Bloomberg Says He's a Liberal

New York Daily News ^ | 10/25/01 | Michael Saul

[NYCVirago]

Bloomberg Says He's a Liberal
Quirky remarks upstage gov

By MICHAEL SAUL
Daily News Staff Writer

Republican mayoral candidate Michael Bloomberg proudly declared himself a "liberal" — invoking the "L" word he uses to bash Mark Green — at a news conference yesterday designed to feature an endorsement from Gov. Pataki.

"I am a liberal," said Bloomberg, with the GOP governor standing at his side. "Yes, I think in many senses I'm a liberal. But I am not anti-business. And I am not anti-police."

Bloomberg, a life-long Democrat who switched parties to run for mayor, derided Green less than 24 hours earlier as "a very liberal, leftist kind of guy." In fact, Team Bloomberg spent part of Tuesday portraying Green, the Democratic nominee, as a defender of Soviet dictator Josef Stalin.

The muddling of messages 13 days before the Nov. 6 election happened as a new Quinnipiac University poll showed Green leading Bloomberg, 51% to 35%.

Rudy, Grilling No Help

While Bloomberg has reduced the gap to 16 points, compared with a 42-point gap in June, he still has considerable ground to gain before Election Day.

And Mayor Giuliani isn't helping so far. Giuliani said yesterday he will make an endorsement "when I'm ready."

"I haven't focused on politics yet," he said. "And ... I never let anyone rush me."

The news conference was filled with awkward moments.

For starters, Pataki pointedly refused to criticize Green. Then, Bloomberg, facing aggressive questioning from the press, all but conceded that his autobiography was mistaken in how it categorized his company's dealings with South Africa during apartheid.

Pataki began by saying Bloomberg was best poised to lead the city as it recovers. "Beginning Jan. 1, we need a strong leader in City Hall," Pataki said. "And that strong leader is Mike Bloomberg."

Then Bloomberg was asked about one TV ad that features a man-on-the-street interview. The man, however, is from the wealthy Westchester town of Chappaqua.

"If you stop people on the street, I hope you'll find lots more people from Chappaqua," Bloomberg said. "There is a senator from Chappaqua — I hope she comes in and shops here as well."

Apartheid Correction

On South Africa, Bloomberg wrote in his autobiography that his communications company, Bloomberg LP, refused to enter during apartheid but did "when F.W. de Klerk started dismantling the racist practices."

In the book, he boasted that the company "led again by opening our business there ... even though U.S. policies still requested restraint at the time."

Yesterday, Bloomberg clarified that the company did not open its business there until Nelson Mandela was in power.

Asked whether his book was incorrect, Bloomberg responded: "I don't know how I phrased it in the book. You can check the records. Your English is better than mine."

Bloomberg accused Green, whose surrogates first raised the South Africa issue, of playing the "typical racial card."

"You saw it played before, and here it comes out again," he said, a reference to Green's runoff battle with Fernando Ferrer.

Green Has His Say

Green replied: "He can make any charges he would like. I would hope he would focus more on the future rather than on the past."

Green, who won the endorsement of District Council 37, the city's largest public employees union, is expected today to land the endorsement of the teachers union and frequent rival Assemblyman Dov Hikind (D-Brooklyn).

Bloomberg ended yesterday's press conference abruptly. As reporters continued to shout questions, he walked away from the lectern, leaving the governor alone.

In the Quinnipiac poll, Green was leading among whites and blacks. The two candidates were virtually tied among Hispanics.

Maurice Carroll, director of the polling institute, attributed Bloomberg's gain in the polls to his omnipresent TV ads. The poll of 1,042 registered voters has a margin of error of 3%.

Tracking the Polls

With 12 days until Election Day, Democrat Mark Green's lead over Republican Michael Bloomberg has been sliced to a still-comfortable 16 percentage points. In all three polls, some respondents said they would vote for other candidates — or not at all. The three polls:

Oct. 24	Green 51%	Bloomberg 35%	Undecided 13%
July 25	Green 54%	Bloomberg 28%	Undecided 15%
June 20	Green 62%	Bloomberg 20%	Undecided 12%

Source: Quinnipiac University

With Scott Shifrel

[NYCVirago]

I think Rudy Giuliani is the greatest mayor New York has ever had -- but, I really wish he had groomed a worthy successor to him. Michael Bloomberg is a lifelong Democrat who gave money to every liberal candidate and cause under the sun. But because the Democratic primary field was too crowded, he opened his checkbook and decided to run as a Republican. And Bloomberg has said so many stupid things during this campaign, like that sanitation workers have a more dangerous job than policemen and firmen, that he makes Mark Green look statesmanlike!

[Clemenza]

Bloomberg is Jon Corzine with an "R" next to his name.

[NYCVirago]

Bloomberg is Jon Corzine with an "R" next to his name.

Great analogy!

[BunnySlippers]

Bloomberg was a registered Democrat who changed his registration ONLY because he felt the Democratic field was too full and he wouldn't stand out. This was what he announced prior to the election. No one should be surprised that he's a liberal.

[white trash redneck]

This election is the electoral equivalent of the Iran-Iraq war. I wish both could lose.

[Maceman]

Bloomberg IS a liberal. I remember during the 1996 elections, he told John McLaughlin (or some other interviewer) that he wanted to see Clinton win the Presidency AND the Democrats win back both houses of Congress.

He has been on my sh!t list ever since then.

[RayBob]

Remember the movie Brewsters Millions? Richard Prior's character started the "None of the Above" campaign...maybe that's what's needed here now?