Cory Booker (Photo: Twitter)

Newark Mayor Cory Booker is one of the most visible Democrats in New Jersey, but his old friend, Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, is running for Congress in the Garden State on a GOP ticket. Despite his relationship with the rabbi, Mr. Booker didn't sound likely to back his friend's congressional campaign when he spoke with The Politickerthis afternoon.

"I'll tell you this, I'm a Democrat and, at this point, I have not made any decision, but I'd be hard pressed not to support," Mr. Booker momentarily stopped himself before continuing, "You know, this puts me in a very tough position, but the reality is, I think it's very important that we return a Democratic congressman from that district."

Mr. Booker first met Mr. Boteach when he was attending Oxford on a Rhodes scholarship. Mr. Boteach was sent to the prestigious, British university by Rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the now deceased leader of the Chabad Lubavitch movement. Though he's not Jewish, Mr. Booker served as one of the co-presidents of Mr. Boteach's campus Jewish organization, L'Chaim House.

"I was a 22-year-old young man. I was invited to dinner by a person who didn't even show up and really stumbled into what best could be described as a Chabad house," Mr. Booker said. "Shmuley and I, when we met and became friends, we agreed that we would exchange thoughts from our different faiths."

Mr. Booker said this exchange led to him "devouring" books on the Jewish religion.

"I found Jewish wisdom and ideals and great Jewish thinkers really very compelling to me."

In an interview with The Politicker last week, Mr. Boteach described his friendship with Mr. Booker. He also said he wasn't going to ask his friend to refrain from making an endorsement in his race.

"I’m not asking him to stay out. Cory and I have talked a great deal about the race. I would never," Mr. Boteach said. "It’s more than a friendship, he’s like a brother to me. Ours is an intense, intimate, very unique friendship that has had so much history. I mean Cory, he and I have studied Judaism for thousands of hours together."

Mr. Booker and Mr. Boteach have remained close in the twenty years since they first met at Oxford. According to the website for Mr. Boteach's charity, This World: The Values Network, Mr. Booker is on the organizations board of governors. However Mr. Booker was surprised when we asked him about his support for Mr. Boteach's charitable work.

"I was on the board of governors of his charity?" Mr. Booker asked with a laugh. "Maybe I--I might have been for years, I didn't know I was still on."

When we informed Mr. Booker his participation was listed on the group's website, he said he'd have to look into the situation.

"I will have to check them on that," Mr. Booker said. "I de-boarded myself from most of my boards when I became mayor, so I didn't even realize that."

Though Mr. Booker doesn't want to be associated with the rabbi's charity and he seems unlikely to make an official endorsement, he had high praise for Mr. Boteach's "message."

"Shmuley is a guy that has a strong passion about Jewish values and Jewish ideals and in a way that makes them very universal ideals of justice, of fairness, of family," Mr. Booker said. "I've always sort of celebrated that aspect of Shmuley's message, which is that this world needs a renewal of values in a way that's not judgmental, dogmatic or condescending, but in a way that's uplifting, and inspiring and helps us all to rise to our higher angels. And, in that sense, I think I celebrate that aspect of his mission."

Though he appreciates Mr. Boteach's message, Mr. Booker said would prefer it if the rabbi kept out of the political sphere.

"I have vociferously worked to get him to stay out of politics. I have tried, argued, even threatened bodily harm to try to convince him not to get into the world of politics," Mr. Booker said. "I think it, in many ways, diminishes the universality of his message."

Dan Halloran (Photo: NYC Council)

Republican Queens Councilman Dan Halloran is considering throwing his hat into the race for the newly-created District 6 House of Representatives seat. Sources told The Politicker Mr. Halloran was making the rounds looking for volunteers at David Storobin's election night party on Tuesday and Steven Stites, the Councilman's spokesman confirmed he's mulling a Congressional campaign.

"He's giving the run consideration. There's a lot of folks in the local Republican party and the community that want him to run and that think he would be a very great fit for the district," Mr. Stites said.

According to Mr. Stites, the 6th District in central Queens is well-suited to Mr. Halloran. Insiders have been speculating Mr. Halloran might enter the race for some time.

