A testy Mayor de Blasio on Monday tried to shut down questions about the controversial appointment of Rachel Noerdlinger — despite revelations she omitted crucial information about her personal life during a background review.
“Case closed,” de Blasio declared as he fended off inquiries during a press conference on Staten Island.
Hizzoner staunchly defended the selection of Noerdlinger, who rakes in $170,000 a year as First Lady Chirlane McCray’s chief-of-staff, insisting that questions about her killer boyfriend and her son are “going too far.”
“I think this whole notion — with all due respect to all of you and the job you have to do — this notion of ‘Let’s talk about people’s boyfriends, let’s talk about their children.’ It’s just going too far,” he said.
It’s the first time that the mayor was asked in public about his decision to keep Noerdlinger, a former aide to the Rev. Al Sharpton, after the Department of Investigation found that she failed to disclose in a job questionnaire that she lived in Edgewater, NJ, with her convicted-killer ex-con beau, Hassaun McFarlane.
De Blasio also fielded questions about The Post’s report that she obtained a New York-residency waiver by claiming that her son, Khari, 19, had to be near his doctors in New Jersey after he was in two car accidents in 2012.
The Post discovered that Khari was fit enough to play football the following year for a New Jersey high school.
“She got the waiver for a variety of reasons, and it was done appropriately,” de Blasio said. “This does not have a lot to do with public service.”
After The Post informed the mayor that Noerdlinger was granted the waiver because of her son’s medical condition, he said, “The point is that she’s a good public servant, and that’s what I respect.”
The mayor insisted, “We’ve covered this issue very clearly . . . DOI did a review. There was no effort to deceive. I have absolute faith in Rachel and her ability to serve the people of this city. Case closed!”
A spokesman for the mayor also defended the residency waiver on its merits.
“The waiver was sought based on the physical — as well as mental — challenges faced by her son after two serious accidents. This included not just physical therapy, but also . . . other social supports,” said City Hall spokesman Phil Walzak.
