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Michael Rubens Bloomberg (born February 14, 1942) is an American businessman and philanthropist, and the current Mayor of New York City. He was listed as the eighth-richest American, with a net worth of US$30 Billion, in the Forbes 400 on Sept. 17, 2008, making him the richest resident of New York City, ahead of David H. Koch. He is the founder and 88% owner of Bloomberg L.P., a financial software services company.
A lifelong Democrat before seeking elective office, Bloomberg switched his registration in 2001 and ran for mayor as a Republican, winning the election that year and a second term in 2005.
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Encyclopedia
Michael Rubens Bloomberg (born February 14, 1942) is an American businessman and philanthropist, and the current Mayor of New York City. He was listed as the eighth-richest American, with a net worth of US$30 Billion, in the Forbes 400 on Sept. 17, 2008, making him the richest resident of New York City, ahead of David H. Koch. He is the founder and 88% owner of Bloomberg L.P., a financial software services company.
A lifelong Democrat before seeking elective office, Bloomberg switched his registration in 2001 and ran for mayor as a Republican, winning the election that year and a second term in 2005. He was frequently mentioned as a possible independent candidate for the 2008 presidential election and fueled that speculation when he left the Republican Party in June 2007 to become an independent. There was also speculation that he would run as a vice-presidential candidate. Bloomberg did not, however, seek the presidency nor was he selected as a running mate by any of the presidential candidates.
In the fall of 2008, Bloomberg successfully campaigned for an amendment to New York City's term limits law, in order to allow him to run for a third term in 2009. On September 30, 2008, reports emerged that Bloomberg was seeking to amend the law, and on October 2, 2008, he announced plans to request the removal or extension of term limits for current office holders. On October 23, 2008 the New York City Council voted 29-22 in favor of extending the term limit to three consecutive four-year terms, thus allowing both Bloomberg and council members in their second terms to run for office again. During the amendment campaign, Bloomberg's administration requested the support of certain nonprofit groups, which attracted some criticism because these groups have received large donations from the mayor in the past.
Personal life
Michael Bloomberg was born to a Jewish family of Russian and Polish descent at St. Elizabeth's Hospital, in the Brighton neighborhood of Boston on February 14, 1942. His father, William Henry Bloomberg, born in Chelsea, Massachusetts on January 19, 1906, was the son of Alexander "Elick" Bloomberg, a Russian Jewish immigrant and a real estate agent. His mother, Charlotte Bloomberg (nee Rubens), born January 2, 1909 in New Jersey, was the daughter of a Russian immigrant and a New Jersey-born mother. She is now a centenarian and reportedly in very good health. The family lived in the Boston neighborhood of Allston until Bloomberg was two years old; they subsequently moved to Atherton Road, in Brookline, Massachusetts for the next two years, and finally settled in Medford, a Boston suburb, where Bloomberg lived until after he graduated from college. His younger sister, Marjorie Tiven, is Commissioner of the New York City Commission for the United Nations, Consular Corps and Protocol.
Bloomberg attended Johns Hopkins University, where he joined Phi Kappa Psi, and graduated in 1964 with a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree in electrical engineering. Later he received his MBA degree from Harvard Business School.
Bloomberg married Yorkshire-born Susan Brown in 1975. Their marriage produced two daughters, Emma (b. ca. 1979) and Georgina (b. 1983), who were featured on Born Rich, a documentary film about the children of the extremely wealthy. Georgina was romantically linked in 2007 with Cian O'Connor, the Irish showjumper whose 2004 Olympic gold medal was withdrawn.
Bloomberg divorced Brown in 1993 following 18 years of marriage. He is currently romantically linked with former New York state banking superintendent Diana Taylor.
Business career
Bloomberg became a general partner at Salomon Brothers, where he headed equity trading and later, systems development. In 1981, he left Salomon Brothers and was given a $10 million severance package . Using this money, Bloomberg went on to set up a company named Innovative Market Systems. In 1982, Merrill Lynch became the new company's first customer, installing 20 of the company's Market Master terminals and investing $30 million in the company. The company was renamed Bloomberg L.P. in 1986. By 1987, it had installed 5,000 terminals. Within a few years, ancillary products including Bloomberg Tradebook (a trading platform), the Bloomberg Messaging Service, and the Bloomberg newswire were launched. As of 2009, the company had more than 250,000 terminals worldwide. His company also has a radio network, which currently has its flagship station as 1130 WBBR-AM in New York City. He left the position of CEO to pursue a political career as the mayor of New York. He was replaced as CEO by Lex Fenwick. The company is now led by president Dan Doctoroff, a former deputy mayor under Bloomberg.
