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Mayor Bloomberg, The Reluctant Republican
By
Jen Chung
Published Nov 12, 2004
Modified Mar 7, 2008
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By
Jen Chung
Published Nov 12, 2004
Modified Mar 7, 2008
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Fascinating article in the NY Times today about how argued about the content of the Mayor's speech during the Republican National Convention. With the Mayor's approval ratings higher than expected (expectations at City Hall are low), especially after subjecting his mostly blue citizens with red-staters, it's a great look at how the Mayor is a begrudging Republican-in-name only. Many people remember that Mayor Bloomberg, who had been a lifelong Democrat, switched to the Republican party in a political move that proved successful, but the Mayor has been openly critical of the current Bush administration, especially in trying to get money for NYC. Which is what the Mayor wanted to do at the convention: Criticize Republicans in Congress for not giving enough money to a post-September 11 New York. The NY Times reports that Bloomberg and Republican operatives were tangling over his speech, to the point of him being deleted from the program and then needing to get Karl Rove involved. Zoinks! What the Mayor was able to say, "We all must recognize that homeland security funds should be allocated by threat and no other reason," was met with "stony silence" at the convention. It seems like NYC likes its Republicans to clean NYC up so much it almost feels fascist (think Rudy's efforts to clean up NY) or Democratic in sheep's clothing (like the Mayor).
The Mayor had uninvited Congressman Bob Ney to his pre-Convention shindig, because of Ney's refusal to give NYC funding.
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Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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