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Bloomberg's Controversial Phone Survey Targets Weiner
By
John Del Signore
Published Apr 7, 2009
Modified Apr 8, 2009
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By
John Del Signore
Published Apr 7, 2009
Modified Apr 8, 2009
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Mayor Bloomberg may be enjoying a comfortable lead in the polls, but that $80 million he plans to drop on his re-election campaign isn't going to spend itself. As Susan Lerner, executive director of Common Cause, tells the Times, "If you have too much money in your campaign, you don’t use it productively. He’s hired so many consultants who are looking for something to do." Like annoy New Yorkers with a telephone survey spreading innuendo about likely Democratic rival Anthony Weiner! The practice, known as "push-polling," is described by one of Weiner's advisers as, "one of the most discredited and dishonorable forms of negative campaigning."
In this case, voters who participated in the survey last month were asked questions designed to raise doubts about Weiner, including vague queries about his "association with European models." That question was a suggestive reference to Weiner's proposal to help foreign fashion models get work visas more easily. But Bloomerg's campaign spokesman Howard Wolfson (yep, he's baaack) tells the Times, "Unfortunately for Congressman Weiner, the fact that he takes money from lobbyists and special interests, misses votes and has not passed any significant legislation isn’t a push poll — it’s his record."
But former pollster Peter Feld says that while the survey may be negative, the calls didn’t go to nearly enough voters to make an impact. Rather, the questions were likely intended to gauge the potential effectiveness of negative messages. If so, Jeff Goldsmith, an undecided voter from Queens who got the call, has some feedback: "By the time I was through the entire poll, I thought it was ridiculous."
Tagged
election 2009
mayor bloomberg
push poll
reelection
Survey
weiner
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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