"As proof: Joe B. would plot to kill Gambino and Lucchese. Why would he see them as a threat if they were equals? If they were all equals how did Bonanno's get expelled? Over drugs?"

Bonanno´s expulsion had nothing to do with drugs and his alleged involvement in Magliocco´s plot to get rid of Gambino and Lucchese was resolved during a meeting in 1963.
Bonanno´s relationship with his cousin Magaddino had for a long time slowly deteriorated. Magaddino accused Bonanno for being power hungy and Bonanno suspected Magaddino for being jealous and secretly having a desire of controlling his Family in New York. They didn´t trust eachother anymore.

Gaspar DiGregorio, a Bonanno captain (and backed by Magaddino) placed a formal request with the Commission complaining about the election of Bill Bonanno for consigliere had been conducted in an unlawful manner. This snowballed into what later became the Bananas war. But Magaddino used DiGregorio for his purposes, while Gambino and Lucchese used Magaddino for their purposes.

Bonanno´s book goes into great detail in regards to this but the gist of it all is that Bonanno refused to come in for Commission meetings when called for. According to Bonanno, the Commission had lost its legitimacy due to a number of infractions. And this consquently led to Bonanno´s expulsion.