"It's a very moderate, independent district where a lot of families in Queens have been hurt by the president's failed policies; four dollar gas and the lack of job creation," Mr. Stites said. "It's a place where the councilman or any strong Republican candidate would have a good chance."

Mr. Stites said "no decision has in fact been made" and added Mr. Halloran is also considering running for the 11th District State Senate seat formerly occupied by Republican Frank Padavan. Mr. Padavan lost to Democrat Tony Avella in 2010. Mr. Stites said Mr. Halloran "needs to confer with Senator Padavan, community leaders and family first" before deciding whether to set his sights on Congress or the State Senate.

A heated battle is currently underway for the Democratic nomination in District 6 between Councilwoman Elizabeth Crowley and Assembly members Grace Meng and Rory Lancman. Ms. Meng has the backing of the county Democratic party.

Mr. Halloran is clearly not the type to shy away from a tough campaign. He was elected to the City Council in 2009 and, since then, has had an expletive-laden confrontation with a local body shop and a feud with a traffic cop who gave him a parking ticket. If elected, Mr. Halloran would likely be the first pagan in either Congress or the House of Representatives. The Councilman is a member of a local "Theodish" group that worships the Norse gods.

Senator Ruben Diaz (Photo: RubenDiaz.com)

Always outspoken State Senator Ruben Diaz Sr. is not pleased with redistricting proposals that would use space in the Bronx to create a predominantly Latino Congressional district or extend Charlie Rangel's district into Westchester. Mr. Diaz sent one of his periodic "What You Should Know" missives to supporters yesterday slamming the proposals.

"The Bronx is not a colony," Mr. Diaz wrote. "You should know that I am just calling it the way I see it: the way the district lines have been drawn for New York’s Congressional seats indicates to me that there are some people who still believe in colonies."

With Manhattan's demographics changing, some lawmakers have proposed uniting Mr. Rangel's district in Harlem with Mount Vernon via the Bronx to give him a seat with an African American majority along the lines of a proposal made by the NAACP. The Bronx and Manhattan Democratic parties have tussled over this plan since the borough holding the most of the district would control choosing a successor when the person occupying the seat retires. Latino activists and local politicians are pushing to create a new Latino district in the Bronx and Northern Manhattan in addition to Congressman Jose Serrano's district, which currently takes up much of the Bronx. Mr. Serrano is Puerto Rican and the new district would likely lead to the first Congressman of Dominican descent. Mr. Diaz cited these proposals, as well as a plan to extend Congresswoman Nita Lowey's district into the Bronx from White Plains and Westchester as "trying to divide the Bronx into parcels."

"Even though a new Congressional Hispanic District is among our highest consideration, we should not be blind and just sacrifice the entire borough for one new Congressional seat," Mr. Diaz wrote. "That said, I must insist again that the Bronx already has enough people to have its own Congressional seats without the need for outsiders to intrude in our ability to govern ourselves."

Mr. Diaz previously criticized the plan to change Mr. Rangel's district in a "What You Should Know" message sent late last month. In his most recent missive, Mr. Diaz expressed the fear Mr. Serrano's seat "might even be compromised by these plans." He said it would be unfair for the Bronx to lose Congressional seats since the borough's population is "booming" and compared the proposals to discriminatory 19th Century "gerrymandering." Legislative lines are redrawn every ten years based on census data and growing communities generally are given space in more Congressional districts.

"The Bronx is booming because of the hard work and dedication of Bronx elected leaders and representatives who created an environment for people to come to live in the Bronx. No matter what parcel they may be trying to give away to undermine the Black and Hispanic achievements in the Bronx – political and otherwise – we should realize that this tactic harkens back to the Reconstruction Era when gerrymandering was used to dilute the new found political strength of African Americans in the South," Mr. Diaz wrote.

Mr. Diaz finished his message encouraging other Bronxites to "come together and speak as one" against the redistricting proposals.

"We in the Bronx cannot accept this. We should not allow it. It is not right, and it should be stopped. I am Senator Rev. Ruben Diaz and this is what you should know," he wrote.