Forbes reports his net worth at US$20 billion as of 2008, ranking him eighth among American billionaires. Bloomberg is among the world's richest people. He was ranked 34th by Forbes magazine
in its list of in September 2006. He was ranked 142nd in its list of the world's billionaires in March 2007.
As mayor of New York, Bloomberg declines to receive a city salary, accepting remuneration of $1.00 annually for his services. He maintains a public listing in the New York City phone directory, residing not in Gracie Mansion, the official mayor's mansion, but instead at his own home on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, at 17 East 79th Street between Madison and Fifth Avenues. (Bloomberg owns additional homes in Britain and in the British territory of Bermuda.)
Bloomberg is, by his own accounts at least, a frequent rider of the New York City Subway, particularly in the commute from his 79th Street home to his office at City Hall. An August 2007 story in The New York Times contradicted this notion, suggesting instead that he often was chauffeured by two New York Police Department-owned SUVs to an express train station to avoid having to change from the local to the express trains on the Lexington Avenue line.
He has written an autobiography with help from a ghost writer, called Bloomberg by Bloomberg (1997, ISBN 0-471-15545-4).
Philanthropy
Bloomberg's personal net worth, in addition to aiding his political career, has allowed him to engage in substantial philanthropic endeavors, including the donation of over US $300 million to Johns Hopkins University, where he served as the chairman of the board from 1996 to 2002.
According to the Chronicle of Philanthropy, Mike Bloomberg donated and/or pledged $138 million in 2004, $144 million in 2005, $165 million in 2006, and $205 million in 2007, making him the seventh largest individual contributor to philanthropy in the United States for 2007.
2006 recipients include the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School for Public Health; World Lung Foundation and the World Health Organization. In 2008, Bloomberg's website announced a combined donation of $500 million with Bill Gates to help governments in developing countries with tobacco control.
According to The New York Times, Bloomberg has been an “anonymous donor” to the Carnegie Corporation each year for the last several years, with gifts ranging from $5-$20 million. The Carnegie Corporation has distributed this contribution to hundreds of New York City organizations ranging from the Dance Theater of Harlem to Gilda’s Club, a not-for-profit organization that provides support to people and families living with cancer.
In 1996, Bloomberg endowed the William Henry Bloomberg Professorship at Harvard with a $3 million gift in honor of his father, who died in 1963, saying, "throughout his life, he recognized the importance of reaching out to the nonprofit sector to help better the welfare of the entire community." He also endowed his hometown synagogue, Temple Shalom, which was renamed for his parents as the William and Charlotte Bloomberg Jewish Community Center of Medford.
Awards and honors
At the 2007 Commencement exercises for Tufts University, Bloomberg delivered the commencement address at graduation. He was awarded an honorary degree in Public Service from the university. Likewise, Bloomberg delivered the 2007 commencement address at Bard College, where he was also awarded an honorary degree of Doctor of Humane Letters. In February 2003, he received the "Award for Distinguished Leadership in Global Capital Markets" from the Yale School of Management. He was named the 39th most influential person in the world in the 2007 Time 100. In September, 2007, Vanity Fair ranked him #9 in its "Vanity Fair 100: The 2007 New Establishment."
In May 2008, he was awarded an honorary doctorate of laws by the University of Pennsylvania, where he delivered the commencement speech to the class of 2008. Bloomberg will also deliver the commencement address to the class of 2008 at Barnard College, Columbia University after receiving the Barnard Medal of Distinction, the College's highest honor.
Harassment controversies
Bloomberg has on numerous occasions been accused of sexually harassing men and women under his employment, which he has denied. In 1997, a former Bloomberg L.P. employee who became pregnant while employed filed a lawsuit accusing Bloomberg of saying "Kill it!" and "great, No. 16," which may have been a reference to the number of pregnant women in the company.In December 2008, Portfolio magazine published a story: Mayor Bloomberg's Delicate Condition, which reported that in September 2007, the EEOC filed a class-action lawsuit against Bloomberg's company on behalf of three women who worked on the business side, plus a group of women who worked at Bloomberg's company between 2002 and the present. The article said the plaintiffs "now total 72, out of about 500 women who took maternity leave during that time, a high percentage, according to the agency." http://www.portfolio.com/executives/features/2008/11/11/Gender-Discrimination-at-Bloomberg
Political career
2001 election
In 2001, the incumbent mayor of New York, Rudy Giuliani, was ineligible for re-election, as the city limited the mayoralty to two consecutive terms. Several well-known New York City politicians aspired to succeed him. Bloomberg, a lifelong member of the Democratic Party, decided to run for mayor as a member of the Republican Party ticket.
