James Molinaro (Photo: StatenIslandUSA.com)

Today was a big day for Staten Island Borough President James Molinaro. Two weeks after he was on NBC complaining his borough was being ignored in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, Mr. Molinaro spent a substantial amount of time talking with President Barack Obama as the commander in chief toured areas of Staten Island that were devastated by the storm. Mr. Molinaro also encountered a man who is apparently a very, very big fan of his work. 

As Mr. Molinaro chatted with Mayor Michael Bloomberg on Cedar Grove Avenue while the president talked with residents, a man in a sweatshirt called out to him.

"You going to run again Jim?" the man asked.

"I can't," responded Mr. Molinaro, who is term-limited.

"The man next to you could make it happen," the man said gesturing toward the mayor.

Mr. Bloomberg laughed.

"Make it happen what?" Mr. Molinaro said. "I'm retired."

When he won his third and final term, Mr. Molinaro said he hopes Councilman James Oddo will succeed him in the borough president's office. We'll see if Mr. Oddo is able to inspire the same level of ardent devotion among Staten Islanders.

(Photo: CNN.com)

Yesterday morning, Staten Island Borough President James Molinaro expressed his frustration with the lack of help his borough has received after it was devastated by Hurricane Sandy by yelling at the Red Cross in the middle of a press conference and even urging people to cease giving the charity money. Later that day, Mr. Molinaro went on Anderson Cooper 360 to say the Red Cross has finally showed up to help Staten Island.

"We're seeing some improvement from the events that took place this morning," he said. "Frustration turned into anger. It was a bunch of help for the people of Staten Island. I didn't see Red Cross nowhere, nowhere at all to be found ... After today's outburst that we had this morning, there's been a lot of results. I had 10 buses come over from the Red Cross, that are feeding the people, giving them soup."

Watch Mr. Molinaro's CNN appearance below:

"Because the devastation in Staten Island, the lack of a response," Mr. Molinaro said to explain his comment to NBC after the press conference. "You know, I went to a shelter Monday night after the storm. People were coming in with no socks, with no shoes. They were in desperate need. Their housing was destroyed. They were crying. Where was the Red Cross? Isn't that their function? They collect millions of dollars. Whenever there's a drive in Staten Island, we give openly and honestly. Where are they? Where are they? I was at the South Shore yesterday, people were buried in their homes. There the dogs are trying to find bodies. The people there, the neighbors who had no electricity, were making soup. Making soup. It's very emotional because the lack of a response. The lack of a response. They're supposed to be here....They should be on the front lines fighting, and helping the people."

Update: (9:40 a.m. 11/2/12): Mr. Molinaro said after his outburst, the Red Cross arrived with the needed soup.

Several other local officials agreed with Mr. Molinaro's rage over Staten Island's situation, although they did not call out the Red Cross specifically.

"It is as the borough president, Jim Molinaro, said, it's disgusting, it really is," State Senator Andy Lanza said, criticizing the city for giving the go-ahead to the New York City Marathon this weekend and the focus on pumping the water out of the East River tunnels. "We're talking about getting water of the tunnel. Let's get the water out of the tunnel tomorrow, let's get the people out of the water today. There've been thousands of people who have been displaced. There are people who are cold, who are hungry, who are without a place to go, and looking for warmth. There are people still trapped. Yet we're talking about marathons and tunnels. I walked on the rooftop of a house yesterday, I stepped on it because the debris that surrounded it was level with the rooftop. That's what happened here on Staten Island."

Congressman Michael Grimm concurred.

"I think this is an example of what infuriates people here on Staten Island," he said. "Like Senator Lanza just said, we have people, people still in water. Families displaced, families wondering where their grandparents are. Are they at a shelter? Are they at a hospital? Or are they gone? That's what we should be focusing on. I think it would be very misguided to have this marathon. I think that the people of Staten Island will see this, unfortunately...as another shot against them, that the City Hall is more worried about getting everything running again for Manhattan and making everything look like it's back to normal. We're not back to normal and we're not going to be back to normal for a long time."

Scott Stringer (Photo: Wikimedia)

At an anti-drug event yesterday, Staten Island Borough President James Molinaro slammed pop singer Lady Gaga for her alleged drug use and called the musician "a slut in the pure, in the pure meaning of the word." Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer, who is a friend of Ms. Gaga's family, took objection to Mr. Molinaro's comments and came to the singer's defense with a statement today.

"Lady Gaga's work is a symbol of individuality and artistic expression. In addition to her artistic pursuits, she is a social justice activist and a real leader for marriage equality in this country," Mr. Stringer told Politicker. "And no matter which continent Gaga happens to be in today, she remains an Upper West Sider at heart."

Mr. Stringer, who, like the singer is an Upper West Side native, has known Ms. Gaga's parents, Joe and Cynthia Germanotta, for several years. According to the New York Post, Mr. Stringer and his wife "occasionally double-date" with the Germanottas. Since 2011, Mr. Germanotta has donated $350 to Mr. Stringer's campaign war chest.

The loan -- which was for $3,502.80 -- was made by Mary Mercurio, whose ties to the Borough President were not immediately clear. The campaign's treasurer, Anthony Mauriello, said "that is still going to be challenged. It's been documented several times." He declined to elaborate.

Molinaro's campaign was also penalized for taking corporate contributions and, overall, is facing $5,623 in fines.

Also fined was Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz's campaign, which took 35 contributions during his 2009 re-election campaign, which exceeded the CFB's limit. Markowitz was fined $3,850 for those contributions, and $750 for other infractions.