Playboy: Do you think they [the Democratic NYC mayoral candidates] were just full of s--- [for attacking stop-and-frisk]?
Ray Kelly: Absolutely. It just goes to show you what some politicians will do. They'll say or do anything to get elected. I know all these people. They all claimed to be friends of mine until their mayoral campaigns.
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[On the first days of the Bloomberg administration]
It wasn't a question of if New York was going to be attacked again by terrorists, it was when. It wasn't a question of if crime was going to go up, it was by how much. It was a pessimistic time. People were expecting more mayhem to break out, people were leaving the city.
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[On Michael Bloomberg]
A very intelligent person, and funny. He has tremendous compa**ion. I've gone with him to hospitals many times to visit police officers who have been wounded, or the families of officers who have been k**ed. I see a very sensitive and warm person, very touched in those situations.
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[On George Bush]
He was always friendly and funny. I was once in a car with him here in New York, and he said, ‘Kelly, you ever notice when I'm driving down the block, everybody's giving me the finger.' I said, ‘They're just saying you're No. 1, Mr. President.'
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[On his critics]
Notice what they never talk about — the lives being saved. During the past 11 years we had 7,363 fewer murders than we had in the 11 years before. Last year the homicide rate was the lowest in at least 50 years ... I know we're saving lives, and I know we're doing the right thing.
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[On the Associated Press story about NYPD spying on m**ms]
Those AP writers received a lot of leaks from disgruntled people in the NYPD who had retired or didn't get promoted. The AP said we categorized mosques as terrorist enterprises. That is simply not the case. We don't investigate buildings. We investigate people.
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[On stop-and-frisk]
You might read something snarky on Twitter. But I could take you right now up to 125th St. in Harlem and young men will stop me for my picture and give me a very favorable and friendly greeting. They understand that we're saving lives in their community, that they're the ones at risk.
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[On whether stop-and-frisk will tarnish his legacy]
I never think of the word legacy. It doesn't mean anything. You do the right thing, in my judgment, and things will work out. That's what drives me. I'm not looking for legacy or history books or whatever. I know what we've done here is save a significant number of lives.”
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[On retiring]
[Joking] I've told a lot of people I want to be a greeter at Walmart...I feel absolutely energized, not tired at all.