Voting in the primary began on the morning of September 11, 2001. The primary was postponed later that day. In the rescheduled primary, Bloomberg defeated Herman Badillo, a former Congressman, to become the Republican nominee. Meanwhile, the Democratic primary did not produce a first-round winner. After a runoff, the Democratic nomination went to New York City Public Advocate Mark J. Green.
In the general election, Bloomberg received Giuliani's endorsement. He also had a huge spending advantage. Although New York City's campaign finance law restricts the amount of contributions which a candidate can accept, Bloomberg chose not to use public campaign funds and therefore his campaign was not subject to these restrictions. He spent $73 million of his own money on his campaign, outspending Green by five to one. One of the major themes of his campaign was that, with the city's economy suffering from the effects of the World Trade Center attacks, it needed a mayor with business experience.
In addition to being the Republican nominee, Bloomberg had the ballot line of the controversial Independence Party, in which "Social Therapy" leaders Fred Newman and Lenora Fulani exert strong influence. Some say that endorsement was important, as Bloomberg's votes on that line exceeded his margin of victory over Green. (Under New York's fusion rules, a candidate can run on more than one party's line and combine all the votes received on all lines. Green, the Democrat, also had the ballot line of the Working Families Party. Bloomberg also created an independent line called Students First whose votes were combined with those on the Independence line). Another factor was the vote in Staten Island, which has traditionally been far friendlier to Republicans than the rest of the city. Bloomberg crushed Green in that borough, taking 75% of the vote there. Overall, Bloomberg won 50% to 48%.
Bloomberg's election marked the first time in New York City history that two different Republicans had been elected mayor consecutively. New York City has not been won by a Republican in a statewide or presidential election since 1924. He is considered a social liberal, who is pro-choice, in favor of legalizing same-sex marriage and an advocate for stricter gun control laws.
Despite the fact that 68 percent of New York City's registered voters are Democrats, Bloomberg decided the city should host the 2004 Republican National Convention. The Convention drew thousands of protesters, many of them local residents angry over the Iraq war and other issues. The Police Department arrested approximately 1,800 protesters, but according to The New York Times, more than 90 percent of the cases were later dismissed or dropped for lack of evidence.
2005 election
Bloomberg was re-elected mayor in November 2005 by a margin of 20%, the widest margin ever for a Republican mayor of New York.
He spent over 1 million on his campaign by late October 2005, and was projected to exceed the record of $74 million he spent on the previous election. In late 2004 or early 2005, he gave the Independence Party $250,000 to fund a phone bank seeking to recruit volunteers for his re-election campaign.
Former Bronx Borough President Fernando Ferrer won the Democratic nomination to oppose Bloomberg in the general election. Thomas Ognibene sought to run against Bloomberg in the Republican Party's primary election. Bloomberg's campaign successfully challenged enough of the signatures Ognibene had submitted to the Board of Elections to prevent Ognibene from appearing on ballots for the Republican primary. Instead, Ognibene ran only on the Conservative Party ticket. Ognibene accused Bloomberg of betraying Republican Party ideals, a feeling echoed by others.
Bloomberg opposed the confirmation of John Roberts as Chief Justice of the United States. Though a Republican at the time, Bloomberg is a staunch supporter of abortion rights and did not believe that Roberts was committed to maintaining Roe v. Wade.
In addition to receiving Republican support, Bloomberg obtained the endorsements of several prominent Democrats: former Democratic Mayor Ed Koch, former Democratic governor Hugh Carey, former Democratic City Council Speaker Peter Vallone, his son, Councilman Peter Vallone, Jr., former Democratic Congressman Floyd Flake (who had previously endorsed Bloomberg in 2001), and Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz.
Mayoralty
Bloomberg assumed office as the 108th Mayor of New York City on January 1, 2002. He won re-election in 2005. As mayor, Bloomberg initially struggled to gain high approval levels from the public; however, he subsequently developed and maintained high approval ratings.
