Randolph A. Credico (born 1954) is an American perennial political candidate, comedian, radio host, and activist, and the former director of the William Moses Kunstler Fund for Racial Justice.

Entertainment career

Credico was formerly active on the comedy circuit, and at the age of 27 made an appearance on ''

The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' was an American late-night talk show hosted by Johnny Carson on NBC, the third iteration of the ''Tonight Show'' franchise. The show debuted on October 1, 1962, and aired its final episode on May 22, ...

.'' During a later appearance he compared Ambassador

Jeane Kirkpatrick Jeane Duane Kirkpatrick (née Jordan; November 19, 1926December 7, 2006) was an American diplomat and political scientist who played a major role in the foreign policy of the Ronald Reagan administration. An ardent anticommunist, she was a lo ...

Eva Braun Eva Anna Paula Hitler (; 6 February 1912 – 30 April 1945) was a German photographer who was the longtime companion and briefly the wife of Adolf Hitler. Braun met Hitler in Munich when she was a 17-year-old assistant and model for his ...

; he was never invited on the show again. Credico was featured on the comedy album ''Strange Bedfellows: Comedy and Politics'' (1988) along with

Jimmy Tingle Jimmy Tingle (born April 9, 1955) is an American comic and occasional actor. Life and career Tingle was the American correspondent for David Frost’s show for PBS and the BBC, ''The Strategic Humor Initiative''. He completed two seasons with ...

Barry Crimmins Barry Francis Crimmins (July 3, 1953 – February 28, 2018) was an American stand-up comedian, political satirist, activist, author, Air America Radio writer and correspondent, and comedy club owner. Early life Crimmins was born in Kingston, New ...

, and

Will Durst Will Durst (born on March 18, 1952) is an American political satirist. He has been called a modern mix of Mort Sahl and Will Rogers. Early life Durst was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He went to 14 different schools before graduating from ...

. Credico spent four years in

Tulia, Texas Tulia is a city in, and county seat of, Swisher County, Texas, United States. The population was 4,967 at the 2010 census; in the 2018 census estimate, it had fallen to 4,682. The city is at the junction of U.S. Route 87 and Texas State Highway ...

, bringing national attention to a racially charged mass drug arrest. The Kunstler Fund produced an award-winning documentary on the subject entitled ''Tulia, Texas: Scenes from the drug war'', written, directed and edited by

Emily Kunstler Emily Kunstler (born June 24, 1978) is an American documentary filmmaker. Kunstler grew up in New York City's West Village neighborhood. Family Kunstler is the daughter of lawyer William Kunstler, famous for his historic civil rights and anti- ...

and Sarah Kunstler, the daughters of attorney

William Kunstler William Moses Kunstler (July 7, 1919 – September 4, 1995) was an American lawyer and civil rights activist, known for defending the Chicago Seven. Kunstler was an active member of the National Lawyers Guild, a board member of the American Civil ...

. Credico is the subject of the film ''Sixty Spins Around the Sun'', directed by comedian

Laura Kightlinger Laura Kightlinger (born June 13, 1964) is an American actress, comedian, and writer. She was a writer and consulting producer on ''Will & Grace'', while also occasionally appearing on the show as the character Nurse Sheila. She was also a write ...

. Credico produced, directed and wrote the radio program ''60 Mimics'', and is a frequent guest on '' Live from the State Capitol with Fred Dicker'', a political talk radio program on

WGDJ WGDJ (1300 AM) is a commercial radio station licensed to Rensselaer, New York and serving the Capital District. It airs a talk radio format and is owned and operated by Capital Broadcasting, Inc. The transmitter is off River Road (Route 9J) i ...

Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of New York, also the seat and largest city of Albany County. Albany is on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River, and about north of New York City ...

Political activism

At age 37, Credico began a periodic campaign against

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

state's

Rockefeller drug laws The Rockefeller Drug Laws are the statutes dealing with the sale and possession of " narcotic" drugs in the New York State Penal Law. The laws are named after Nelson Rockefeller, who was the state's governor at the time the laws were adopted. Ro ...

