Q. So what kind of summer have you been having?

A. Wild. To some degree it’s been exactly what I expected. To some degree, it’s been the most surreal experience of my life. The great unknown when I got into the race was whether I’d ever get the chance to talk to the citizens about the issues. I knew what the guys who write the wood (front page headlines) would want to talk about. What the late night comics would want to talk about. And I launched this campaign on a gamble that I’d get to talk to the citizens about what they wanted to talk about. And the stuff I wanted to do as mayor. What immediately became clear, immediately, was that there was a disconnect. Citizens care about their own lives. They want to talk about what will make their lives better. They were not interested in all the other stuff in my personal life…

Q. Did you think the second shoe dropping would cause so much uproar?

A. I knew it would be bad. It’s too easy this stuff. The puns. The jokes. The institutional frustration that I was doing well in the race. Look at the tenor of the editorials before this second wave. Shaking the voters by the lapels and saying “Why are you voting for this Weiner guy?” They couldn’t understand that my message was reaching people. So now that they have something on which to hang their righteousness. I guess I’m not surprised. I’ve been in this business too long not to know it would be bad. It’s not like some outside force did this to me. I did this to myself. This is my private life that is now public. Sometimes that happens when you’re in public life. Voters know more about me than they know about any of the candidates. If the press wants to continue to talk about this stuff it will make it harder for me. But if I wanted it to be easy I wouldn’t be running for mayor.

Anthony Weiner has lost his mind.

At least, that’s the conclusion most Democrats have come to…

He recently suggested, for example, that the latest sexting revelations, and whatever else may be coming, will actually benefit him in the race and once he gets to City Hall. “I’m going to be a successful mayor because of it,” he told the Staten Island Advance, “because it’s going to give me a level of independence.”…

“He looks a guy who’s at the deep end of the pool and he really doesn’t know how to swim. For a guy whose whole reputation was how smart a political guy he was, how good he was on camera, how quick witted he was, this is part of the process of unraveling,” said Bill Cunningham, a former communications director for Mayor Mike Bloomberg…

“He’s a guy who’s run amok. He’s in desperate shape, and he’s just trying to find a way to salvage a public career — not only a political career,” he said. “He looks like a punch-drunk guy trying to survive the fight, and he’s just wobbling around the ring, and getting hit with every punch from all directions.”

The ranks of those finding Weiner offensive seem to cross party lines, gender, ethnicity, and religion. And voters, who were told as he launched his campaign that this chapter of bad behavior was behind him, are having none of it…

Weiner’s fate seems sealed at this point (the good people who handle tech support at Gracie Mansion can breathe a bit easier). Redemption looks to be out of reach, obstinance and delusion are the orders of the day. The cable psychoanalyzing of this public figure is wearing thin, even on the talking heads themselves, who are looking to fill air time during the lazy summer months. (How long, by the way, before Weiner gets his own chat fest?)…

What remains intriguing in this mess of indecency and indiscretion is whether the stink rubs off on his wife, Huma Abedin, who before doing her version of Tammy Wynette last week was one of the most respected and influential operatives in Democratic politics. Now folks are questioning her morals and motivations.

In his media scrum downstairs, a weary Mr. Weiner tried and failed to engage the media in any talk about housing issues or the Bronx. Meanwhile, the remaining candidates–a pack of underdogs that included Rev. Erick Salgado, former Councilman Sal Albanese and former Bronx Borough President Adolfo Carrión Jr.–lobbed shots at Mr. Weiner and the media in their absence.

According to some audience members, as the reporters cleared out, Mr. Carrión shouted, “Shame on you!” One local reverend, speaking at the end of the forum, called the media a “disgrace.” And the predominately black and Latino audience, less fascinated by the scandalous Weiner campaign, was similarly perturbed by Mr. Weiner’s ability to clear the room.

“I was very upset because you know, he [Mr. Weiner] can get on KISS F.M. and talk about certain things, but then to rush out–and the media, to follow him like that, it was ridiculous,” groused a Bronx woman who declined to give her name. “I was really shocked to see the media run out like that and that’s not fair coverage, for them to do that.”

Even the Clintons wouldn’t be able to convince Anthony Weiner to drop out of the New York mayoral race.

The hyper-sextual candidate — whose poll standing is plunging — made it clear Monday night that he’s indifferent to the opinion of Bill and Hillary Clinton, who have kept their distance from his campaign.

“I am not terribly interested in what people who are not voters in the city of New York have to say,” Weiner said in response to a question about whether the former president and secretary of state, who live in Westchester County, could influence his decision.

The feelings about Weiner in Clinton-land are unequivocal, according to someone close to the couple: “Everyone’s done with him.” Multiple sources familiar with the Clintons’ thinking said they would be delighted for him to disappear from public consumption. (The fact that Weiner — who began the campaign, dropping Bill Clinton’s name repeatedly — declared at a mayoral forum Monday night that he wasn’t overly concerned with the opinion of non-New York City residents like the Clintons probably didn’t help)…

Clinton insiders and allies insist they don’t believe Abedin has become a liability for the former secretary of state, who is widely known to be considering a 2016 presidential bid. And a number of prominent Democrats insist publicly that they don’t see a problem for Clinton. To wit, Abedin was in Washington on Monday, the day Hillary Clinton had lunch with President Barack Obama, and was seen dining with longtime friend and Clinton spokesman Philippe Reines…

“There’s anger with Anthony, but that anger is because we love and admire Huma,” said Democratic strategist and longtime Bill Clinton adviser Paul Begala. “I respect Huma’s decision and admire it to stick it out and make the marriage work and such. But still, you can’t deny that people who love and admire her will be … furious with what he has put her through…

“It’s not a problem now,” said one senior Democrat. “But every day that this goes on brings increasing risk for the Clintons.”

Huma Abedin, the wife of former Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-N.Y.), dined Monday night with Hillary Clinton’s spokesman Philippe Reines.

The two were spotted at Meiwah, a Chinese restaurant in Washington, D.C., according to reports.

The public meeting comes amid speculation that former President Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton are concerned about the fallout as Weiner struggles to regain a foothold in the race for New York City mayor after new revelations emerged about his lewd online behavior.

“Do you think he maybe actually thinks this is not cheating?” Robyn asked.

“Maybe, but then again maybe not because I don’t think he really gives a s—, to be honest” Leathers said. “I think he’s like I’m Anthony Weiner, I’m gonna do, I’m Carlos Danger, I’m gonna do whatever I want. Who cares about my wife? She’ll forgive me no matter what.”…

“I think I am a little bit angry with him, just because, you know, he lured me into this situation and then he didn’t want to own up to it,” Leathers said. “What pissed me off was him on the campaign trail saying ‘Oh, I’ve changed,” and trying act like he has this perfect marriage now and everything’s just peachy … I was like, bullsh–, I’m proof that you have not changed.”

Via WaPo.

“This isn’t about me. This is about helping New Yorkers.”