Bloomberg's re-election means that the Republicans have won the previous four mayoral elections (although Bloomberg's decision to leave the Republican Party and be declared an independent on June 19, 2007 resulted in the Republican Party losing the mayor's seat prior to the expiration of his second term). Bloomberg joins Rudy Giuliani and Fiorello La Guardia as re-elected Republican mayors in this mostly Democratic city. (John Lindsay was also elected mayor of New York twice while a registered Republican; however, Lindsay did not receive the Republican Party nomination during his campaign for re-election, and he switched to the Democratic Party during his second term.) On November 10, 2008, Bloomberg News sued the Federal Reserve for failing to disclose where its $2 trillion of loans were going.
Bloomberg has said he wants reforming public education to be the legacy of his first term and addressing poverty to be the legacy of his second.
He is known as a political pragmatist and for a managerial style that reflects his experience in the private sector. Bloomberg has chosen to apply a statistical, results-based approach to city management, appointing city commissioners based on their expertise and granting them wide autonomy in their decision-making. Breaking with 190 years of tradition, Bloomberg implemented what New York Times political reporter Adam Nagourney coined a "bullpen" open office plan, similar to a Wall Street trading floor, in which dozens of aides and managerial staff are seated together in a large chamber. The design is intended to promote accountability and accessibility.
Political positions
Bloomberg holds political positions from both Democratic Party and Republican Party platforms. He is socially liberal, supporting abortion rights, gay marriage, gun control, and normalization of the status of illegal immigrants, for example. On economic, foreign, and domestic issues, he tends to be conservative. He opposes a timeline for withdrawal from Iraq., and criticizes those in favor. Economically, he supports government involvement in issues such as public welfare and climate change, while being strongly in favor of free trade, pro-business, and describing himself as a fiscal conservative because he balanced the city's budget.
Social issues
Bloomberg supports abortion rights, stating: "Reproductive choice is a fundamental human right and we can never take it for granted. On this issue, you're either with us or against us." He has criticized pro-choice politicians who support pro-life candidates. His comments may have been directed at New York Senator Chuck Schumer, a supporter of abortion rights who supported Bob Casey, who is pro-life, in the 2006 Senate election.
Bloomberg tends to be liberal about his policies towards many social issues. He supports governmental funding for stem cell research, calling the Republican position on the issue "insanity." He also supports same-sex marriage with the rationale that “I think anybody should be allowed to marry anybody".
He supports the strict drug laws of New York City. He has stated that he smoked marijuana in the past, and was quoted in a 2001 interview as saying "You bet I did. I enjoyed it". This led to a reported $500,000 advertising campaign by NORML, featuring his image and the quote. Bloomberg stated in a 2002 interview that he regrets the remark, and does not believe that marijuana should be decriminalized.
Domestic issues
On Domestic issues, Bloomberg is conservative. On crime, Bloomberg opposes the death penalty, stating, "I'd rather lock somebody up and throw away the key and put them in hard labor, the ultimate penalty that the law will allow, but I'm opposed to the death penalty." As mayor he increased the mandatory minimum sentence for illegal possession of a loaded handgun. In regard to the change, Bloomberg commented, "Illegal guns don't belong on our streets and we're sending that message loud and clear. We're determined to see that gun dealers who break the law are held accountable, and that criminals who carry illegal loaded guns serve serious time behind bars."
Bloomberg has also shown involvement in education reform as mayor, replacing the school board set up by the state with direct mayoral control over public education. He raised the salaries of teachers by 15% while the test scores of students in the city and the graduation rate rose as well. Bloomberg is opposed to the promotion of students to the next grade level for strictly social reasons citing that students should only be promoted when they are adequately prepared for the next grade level. He favors after-school programs to help students that are behind. As mayor, Bloomberg strengthened the cell-phone ban in schools.
In dealing with global warming and New York's role in it, he has enacted a plan called "PlaNYC: A Greener, Greater New York" to fight global warming, protect the environment and prepare New York for the projected 1 million more people expected to be living in the city by the year 2030. Bloomberg has also been involved in motivating other cities to make changes, delivering the keynote address at the C40 Large Cities Climate Summit and stating, "[W]e now know beyond a doubt that global warming is a reality. And the question we must all answer is, what are we going to do about it?" Bloomberg also talked about how he would go about fighting climate change by reducing carbon dioxide emissions, using cleaner and more efficient fuels, and encouraging public transportation. His ideas have occasionally suffered setbacks, such as the New York State Assembly's recent rejection of his idea for applying congestion pricing below 60th St. in Manhattan.
