In what may be the oddest coupling in radio history, former Democratic Congressman Anthony Weiner will be co-hosting a New York show with Guardian Angels founder and former Republican mayoral candidate Curtis Sliwa.
The ex-pol — who was sidelined by a number of sexting scandals, and sentenced to 21 months in federal prison for transferring obscene material to a minor — will co-host a new opinion program called “The Left vs The Right” on John Catsimatidis ‘ 77 WABC Radio starting this weekend.
But Weiner says the new high-profile gig isn’t part of a larger comeback plan as a media maven.
“I am not going back into public life, I am doing a radio show with a friend of mine,” he exclusively tells Page Six. He added, “It’s not a conscious decision,” before joking to us, “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.”
We’re told the new show — which will focus on topics affecting New York City — will give equal time to the conservative and liberal perspectives, and will also not shy away from Weiner’s past.
“There’s a lot of water under the bridge,” Weiner tells us. “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.”
Weiner also seems to see the move as a way to connect with people.
“One thing I have learned through this experience: Everybody has tough things,” he says. “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.”
But Weiner cautions, “people shouldn’t expect two hours every Saturday of me doing mea culpas. I have many things I regret and many things I am proud of.”
Weiner — who was most recently CEO at Brooklyn-based recycled glass countertop company IceStone before stepping down in August when it became a worker-owned cooperative — says he hasn’t been in hiding since getting out of prison in 2019.
He further tells us he’s proud of his ex-wife Huma Abedin’s book “Both/And: A Life in Many Worlds,” which delved into her time as Hillary Clinton’s right-hand woman — and her marriage to Weiner.
“I walk the streets every day and often it’s nice, sometimes it’s not,” he tells us. “I haven’t lived a life of trying to be hermetically sealed. My wife recently came out with a book and I am very proud of her.”
When asked if he was concerned about potential audience pushback, Weiner says he doesn’t pay attention to social media.
“I’m not on Twitter and not on Instagram,” he says. “I’m not really involved in that world anymore … I’m constantly concerned about issues of mental health and keeping myself on the beam and being a good father to my son and things like that. You develop a thick skin when you have been in politics and served time in prison.”
His new co-host, Sliwa, tells us, “People are entitled to a second chance. He is trying to get his life back … 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.”
Another source of commonality: Both Weiner and Sliwa are native New Yorkers who’ve run for mayor.
“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 says. “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 says he is still “bullish” on the city. “I grew up here, I saw the high-crime era of the ’90s,” he says. “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.”
The show debuts this Saturday from 2 pm – 4 pm on 77 WABC Radio.
