I haven't committed a crime. What I did was fail to comply with the law.

In 1975 I was among a group of blacks who formed the Black Americans in Support of Israel Committee.

Some of us claim that New York City is the capital of the country, indeed the capital of the world. Now, that may be a bit much for those who don't come from New York, but clearly we are an important city for reasons of our cultural advantages.

As a matter of fact, even when I finished law school, I had no notion of public service then.

So it's a mistake for someone to think that they bailed New York out. They did assist us, for which we are grateful, but it's a mistake to say we bailed New York out by giving them a grant of money to help those poor people who throw it away on welfare.

The art and culture that is New York, communications, finance, all these things help make up New York. The rest of the country should be happy that we are what we are.

The people really are what make New York City great.