, which he claimed were too harsh, disproportionately affecting the poor and minorities. Small changes softening the stiffest penalties were passed in the state legislature, which Credico thought were insufficient. In 2010, Credico attended a meeting of the New York State Senate on

Open Government Open government is the governing doctrine which sustain that citizens have the right to access the documents and proceedings of the government to allow for effective public oversight. In its broadest construction, it opposes reason of state and ...

dressed as the Greek philosopher

Diogenes the Cynic Diogenes ( ; grc, Διογένης, Diogénēs ), also known as Diogenes the Cynic (, ) or Diogenes of Sinope, was a Greek philosopher and one of the founders of Cynicism (philosophy). He was born in Sinope, an Ionian colony on the Black Sea ...

, "seeking an honest politician." In the early 2010s, Credico became a

perennial candidate A perennial candidate is a political candidate who frequently runs for elected office and rarely, if ever, wins. Perennial candidates' existence lies in the fact that in some countries, there are no laws that limit a number of times a person can ...

for political office. Credico's most significant appearance in the 2016 election cycle was headlining a Republican fund-raiser in Cayuga County, New York.

2010 U.S. Senate election

Credico ran as a Democratic primary challenger against

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

Chuck Schumer Charles Ellis Schumer ( ; born November 23, 1950) is an American politician serving as Senate Majority Leader since January 20, 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, Schumer is in his fourth Senate term, having held his seat since 1999, and ...

in 2010. Credico submitted petitions in an effort to get onto the Democratic Party primary ballot. The party chairman claimed that Credico only submitted a few pages' worth of petitions to the state, far short of the 15,000 necessary, a charge Credico denied. Credico threatened to throw his support to Republican candidate Carl Paladino in the gubernatorial race. He made the ballot. Credico's campaign was supported by several actors and comedians, including ''

Seinfeld ''Seinfeld'' ( ) is an American television sitcom created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld. It aired on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998, over nine seasons and List of Seinfeld episodes, 180 episodes. It stars Seinfeld as Jerry Seinfeld ( ...

'' co-creator

Larry David Lawrence Gene David (born July 2, 1947) is an American comedian, writer, actor, and television producer. He and Jerry Seinfeld created the television sitcom ''Seinfeld'', on which David was head writer and executive producer for the first seve ...

Roseanne Barr Roseanne Cherrie Barr (born November 3, 1952) is an American actress, comedian, writer, producer, and former presidential candidate. Barr began her career in stand-up comedy before gaining acclaim in the television sitcom '' Roseanne'' (1988– ...

, and "Professor" Irwin Corey. He was nominated by the

Libertarian Party of New York The Libertarian Party of New York (LPNY) (also known as the Free Libertarian Party of New York), is the affiliate of the Libertarian Party in the U.S. state of New York. Due to changes in New York State election law in 2020, the Libertarian Party ...

and the nascent "Anti-Prohibition Party" of Kristin "Manhattan Madam" Davis, though those parties do not have permanent

ballot access Elections in the United States refers to the rules and procedures regulating the conditions under which a candidate, political party, or ballot measure is entitled to appear on voters' ballots. As the nation's election process is decentralized b ...

and were required to petition their way onto the ballot. Credico finished with 25,975 votes (0.6%), in last place among the four candidates; in most jurisdictions, Credico was only given one ballot line despite petitioning for two. Credico sued the

New York State Board of Elections The New York State Board of Elections is a bipartisan agency of the New York state government within the New York State Executive Department responsible for enforcement and administration of election-related laws. It also regulates campaign fina ...

under the

Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment The Equal Protection Clause is part of the first section of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. The clause, which took effect in 1868, provides "''nor shall any State ... deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equa ...

over this issue of ballot access. On June 19, 2013, the Federal District Court for the Eastern District of New York ruled in favor of Credico. The New York State Board of Elections did not appeal this decision.

2013 mayoral election

Credico ran for the Democratic nomination for

Mayor of New York City The mayor of New York City, officially Mayor of the City of New York, is head of the executive branch of the government of New York City and the chief executive of New York City. The mayor's office administers all city services, public property ...

in the 2013 election. He received 12,685 votes (2.0%). He also appeared on the ballot in the general election with 14 other candidates, on the Tax Wall Street line, receiving 654 votes (0.1%).

