Would The Outfit have any contact with NY these days?
I know they don't have to business wise, because since they cleaned up the Teamsters and the other national unions, there is no need for them to meet, but don't they have to meet to discuss LCN rules and regulations. Or doesn't the Outfit consider themselves Cosa Nostra? I know from reading books about NY/Jersey/Philly mobsters that they constantly refer to themselves as Cosa Nostra and from reading about Chicago and watching docs I don't get that feeling..
During the Family Secrets trial Frank Calabrese Snr was taped lambasting Shorty LaMantia for the way he introduced someone to a New York mobster in prison - he referred to them as 'a friend of ours' when LaMantia was not a made guy. Calabrese Snr was not happy and made LaMantia fully aware of it.
Apparently there were also tapes made during the investigation of Lombardo bemoaning that New York mobsters had made inroads in some of the gambling rackets in Chicago, don't know if it got aired.
When Frankie Schweihs was convicted of extortion in the early 90s he was recorded boasting that no-one from New York dared mess with anyone in Chicago. The tapes were then replayed during initial stages of the Family Secrets trial. He was collecting payments from Red Wemette, adult book store owner and FBI informant, at the time.