According to a State Senate staffer, current proposals for the new Latino Congressional seat include Washington Heights and Corona in Queens while majority of the district is located in the Bronx. This would leave room for Mr. Serrano to maintain his seat while giving the Bronx Democrats control over the new seat as well. While the original NAACP proposal for Mr. Rangel's district included Washington Heights and much of the Bronx, a source in the Legislature told The Politicker a new plan for the district allows Washington Heights to be part of the Latino district and decreases the territory in the Bronx by extending it into Queens. Under this plan, Mr. Rangel's district would include Randall's and Riker's Island. This would allow the district to include a contiguous swath stretching from Mount Vernon to Harlem and the predominantly black populations in Queens' Astoria and Queensbridge Houses in Queens via the islands.

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand speaking at the ABNY breakfast. (Photo: Hunter Walker)

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand spoke this morning at a breakfast sponsored by the Association for a Better New York where she blasted the lack of bipartisan cooperation in Washington and announced her plan to introduce a campaign finance reform plan that will take on the Super PAC's.

"It's the same sense of common purpose that's shared in this room today that we frankly need so much more of in Washington. With an economy that has been slow to recover and truly an economic crisis that's rivaled only by the Great Depression," Senator Gillibrand said. "What do we see in Washington? Unfortunately, endless gridlock, endless political posturing, endless partisan bickering. I haven't been in Washington very long, but I've been there long enough to know that it is broken."

According to Senator Gillibrand, the situation in Washington has become even worse since she last spoke at an ABNY event in 2009, shortly after she was appointed to replace Hillary Clinton as New York's Junior Senator. She cited the recent impasse over the payroll tax extension as evidence of the deteriorating climate in Congress.

"In the three short years since I've stood with you, I'm sorry to say that Washington actually has become more dysfunctional. Just look at how Congress ended the last session; another deadline, another manufactured crisis by the House of Representatives, who are either unwilling or unable to govern," Senator Gillibrand said. "Rather than protect 150 million middle class Americans from  higher taxes, including thousands of families across this city and state, there were House members who would prefer to play high stakes poker."

Senator Gillibrand contrasted the divided culture in Washington with New York, where she said people often come together and find ways to solve their problems. She said New York's representatives in Congress also shared that "spirit of a common goal."

"When we're looking at that jobs crisis in Washington, we have to look for that spirit--that spirit of a common, shared goal, common values and bringing together common beliefs that make a difference in how we are going to solve these kinds of problems," Senator Gillibrand said. "And I've seen that. I've seen us make the difference in policy and moving things forward by finding those core common values. We did it with the 9/111 health bill--Senator Schumer, our Congressional delegation led by Chairman Rangel, all of us came together and we focused our efforts on what we agreed on."

Senator Gillibrand also referenced the repeal of Don't Ask Don't Tell as a moment when politicians in Washington managed to come to an agreement.

"We came together to repeal that discriminatory policy based on the core belief that people should be able to serve this country and die for this country because they're Americans," said Senator Gillibrand.

Despite her dim view of the current culture in Washington, Senator Gillibrand said she's optimistic politicIans will be able to make some compromises when Congress reconvenes later this month.

"I know that we can find these common, core values in Washington because we've done it time and time again," Senator Gillibrand said. "Not just with the 9/11 health bill and the repeal of Don't Ask Don't Tell, but in some areas of policy there are so much that we share in common."

Specifically, Senator Gillibrand cited national security and the health and safety of children as areas where she expects politicians to be able to find common ground. On the security front, Senator Gillibrand said she hoped to see Congress be supportive of Israel and tough on Iran's nuclear ambitions. Senator Gillibrand also said she hoped to see politicans work together to address children's nutrition and to strengthen pilot training programs through new FAA regulations.

Senator Gillibrand also said she has high hopes for her bill to ban insider trading by members of Congress and their families.

"I believe we can pass a very strong bipartisan bill on that issue this year," she said.

The Senator also announced plans to introduce a campaign finance reform that will stop special interest groups from spending "unlimited amounts of money through advocacy without any disclosure."

"I'm working on a reform plan that I'll be announcing later this month that will make sure we can actually monitor and control the amount of money that can be raised and spent on federal elections, including independent expenditures through the Super PAC's," Senator Gillibrand said.

Senator Gillibrand's also said she hopes to increase transparency in government by putting more information on the internet and making sure "every document, every public document, every community vote, every Congressional research report is searchable on the internet for the public to see." She said this type of internet database will take Washington "out of the dusty basements and the dark ages."