2014 gubernatorial election

Credico challenged incumbent Democratic Governor

Andrew Cuomo Andrew Mark Cuomo ( ; ; born December 6, 1957) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 56th governor of New York from 2011 to 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, he was elected to the same position that his father, Mario Cuo ...

in the 2014 Democratic primary. He came in third among three candidates, with 20,760 votes (3.6%).

Connection with Roger Stone and WikiLeaks

Arranged by Margaret Ratner Kunstler, a mutual friend who is

Julian Assange Julian Paul Assange ( ; Hawkins; born 3 July 1971) is an Australian editor, publisher, and activist who founded WikiLeaks in 2006. WikiLeaks came to international attention in 2010 when it published a series of leaks provided by U.S. Army inte ...

's attorney, Credico hosted Assange on Credico's August 25, 2016, radio show. On August 27, 2016, Credico sent a text message to

Roger Stone Roger Jason Stone (born Roger Joseph Stone Jr.; August 27, 1952) is an American conservative political consultant and lobbyist. Since the 1970s, Stone has worked on the campaigns of Republican politicians, including Richard Nixon, Ronald Rea ...

saying, "Julian Assange has kryptonite on Hillary." Credico notified Stone of subsequent releases by

WikiLeaks WikiLeaks () is an international Nonprofit organization, non-profit organisation that published news leaks and classified media provided by anonymous Source (journalism), sources. Julian Assange, an Australian Internet activism, Internet acti ...

of numerous emails stolen from

John Podesta John David Podesta Jr. (born January 8, 1949) is an American political consultant who has served as Senior Advisor to President Joe Biden for clean energy innovation and implementation since September 2022. Podesta previously served as White ...

and the Hillary Clinton campaign, a publication which initiated releases of information on October 7, 2016. In November 2017, Stone told the

House Intelligence Committee The United States House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI), also known as the House Intelligence Committee, is a committee of the United States House of Representatives, currently chaired by Adam Schiff. It is the primary committ ...

that Credico was his intermediary with Assange to obtain information on

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...

. Credico was then subpoenaed to appear before the committee, but asserted his Fifth Amendment right before the interview. The committee released him from appearing. By August 2018, special counsel Mueller had subpoenaed Credico to testify before a grand jury in September 2018. Credico complied with the request. ''

Mother Jones Mary G. Harris Jones (1837 (baptized) – November 30, 1930), known as Mother Jones from 1897 onwards, was an Irish-born American schoolteacher and dressmaker who became a prominent union organizer, community organizer, and activist. She h ...

'' reported that Credico had received text messages from Stone in January 2018 stating that Stone was seeking a presidential pardon for Assange. In January 2019, Stone was arrested by the

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and its principal Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement age ...

. His indictment claimed that Credico, referred to as "Person 2," was not Stone's sole contact with WikiLeaks ("Organization 1"). It also claimed that Credico was pressured by Stone to "stonewall" his testimony before Congress, and to "do a

Frank Pentangeli Frank Pentangeli is a fictional character from the 1974 film ''The Godfather Part II'', portrayed by Michael V. Gazzo. Gazzo was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his performance, which he lost to Robert De Niro, his co-star from ...

." Among other statements, Stone told Credico to "prepare to die," and that he would "take that dog away from you." Credico relies on a medical support dog. Credico subsequently testified against Stone during Stone's trial in November 2019.

References

External links

Kunstler Fund Page
* *
Randy Credico for Senate 2010 campaign site

Credico bio at Tobaccoissues.com

* ttp://www.credico2013.org/news Credico for Mayor
Credico for Governor website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Credico, Randy 1954 births Living people American male comedians 20th-century American comedians American impressionists (entertainers) American satirists American drug policy reform activists New York (state) Democrats New York (state) Libertarians 21st-century American politicians People from the Las Vegas Valley People from Pomona, California Politicians from New York City People associated with Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections New York (state) Republicans