Political Image
Rangel is known as an energetic, genial, and sociable politician, one who is able to gain friendship and influence by means of charm, humor, and candor. He is called "Charlie" by everyone in Congress, from the highest-ranking members to the custodial employees. Of his political skills, 1980s Ways and Means chair Dan Rostenkowski said, "Charlie has the gifted knack of getting you to change your position, and you actually enjoy doing it. Compromising isn't so unusual in Congress. Enjoying it is." The New York congressman's ability to use humor to catch others off guard before making a political point has been called "Rangeling" by lobbyists and others on Capitol Hill. Many of his closest friends and allies in Congress have not been other African Americans, but white representatives from working class or rural districts; O'Neill aide Chris Matthews said these members were "tied emotionally and culturally to the people they represent."
Rangel has been described as having a meticulous appearance. Long-time mentor Percy Sutton recalled, “In the beginning I called him Pretty Boy Rangel, to denigrate him, because he was one of those handsome types, hair pushed down and that mustache. But he had a way about him, with that great humor, an ability to influence people.” Later, The New York Times described him thusly: "After three decades in public life, the portly, gravel-voiced Mr. Rangel, who is very much the Old World-style gentleman yet sprinkles his sentences with mild profanity, still takes politics personally." In contrast, Rangel and his office have long been disorganized, with criticism even from supporters for taking on more things than he can keep track of. The congressman's life has been dominated by politics, with no hobbies and few friendships outside of it. Loyalties to Rangel were severely tested during the height of the ethics investigations of him, when a number of political figures bailed out on a lavish 80th birthday gala planned for Rangel at New York's Plaza Hotel.
Rangel is known for his blunt speaking and candor, which are rarely meant to be taken personally. This tendency has grown as he has gotten older and less bothered by what others think of him. When asked how he would like to be remembered, he said, "Well, as Rhett Butler once said in Gone With the Wind, if I'm gone, quite frankly, I don't give a damn." In any case, he has fairly often made controversial remarks.
Some have been linked to his caustic criticism of George W. Bush's administration. For instance, his frustration over the slow federal response to Hurricane Katrina led him to compare, in September 2005, Bush to a 1960s symbol of white opposition to the African-American civil rights movement, stating: "George Bush is our Bull Connor." (Rangel's comparison was still being cited by political commentators several years later as an example of incendiary rhetoric.) This led at the time to a public exchange of unpleasantries with Vice President Dick Cheney, who said, "I'm frankly surprised at his comments. It almost struck me — they were so out of line, it almost struck me that there was some — Charlie was having some problem. Charlie is losing it, I guess." Rangel responded by saying, "The fact that he would make a crack at my age, he ought to be ashamed of himself ... He should look so good at seventy-five." Rangel again expressed his displeasure with the vice president in October 2006 – after Cheney had said that "Charlie doesn't understand how the economy works" – by opining that Cheney is "a real son of a bitch" who "enjoys a confrontation", and suggesting that Cheney required professional treatment for mental defects. The White House said that the vice president did not take Rangel's comments personally and had a "big hearty laugh" over them.
Rangel could sometimes find the other side; following the 2006 Hugo Chávez speech at the United Nations in which the Venezuelan leader implied that Bush was the devil, Rangel said, "I want President Chávez to please understand that even though many people in the United States are critical of our president that we resent the fact that he would come to the United States and criticize President Bush ... you don't come into my country, you don't come into my congressional district and you don't condemn my president."
Other remarks of Rangel's have revolved around Rangel's feelings about his home state and city, such as disparaging the state of Mississippi or suggesting that President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama might be unsafe if they visited New York. In both cases, apologies from the congressman followed. In certain instances, his remarks only exacerbated his existing problems. When his ethics issues were made public, Rangel remarked that Governor of Alaska and Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin was "disabled."
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