We May Have a Weiner in the Mayoral Race by Next Week

“I’m trying to gauge not only what’s right and what feels comfortable right this second, but I’m also thinking, How will I feel in a year or two years or five years? Is this the time that I should be doing it? And then there’s the other side of the coin, which is, am I still the same person who I thought would make a good mayor?”

These were the questions Anthony Weiner asked himself in a New York Times Magazine profile published last month that sparked widespread interest in the former Congressman’s future political aspirations. The hints came two years after the sexting scandal that brought down Weiner’s congressional career. And, since then, the politician from Queens has played his cards strategically.

His admissions on television interviews have painted him as a man begging to look past the scandal that rocked him and his family a year ago. He reactivated his Twitter. His hypothetical polling in the race has given him good reason to take himself seriously. So who cares about the Clintons? This is a candidate with the potential to change everything.

And, if indications are what we’re going on here, that shift might come as soon as next week.

Last night, Politico reported that Weiner has hired Danny Kadeem as his campaign manager. Kadeem, an operative from Mark Murphy’s failed congressional campaign in Staten Island and a former volunteer for Clinton 2008, is the latest in a string of hires made by Weiner. He’s also picked up a press secretary and is reportedly looking to interview others.

You wouldn’t hire a campaign manager just for the hell of it, right? (Well, Weiner does have a lot of money, but still …)

This morning, two sources from Weiner’s team told the Daily News that an announcement to run could come as soon as next week. Right now, the sources are apparently eyeing out the political powers that be to ask them whether or not a Weiner campaign would be welcomed. Given his popularity, some might not want a Democratic shake-up at this point in the race.

One must keep in mind that his entry would be very late, with only four months between now and September’s primaries. If Weiner came in now, he’d have work hard to catch up with Quinn and de Blasio. It’d have to be an extremely organized effort and fast.

Then again, Quinn and de Blasio do not have Weiner’s name recognition, which carries plenty of political power.