Disgraced former New York representative Anthony Weiner — who in 2017 was sentenced to 21 months in a federal prison for transferring obscene material to a 15-year-old girl — has teamed up with former Republican mayoral candidate and Guardian Angels founder Curtis Sliwa for a radio show.
The show, titled "The Left vs. The Right," will air on WABC-AM and debut at 2 p.m. local time on Saturday.
What are the details?
Weiner, 57, told the New York Post's Page Six that just because he's working the radio show doesn't mean he's "going back into public life."
"I am doing a radio show with a friend of mine,” he told the outlet. "It's not a conscious decision. I have a face for radio, but I don't know if I have a place in radio as a career. Sometimes it is what it is."
Sliwa, 67, told the outlet that he believes Weiner being on the radio can help him "become a role model for other people who have had major issues in their life."
Page Six reported that the new show will focus on issues that impact New York City and will "give equal time to the conservative and liberal perspectives."
“There’s a lot of water under the bridge,” Weiner admitted and said he's not afraid to answer questions about his past. “There have been a lot of opportunities for me to process a lot of stuff. A lot of time has passed. I don’t think I would be going on the radio if I didn’t think Curtis or listeners would ask tough questions.”
He continued, "One thing I have learned through this experience: Everybody has tough things. It’s a source of commonality for a lot of people in New York. One of the things that both Curtis and I were clear on, there wasn’t going to be any subject we would avoid for want of embarrassment.”
Sliwa added that Weiner has served his time and is "entitled to a second chance."
"He is trying to get his life back," he explained. "We don’t want to just exile these people. We want to give them redemption, but they have to earn their way back. I think being on the radio he can become a role model for other people who have had major issues in their life.”
Both Weiner and Sliwa are optimistic about being able to diplomatically discuss the biggest issues facing the city, including the rising crime rates.
“When it comes to knowledge of New York and how things operate and how bad things are now, between the both of us you will get information and we will balance one another,” Sliwa added “You get the yin-and-yang. There are very few places where you get two points of view anymore. The listeners can make their own decisions based on all the information we are sharing with them.”
Weiner concluded, “I grew up here, I saw the high-crime era of the ’90s. I think there is gloom-and-doom hysteria that has taken hold now and I think the city’s best days are ahead of it. We have issues, there is no doubt about it. Our government is in good hands, people are strong, and the economy is diverse.”