Radar sits down with New York City police commissioner Ray Kelly to talk law, order, and Mayor Bloomberg's presidential ambitions

Much has been reported on New York City police commissioner Raymond W. Kelly in his 40-plus years in public service, yet, to the chagrin of the tabloids, he has a way of diffusing anything that could end up as front-page gossip. (Don't ask him about dealing with New York tabloids in the wake of Heath Ledger's death, or anything to do with grilling Mary-Kate Olsen.) As captain, Kelly, 66, has effectively managed the department—improving relations with the city's black and Latino communities, sinking the crime rate to a record low, and creating the most advanced antiterrorism unit in police history. No Bernie Kerik–style ethic violations here. Gotham's reigning police chief keeps a squeaky-clean rap sheet, and is unfailingly on-message in press interviews.

As the only person to have held every single rank in the NYPD, Kelly joined the force as a police cadet in 1960 and graduated first in his class at the academy. A retired Marine commander who fought in Vietnam, the commish's resume includes top ranks in federal government posts: overseeing the Treasury Department, heading the Customs Service, and a four-year stint as vice president for the Americas of Interpol. Likewise, his personal affairs illustrate the same sense of duty he applies to his work life. Kelly lives in a modest one-bedroom apartment in Battery Park City with his high-school sweetheart, Veronica.

Often hailed as the second most powerful man in city government, the immaculately dressed crime fighter carries himself like a soldier and minds his polished image closely. Described by former boss Mayor David Dinkins as "a straight arrow," Kelly has a brusque, no-nonsense quality to him and a calm intensity even during play, as I discovered a couple years back as the top cop's Pictionary partner. (Full disclosure: His youngest son and I once dated and remain close friends.) Recently, I was reunited with the commissioner when he invited Radar to One Police Plaza for a chat about Giuliani and Bloomberg's political ambitions, the ever-present threat of nukes, and why, in New York City, big brother is always watching.

RADAR: Thanks for having me in your office today, sir. Wow ... Would that be Teddy Roosevelt's desk you're sitting behind?
RAY KELLY: Yeah, it's pretty messy right now. I apologize. Roosevelt was president of the board of police commissioners, which was the entity in existence before there was a single police commissioner. There was a lot of corruption here then, and he took on a lot of it. In 1901 the police department transitioned to one commissioner. That list over there [pointing to a plaque on the right wall of his office] is a list of all 41 of them. There's four Murphys on that list and two Kellys—I'm both Kellys.

Did you aspire to be like Roosevelt early on?
You know, I didn't really focus on him. I can't say I had any great role models. Maybe [John F.] Kennedy to a certain extent—he was somebody I thought about as a young person—but his time as president was short.

As head of the NYPD, you've improved race relations in the city, lowered the crime rate significantly, and revamped your department into a world-class counterterrorism operation. Sounds like a pretty impressive list of accomplishments. Any one you're particularly proud of?
Well, I don't know if it's so much about being proud, but I think we had a lot of challenges when this administration came in. You'll have to remember that we were here four months after the attack of September 11. It was still literally smoking at Ground Zero when this administration came in. We were still looking for bodies. I came to Ground Zero and carried out some of these bodies myself. There were a lot of dire predictions of what was going to happen to New York City. Crime was going to go way up because it had been reduced to irreducible lows. Homelessness was going to break out. All the while, the police force had to be reduced in size because of impending budget problems brought on by 9/11.

If you look back over that period of time, a lot of good things have happened. I would submit that we've had the best relations that this department has ever had with the community that we serve. We police the most diverse community in the world, and we have increased the diversity of the department in a significant way just on this administration's watch. I think we have hired almost 40 percent new people since Michael Bloomberg's administration came in.

We have also put in the most robust, comprehensive counterterrorism program of any city in the world. We've devoted 1,000 police each day to counterterrorism work. At the same time, we're down 5,000 police officers now from where we were on September 11, 2001. In essence, a 12 percent reduction in our resources and a reduction in headcount. Yet crime has been reduced. 2007 was by far the lowest year in recorded history of homicides in New York City. We had 496 homicides. In 1990, we had 2,245 homicides. The difference is truly remarkable.

How about the lack of federal funding from Homeland Security? Has that been a challenge for the NYPD in protecting New York City?
That's a separate issue. It is a challenge, but we've been able to do the things we think we need to do based on using city funds. We have spent anywhere from $200 to $230 million a year on our counterterrorism initiatives. The obligation falls on the mayor and to another extent others in the city government, because we have to balance our budget every year. We're getting the money to do what I believe we need to do to protect the city. Would we like more money from Washington? Yes. Do we need more money? Yes. But the money has been produced by New York City to allow us to do this—at the expense of other city services.

Such as?
Difficult to say, but it's coming out of the city budget.