner wasn’t qualified for the job and took bribes from a mafia connected company.
“Improve your reading comprehension. I didn’t say it was ‘racist.’ I said it was stereotyping. If Giuliani’s last name were ‘Goldberg’, I doubt we’d see any references to the mafia or the Sopranos.”
How fucking stupid can you be? Bernie Kerik, whom he publicly supported for the head of homeland security, is involved in a court case with ties to the Mafia.
This has nothing to do with anti-Italian stereotypes and everything to do with the fucking facts, you sub-human ignorant shit.
Seriously, at this point you are too stupid to be considered human.
Oh I see. So you’re suggesting Rudy knew what was going on.
Do you have evidence to support that theory?
That depends:
If Giuliani’s last name were ‘Goldberg’, I doubt we’d see any references to the mafia or the Sopranos.
Do you have evidence to support that theory?
And no, repeating it again ≠ evidence.
I didn’t say he did.
*Points above* Wow! Lying about something that can be easily checked on the same goddamned web page. Talk about a new low. If you’re going to lie, try harder please.
If you’re ignorance of a pop culture reference is deep, responding to the rest of your inane drivel is pointless.
I could’ve done the same thing about your “olol! wut’s Haruhi?” comment, but I didn’t, since I’m not an asshole.
Gee… Jay comes in says something completely stupid, then runs away from the debate.
He’s incapable of having an intellectually honest debate.