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because, you know, we're both very active on a whole host of things -- she'll always speak to me through a third person. She's talking out there... I may be over here, but she's talking away from me and it has to be repeated by some third person in the room. Bella: “I don't think we should do that. That suggestion [something I made maybe] is not one I'm in accord with.” And whoever is in the room will say, “Well, Ed, what do you think of...?” (laughs) You know, it's really very funny.

Another funny thing happened. After this latest imbroglio, I'm walking into the Longworth building where I have my office, and where Bella has her office in Washington, and I see Martin Abzug, who I really like. Martin Abzug is being stopped by a cop who stops everybody to see what he has in his brief case. And I yell across the hall: “Let that man go. He belongs to Congresswoman Abzug.” So Martin sees me and he says, “Hi, Ed, how are you?” and I say, “How are you, Martin?” because I like him. And then he laughs and he says, “Oh, my God, what this will cost me when she hears I talked to you!” (laughs) But that's the nature of the relationship.

Now, she's not well liked by the members of the delegation. Shirley Chisholm hates her, but Shirley Chisholm won't say it publicly. Shirley Chisholm will say to me, “Oh, that woman has no class.” Or some demeaning statement of that kind. “That woman is so vulgar.” That would be what Shirley would say. If you talk