Like the Republicans in California, the Gambinos in New York have an up-and-coming mover and shaker named Arnold who is poised to move into the top spot. 

And like the Republican gubernatorial candidate, the Gambino gangster has a couple of fitting mob nicknames and has earned a tough guy reputation through violent activities and a longtime association with a banned but popular illegal substance.

There are some major differences, however, in the respective illicit associations of Arnold (The Terminator) Schwarzenegger and Arnold (Zeke) Squitieri. (right)

Schwarzenegger made his fortune in violence-packed, make-believe action flicks after admittedly using illegal steroids to bulk up for his roles in the 1970s. Squitieri, 67, made his fortune in the 1980s – killing real people for John Gotti and dealing heroin with Gotti’s brother Gene, according to court records.

Currently the underboss of the family, Squitieri is called “Zeke” by his mob cronies and “Animal” by many authorities. Like California’s Arnold, Squitieri has been flexing his muscles and, sources say, may be launching his own recall drive to replace imprisoned family boss Peter Gotti, convicted of racketeering earlier this year.

“Squitieri has let it be known that he’s both willing to handle the job and

capable of doing it,” said one law enforcement official. 

After serving 11 years for drugs, Squitieri was released from federal prison in 1999, earning a quick promotion to capo from the then-imprisoned Dapper Don, who brought his buddy Zeke into the family soon after taking over following the 1985 killing of Paul Castellano.

“John always liked Squitieri,” said another source. “They drank together; they played cards together.” According to court records, Squitieri killed Gambino soldier Liborio (Louie) Milito, one of five murders Gotti was found guilty of ordering.

And, sources say, Squitieri is no fan of Peter Gotti, (left) who faces 20 years for a labor racketeering conviction in Brooklyn Federal Court and is looking for a lawyer to represent him on racketeering and murder conspiracy charges in Manhattan.

Despite federal parole restrictions, sources say, Squitieri, of Englewood Cliffs, N.J., has family friends in Queens and The Bronx that may support a push to oust Peter Gotti. Among them is Peter’s brother Gene, a former Squitieri drug partner who has belittled Peter as a poor choice to lead the Gambino family.

“Squitieri has earned a reputation as a stand up guy,” said one law enforcement source, adding: “He’s tough, he’s shrewd and he’s like a shadow.”

An apparently erroneous report in The New York Post about the leadership of the Gambino family has caused lots of anguish for two top gangsters – consigliere Joseph (JoJo) Corozzo and capo Anthony (Sonny) Ciccone (right), Gang Land has learned. 

The flawed account – that turncoat capo Michael (Mikey Scars) DiLeonardo had fingered Corozzo as the acting family boss during the time frame that Peter Gotti was found guilty of playing that role – triggered a series of letters by the defense and prosecution in the waterfront racketeering case of Gotti & Company.

Since Ciccone was convicted of passing extortion payoffs to family boss Gotti, Ciccone’s lawyer George Santangelo felt the revelation, if true, was a way to overturn his client’s conviction on several grounds, all based on the premise that the feds had gotten it wrong.

In a carefully worded letter that did not mention Corozzo – it’s not proper mob protocol for the lawyer of one gangster to accuse another of a crime – Santangelo asked the feds if the report in the “news media” was accurate, and if so, to supply him the documentation.

In a return letter to the lawyer, assistant U.S. attorneys Andrew Genser and Katya Jestin wrote that The Post had gotten it wrong: “Neither this office nor the FBI has

received information which contradicts …. the position of Peter Gotti in the Gambino crime family.”

Both law enforcement AND underworld sources have confirmed that the Corozzo claim was dead wrong. The paper has yet to correct the claim which was reported first on Sunday Aug. 24, and again last week.

Meanwhile, sources say, Corozzo (left) is furious that The Post dragged him into a case that even the feds say he had nothing to do with. He is also allegedly angry at Santangelo and Ciccone for making an issue of it, when they knew, or should have known, that the story was hogwash.

In the future, before The Post prints “exclusive news” about organized crime, perhaps the paper should make sure the information has been mentioned previously in Gang Land, or another reputable source, as The Post has done on many prior occasions.

During the 1980s, Carmelo (Carlo) Profeta (right) toiled for a murderous Gambino family crew that dealt drugs, stole cars and killed some 75 people in the New York metro area, crimes that led to a 1989 racketeering conviction and eight years in federal prison for him.

Following his release, Profeta joined the Lucheses and, in recent years, he and soldier John (Johnny V) Vanasco have been through thick and thin together.

Early last year, Profeta, 60, and Vanasco, 61, teamed up to shake down the owner of a fuel oil company, threatening him with bodily injury and worse if he didn’t acquiesce to their demands. Fittingly, last September, they were indicted together by a federal grand jury in Manhattan on extortion charges. 

In December, a federal grand jury in Brooklyn raised the stakes, hitting the mobsters with racketeering and extortion in the takeover of a popular Freeport  L. I. eatery and nightclub that raked in $7000-to-$10,000 a night for the crime family.

Along with three other wiseguys and a team of associates, “Profeta and Vanasco … took over the management of Hudson & McCoy” and ousted former John Gotti pal Lewis Kasman from the place, according to court papers.

In May of last year, when Vanasco (left) beat up a patron at a Suffolk County restaurant and Johnny V feared that rival gangsters would trash the place, Carlo was part of “the show of force” that gathered there to meet the challenge if one occurred.

Last week, they pleaded guilty in what seems like a pretty sweet package deal – 41 to 51 months for Carlo and 51 to 63 months for Johnny V – that lawyers Joel Winograd and Charles Carnesi worked out with assistant Manhattan U.S.attorney Eric Bruce and Brooklyn federal prosecutors Thomas Seigel and Nicolas Bourtin.