By Jada May
The rumor mill has it that Queens Congressman Greg Meeks will become the next chairman of the Queens Democratic Party, succeeding former Congressman Joe Crowley who stepped down recently as the party chief.
Meeks, an 11-term U.S. Representative, was first elected in 1998, representing the southern part of Queens. He has been known as a passionate supporter of the Affordable Care Act associated with former President Barack Obama.
Hank Sheinkopf, a Democratic Party consultant, said in a telephone interview that the Queens Democratic Party in Queens needs to be transformed so that more minorities benefit from the perks of political power, specifically judgeships and other opportunities for lawyers.
“The next Democratic county leader in Queens (should) try to bring some equality (to) who gets what out the courts,” Sheinkopf said. He pointed out that many African Americans, Latinos and Chinese in Queens feel left out when it comes to the court systems, which is controlled to a large extent by Democratic Party bosses.
“Blacks, Latinos, and Asians have not participated, so if real change is on the way that benefits these minority communities, it will be the reshuffling of who gets what . . .” Sheinkopf said.
Congressman Meeks is a senior member of the House of Financial Services Committee, serving as Chair of the Subcommittee on the Consumer Protection and Financial Institutions. He deals with matters pertaining to consumer credit and the stability of the banking system. Queens is one of the most diverse constituencies in the nation, but many have complained that the political leadership has not reflected that diversity.
Last year Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez defeated Joe Crowley in a surprising upset that changed local and national politics and give new life to progressives and leftists. It is unclear how Ocasio-Cortez would be reacting to Meeks as a successor to Crowley.
Attempts to reach Meeks for a reaction were not successful.
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