On issues of domestic and homeland security, Bloomberg has attacked social conservatives on immigration calling their stance unrealistic, "We're not going to deport 12 million people, so let's stop this fiction. Let's give them permanent status." He supports a federal ID database that uses DNA and fingerprint technology to keep track of all citizens and to verify their legal status. Bloomberg believes that illegal immigrants should be offered citizenship and supports the congressional efforts of John McCain and Ted Kennedy in immigration reform. Regarding border security, Bloomberg compared it to the tide, stating, "It’s as if we expect border control agents to do what a century of communism could not: defeat the natural market forces of supply and demand... and defeat the natural human desire for freedom and opportunity. You might as well as sit in your beach chair and tell the tide not to come in. As long as America remains a nation dedicated to the proposition that "all men are created equal, endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness," people from near and far will continue to seek entry into our country."
Bloomberg believes that the September 11, 2001 attacks were not intended to be solitary events. When he assumed office, he set up a Counterterrorism Bureau which works along with the NYPD intelligence division to gather information about terrorism affecting New York worldwide. He believes that funding for Homeland Security by the federal government should be distributed by risk, where cities that are considered to have the highest threat for a terrorist attack would get the most money. Bloomberg is also a supporter of the USA PATRIOT Act.
Economic issues
Michael Bloomberg characterizes himself as a fiscal conservative for turning the city's $6 billion deficit into a $3 billion surplus; however, conservative PAC Club for Growth has criticized him because he increased property taxes and spending while doing so.
Bloomberg has expressed a distaste of taxes, stating, "Taxes are not good things, but if you want services, somebody's got to pay for them, so they're a necessary evil." As mayor, he did raise property taxes to fund budget projects; however, in January 2007 he proposed cuts in property taxes by 5% and cuts in sales taxes including the elimination of taxes on clothing and footwear. Bloomberg pointed to the Wall Street profits and the real estate market as evidence that the city's economy is booming and could handle a tax break.
His self-described fiscal conservatism also led him to eliminate the existing $6 billion deficit when he assumed office. He balanced the budget of New York City by raising property taxes and making cuts to city agencies, excluding the police and fire departments.
As a businessman, Bloomberg is respected by the business community and governs with a pro-business platform. He is in favor of providing tax breaks to big corporations for the good of the whole community. As mayor, Bloomberg lobbied to the CEO of Goldman Sachs to establish their headquarters across from Ground Zero by promising $1.65 billion in tax breaks. Regarding this deal, Bloomberg stated, "This [New York City] is where the best want to live and work. So I told him [CEO of Goldman Sachs], 'We can help with minimizing taxes. Minimizing your rent. Improving security. But in the end, this is about people.'"
He has had a less cordial relationship with unions as mayor. In 2002, when New York City's transit workers threatened to strike, Bloomberg responded by riding a mountain bike through the city to show how the city could deal with the transit strike by finding alternate means of transportation and not pandering to the unions.
Bloomberg is a staunch advocate of free trade and is strongly opposed to protectionism, stating, "The things that we have to worry about is this protectionist movement that has reared its head again in this country...." He worries about the growth of China and fears the lessening gap between the United States and other countries: "The rest of the world is catching up, and, there are people that say, surpassing us. I hope they are wrong. I hope those who think we are still in good shape are right. But nevertheless, the time to address these issues is right now."
Bloomberg puts a strong emphasis on public health and welfare, adopting many liberal policies. As the mayor he made HIV, diabetes, and hypertension all top priorities. He extended the city's smoking ban to all commercial establishments and implemented a trans fat ban in restaurants. He also launched a program called Opportunity NYC which is the nation's first-ever conditional cash transfer pilot program designed to help New Yorkers break the cycle of poverty in the city. He instituted a $7.5 billion municipal affordable housing plan, the largest in the nation, that is supposed to provide 500,000 New Yorkers with housing.
Bloomberg is concerned about poverty and growing class divisions stating, "This society cannot go forward, the way we have been going forward, where the gap between the rich and the poor keeps growing."
