Week in Review: November 15-19

Charlie Rangel asked for postponement of his trial moments before it began, to give him time to raise money to get a lawyer. "I object to the proceeding," Rangel told the adjucatory subcommittee. "With all due respect, since I don't have counsel to advise me, I'm going to have to excuse myself from these proceedings." The trial continued, he left and got soup.

The Daily News published "Spider-Man, You're Hired" a custom comic book collaboration between the city and Marvel Comics to increase awareness about Workforce1 career centers. "What if I told you I know a service where you can meet with a career advisor who can help you?" Mayor Bloomberg asks Peter Parker.

Former Mayors Koch, Dinkins and Giuliani wrote a letter in support of Mayor Michael Bloomberg's controversial chancellor appointment Cathie Black, and posted it on the DOE website. "It is clear that Ms. Black certainly has an extraordinary track record of managing large organizations through trying circumstances. We believe that Mayor Bloomberg's faith in Ms. Black's competence and her proven history as an outstanding executive is, in and of itself, reason enough to grant the necessary waiver."

The latest installment in what we will remember as the best Public Health crisis ever: Brooklyn Assemblyman Felix Ortiz tried Four Loko on camera and ralphed.

New congressman Andy Harris made an early, ironic name for himself by throwing a fit at the freshman orientation session when he discovered that it would take a month for his Congressional, government-sponsored health care to kick in. "Harris then asked if he could purchase insurance from the government to cover the gap,' said a congressional aide who witnessed the outburst and who was struck by the similarity to Harris's request and the public option he denounced as a gateway to socialized medicine.

Andrew Cuomo wrangled $25 Million dollars from Exxon Mobil to clean up the oilspill at Superfund site Newton Creek.

Andrew Cuomo filed a lawsuit against Steve Rattner for allegedly providing kickbacks to secure more than a hundred million dollars in investments from the New York State pension fund. He seeks $26 million dollars and a lifetime ban from the securities industry. By contrast, the S.E.C. and Rattner settled for $6.2 million and a 2-year ban.