Michael “I was a Democrat before I was a Republican before I was an Independent” Bloomberg has quit the GOP heightening speculation that he is planning a run for the White House.
Too many Noo Yawkers in the race already if you ask me.
From what I hear from my NY friends, he is pretty well liked there, and appears to have been doing a good job while in office…He’s probably better than the majority of the canditates out there right now, but will end up like Perot, being the spoiler for one of the parties, probably republican. Not that I mind, I voted for Perot myself back in the day. More of a F you vote against the other canditates…
From what I hear from my NY friends, he is pretty well liked there, and appears to have been doing a good job while in office…He’s probably better than the majority of the canditates out there right now, but will end up like Perot, being the spoiler for one of the parties, probably republican. Not that I mind, I voted for Perot myself back in the day. More of a F you vote against the other canditates…
I think he’ll damage Giuliani on the R side taking away D crossover votes, but overall he’ll do more harm to the D nominee than anyone.
I can’t speak for the R side but I’m very happy with the talent on the D side and would be vote for 3 or 4 of them if my own preferred candidate doesn’t make it out of the primaries. I don’t see the need for a renegade Independent candidate…but then I don’t have to pick from the bunch of losers on the R side.
I don’t see the need for a renegade Independent candidate…]]
I disagree there. I’m all for a third party that can goe toe to toe with the two dinasours we have to choose from now. Our political system needs to be shaken up. We have a president with an all time low approval rating, and a congress rating that makes Bushe’s look good… People are fed up, just as they were back in the Perot days, and it is probably a great time for Bloomberg to come in. It will be interesting who he picks as a running mate… I think that he will end up hurting the Republican party more in the end though, which doesn’t bother me a bit. I like only one rep canditate so far, and two of the dems… I guess I’m in the camp looking for another option…
I disagree there. I’m all for a third party that can goe toe to toe with the two dinasours we have to choose from now
Unfortunately that will never happen under a plurality election system. If we had proportional representation you would see it, but no time soon here in the US of A.
It would be interesting to have Bloomberg run as an Independent, Al Gore run with the Green Party, and then whoever survives and becomes the Demo and Republican candidates. Talk about wide open.
Bloomberg is not an independent he’s an opportunist. He was a democrat when it suited him to be so, then a Republican what it seemed that would get him elected and now an “Independent” because he thinks that gives him the best shot.
The President is independent of the party whip regardless and can craft any policy he wants without clearing it through the party…what would make a big I Independent President so different? New boss same as the old boss.
Bloomberg is not an independent he’s an opportunist.
Oh, man. Exactly right. A little too kind, but exactly right. He’s a cipher.
I don’t think he’s a cipher. He’s always been a Democrat in most pursuits; he changed parties to Republican because the Democrats already had a candidate for the mayoral race when he ran. Unlike Giuliani, he didn’t gravitate towards more traditional Republican positions as time went on - his views didn’t change, only his putative party, which explains a lot with respect to his last landslide victory.
He’s the rare big name politician - he’s a technocrat, and seems far more interested in getting things done than kowtowing to particular parties or for that matter, public relations. Just pull up any of his press transcripts and you’ll see what i mean. That pretty much excludes him from the Presidency, as far as I can tell. There are too many idiots in this country who would be happy to deliberately miscontrue what he says and then shout from the rooftops for a guy like him to be successful. This is the guy who once said that if Jesus was a Jew, why does he have a Puerto Rican name? He didn’t say that as mayor, of course, but the employees at Bloomberg literally bound a whole book of his sayings. It only takes a knucklehead oppo research guy to create some sort of storyline about him and try and paint him as something he isn’t.
His only advantage is that nobody has yet written a “narrative” about him yet so there won’t be this pre-cut slant to news stories about him. That will change if he decides to run.
He’s been a breath of fresh air, especially in contrast to Herr Giuliani. Giuliani would take credit for the sun coming out. Bloomberg doesn’t even want to be on TV, and frankly has shown a real impatience with traditional retail politics. That said, he’s been remarkable in his ability to get support from the widest constituency of New Yorkers in recent memory. And besides, how many mayors do you know that do press conferences in shorts?
His only advantage is that nobody has yet written a “narrative” about him yet so there won’t be this pre-cut slant to news stories about him.
His only advantage right now, and the only advantage he’s ever had, and the only advantage he’s ever going to have, is his Big Fat Bank Account.
You mean other than his universally lauded stewardship of one of the biggest cities in the world, and perhaps one of the most ungovernable.
“Universally” is a bit much, I think.
Well, I think it’s a lot much, actually.
I really don’t care how popular he is in New York or how well he runs that city, I don’t want a billionaire President. Automatic DQ in my book. You lose perspective when you’re sitting on that sort of moolah. That said if it was him against that sleazebag Giuliani I’d vote for him twice.
I’d vote for him twice
I understand that is how most democrats get elected.
na na na na, you have it all wrong, Democrats are the ones who get the most votes and still lose elections to Republicans.
I don’t think his overwhelming wealth is an unreasonable concern, but the fact of the matter is that he’s a pretty regular guy, all things considered. His dad was a cobbler in Massachusetts, and all of his wealth is self-made. He still takes the subway to work, albeit with bodyguard, and his first act in office was to remove the offices at City Hall and replace it with a bullpen, including his own desk. He tends to walk a lot of places, as opposed to Giuiliani who was always racing around to photo ops in his Suburban with lights flashing, etc.
Earlier this week, he called 311, the city-wide problem/request line, to report some trash on the street. The operator had to ask how to spell his name. He told his mother the story, and her response was apparently something along the lines of “no matter how big you think you are…”
I’m not saying he’s a man of the people per se, but I don’t think a lot of candidates are, and in terms of preferences and attitudes, he’s a lot more down to earth, I suspect, than a lot of career politicians.
And better yet, he didn’t hire a police chief who was mobbed up, and based on the primary qualification that he was his driver.
I think if he ran against Giuliani today for NYC mayor, it wouldn’t be much of a race.