He said "At first, I was a button." I inferred that, by II, he must have been Frankie's consigliere or maybe a caporegime, considering how close he stayed with Frankie.
Actually being a buton is a big deal....e.g. Carlo was never a button... the button had theo be someone a capo trusted and someone who could rise up through the rnmks
"Io sono stanco, sono imbigliato, and I wan't everyone here to know, there ain't gonna be no trouble from me..Don Corleone..Cicc' a port!"