Foreign policy
As mayor, Bloomberg has made trips to Mexico, England, Ireland, and Israel in the first four months of 2007. In late 2007 he conducted an Asia trip that brought him to China, where he called for greater freedom of information to promote innovation. He also attended the United Nations Climate Conference in Bali.
Initially, Bloomberg strongly supported the war in Iraq and the rationale for going in. He stated, "Don't forget that the war started not very many blocks from here" alluding to Ground Zero. In regard to the global War on Terrorism including Iraq he said, "It's not only to protect Americans. It's America's responsibility to protect people around the world who want to be free." His enthusiasm seems to have lessened somewhat over the course of the war. In August of 2005 he said, "I think everybody has very mixed emotions about the war that was started to find weapons of mass destruction and then they were not found." Bloomberg expresses criticism about Democrats in Congress who want to set a timetable for withdraw from Iraq calling them, "irresponsible."
Mayor Bloomberg has recruited some top foreign policy experts to advise him on international issues of general interest.
Preservation and development issues
Mayor Bloomberg is often a proponent of large-scale development. He has repeatedly come down in favor of projects such as the Atlantic Yards mega-development, the Hudson Yards redevelopment, and the Harlem rezoning proposal. This has led to a negative response from the preservationist community. On smaller-scale issues, Bloomberg typically takes the side of development as well. He favors the demolition of Admiral's Row in order to build a supermarket parking lot. However, Bloomberg has come down on the side of preservation a number of times, most notably in vetoing landmark revocation for the Austin, Nichols warehouse. This move was widely applauded by architectural historians. The City Council overruled the veto shortly thereafter. He is largely responsible for the bus shelter deal with Cemusa, which has drawn a lot of criticism from New York residents.
Post-mayoral plans
Before a change in the law in November 2008, Bloomberg was prohibited by term limits from being re-elected in November 2009. This led to speculation concerning his future political prospects, although he repeatedly stated his intention to return to a life of philanthropy once his tenure as mayor expires. In pursuit of this goal, he purchased a prospective headquarters for $45 million, originally built by Stuyvesant Fish, for his planned foundation on the Upper East Side of Manhattan in the City of New York.
2008 presidential campaign speculation
On February 27, 2008 Bloomberg announced that he would not run for president in 2008, and that he would endorse a candidate who takes an independent and non-partisan approach. He had also stated unequivocally, live on the Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve TV show, December 31, 2007, that he was not going to run for president in 2008. Despite previous public statements by Bloomberg denying plans for a presidential run, many pundits cited events that led them to believe that Bloomberg would announce a campaign at a later date. On January 7, 2008, he met with a bipartisan group of elder statesmen at the University of Oklahoma, including Nebraska Senator Chuck Hagel and former Georgia Senator Sam Nunn, both of whom had been frequently mentioned as possible running mates, to pressure the major party candidates to promote national unity and reduce partisan gridlock. Speculation that Bloomberg would choose this forum to announce his candidacy proved to be unfounded. Other purported signs that he planned to run included:
In summer 2006, he met with Al From of the Democratic Leadership Council, a centrist group, to talk about the logistics of a possible run. After a conversation with Bloomberg, Republican Senator Chuck Hagel of Nebraska suggested that he and Bloomberg could run on a shared independent ticket for the presidency. On This Week on June 10, 2007, anchor George Stephanopoulos included panelist Jay Carney, who mentioned a conversation between Bloomberg and top staffers where he heard Bloomberg ask approximately how much a presidential campaign would cost. Carney said that one staffer replied, "Around $500 million." According to a Washington Post article, a $500 million budget would allow Bloomberg to circumvent many of the common obstacles faced by third party candidates seeking the White House. * On June 19, 2007, Bloomberg left the Republican Party, filing as an independent after a speech criticizing the current political climate in Washington. On August 9, 2007, in an interview with former CBS anchor Dan Rather that aired on August 21, Bloomberg categorically stated that he was not running for President, that he would not be running, and that there were no circumstances in which he would, saying, "If somebody asks me where I stand, I tell them. And that’s not a way to get elected, generally. Nobody’s going to elect me president of the United States. What I’d like to do is to be able to influence the dialogue. I’m a citizen." Despite continued denials, a possible Bloomberg candidacy continues to be the subject of media attention, including a November Newsweek cover story. During a private reception in December 2007, Bloomberg conducted a version of bingo, in which guests were to guess the meaning of the numbers on a printed card. When Mr. Bloomberg asked the significance of 271 one guest answered correctly, the number of electoral votes received by George W. Bush in 2000. In January 2008, CNN reported that a source close to Bloomberg said that the mayor had launched a research effort to assess his chances of winning a potential presidential bid. According to the report, the unidentified source also stated that Bloomberg had set early March as a timetable for making decision as whether or not to run. On January 16, 2008, it was reported that Bloomberg's business interests were placed in "a sort of blind trust" because of the possible run for the presidency. His interests were put under the management of Quadrangle Group, co-founded by reported Bloomberg friend Steven Rattner, though Bloomberg would "continue to have control of and access to certain investment decisions."
On January 18, 2008, the Associated Press reported that Bloomberg had a meeting in Austin, Texas with Clay Mulford, a ballot access expert and campaign manager for Ross Perot's third party presidential campaigns. Bloomberg denied that the meeting concerned a possible presidential campaign by him, stating "I'm not a candidate — it couldn't be clearer. Which of the words do you not understand?" On February 28, 2008 Bloomberg stated that "I am not and will not be a candidate for president." And that he is "hopeful that the current campaigns can rise to the challenge by offering truly independent leadership. The most productive role that I can serve is to push them forward, by using the means at my disposal to promote a real and honest debate. *On August 15, 2008 the Virginia State Board of Elections confirmed that the Independent Greens of Virginia, an affiliate of the Independence Party of America, had collected enough signatures to put Bloomberg on the ballot for President in Virginia, with Ron Paul. as his running mate. Bloomberg, however, declined the ballot line.
At the same time as the presidential run was being considered, there was also some speculation that Bloomberg could be a candidate for the vice presidency in 2008. In a blog posting of June 21, 2007, The Politico's Ben Smith asked the question of whether a VP candidate can self-finance an entire presidential ticket. Many believed that Bloomberg would in fact be legally permitted to self-finance a campaign as the VP candidate.
Adding more fuel to the speculation that Bloomberg might consider a VP slot were a series of meetings he had in mid-August 2007 with former Georgia Senator Sam Nunn, a Democrat who had considered running as an independent, and later with Barack Obama on 30 November 2007. A breakfast meeting with John McCain on May 17, 2008 led to speculation that Bloomberg may be on McCain's short list of possible VP candidates.
Again, though, no vice-presidential run in 2008 materialized either.
Possible Gubernatorial campaign
On November 6, 2007, the New York Post detailed efforts by New York Republicans to recruit Bloomberg to oppose then-incumbent Governor Eliot Spitzer in the 2010 election. Early polls indicated Bloomberg would defeat Spitzer in a landslide. (The potential 2010 match-up became moot when Spitzer resigned on March 17, 2008.) A March 20, 2008 poll of New York State voters had the Mayor topping newly ascended Governor David Paterson and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani for the 2010 gubernatorial election. Bloomberg has denied any plans to run for the governorship in 2010.
Third term election proposal and passage
On October 2, 2008, Bloomberg announced that he would seek to extend the city's term limits law and run for a third mayoral term in 2009, arguing that a leader of his field is needed during the Wall Street financial crisis. "Handling this financial crisis while strengthening essential services ... is a challenge I want to take on," Bloomberg told at a news conference. "So should the City Council vote to amend term limits, I plan to ask New Yorkers to look at my record of independent leadership and then decide if I have earned another term". Although the public is split about the announcement, many elite New Yorkers such as David Rockefeller, former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, and prominent businessmen including Jamie Dimon, Lloyd Blankfein, and Mortimer Zuckerman have voiced support for such a proposal and recently published an open letter urging the City Council to extend the term limits. On October 23, the City Council voted 29-22 in favor of extending the term limit to three consecutive four-year terms, thus allowing Bloomberg to run for office again. After two days of public hearings, Bloomberg signed the bill into law on November 3. A federal lawsuit was filed one week later, challenging the new legislation. One critic declared that Bloomberg's tactics in seeking a third term, along with his failure to foresee the Wall Street crisis at the same time his policies were making the City more dependent on finance, real estate and tourism, are proof that Bloomberg is unfit for the job.
See also
Bloomberg businesses
New York City
- Mayor of New York City
- Government of New York City
- New York City mayoral election, 2001
- New York City mayoral election, 2005
- New York City mayoral election, 2009
- New York City mayoralty elections (since 1897)
National politics
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