Dark Horse

Will he or won't he?

Mayor Michael Bloomberg of New York seems to be flirting with the possibility of running for President. He is in his second term as mayor, and term limits prevent him from running again. So, if he is not thinking of running for President, why is he suddenly making trips to California, making speeches criticizing the other candidates that have already declared their interest in the top job, and, most surprising of all, changing his affiliation from Republican to Independent? If Mayor Mike were truly planning to retire and go into philanthropy, as he has said he will do, then why bother to change from Republican to Independent? Who would care if he weren't planning to pursue a future political office?

Fiscally conservative and socially liberal, the Mayor may be what the American public is really looking for. In a crowded field that Jon Stewart refers to inelegantly as the Clusterf@#k to the White House, Mayor Mike would be a candidate that would really stand out. Pragmatic, non-political and too rich to be bought, he might be the breath of fresh air people have been waiting for.

John McCain has become too linked to his pro-war stance, and no longer seems to command the "maverick" label he had back in 2000, since he has been pandering to the far right lately.

Giuliani, although popular because of his heroic September 11th performance, will probably crash and burn once people get to know more about him - a few too many skeletons in the old closet.

Mitt Romney probably won't make it because of his flip-flopping on key issues (was he lying in Massachusetts when he said he was pro-choice, or is he lying now?).

The rest? I forget which Thompson is which and can't remember the others.

On the Democratic side, it's a choice between Hillary and Obama. I want to like Hillary, I really do. She's a woman, I would love to see a woman president, the time is ripe. But I just don't like her. I want to. I really do. But I never feel as if she's sincere, and she certainly isn't the kind of gal I would have hung out with in college. (Uh, maybe that's for the best on her part, come to think of it. But still.) She doesn't seem to ring true for many of us lifelong Democrats. We want to want her but we don't.

Obama seems great, and could be that breath of fresh air people are looking for. But much as I like him, I'm afraid he doesn't have enough experience. (Yes, I know, neither did Bush...and look what happened). I do think he'd have the sense to surround himself with great advisers and people who do have the necessary experience. But it's a long road ahead and I'm afraid he may get caught up in the focus groups and politics and not stick to his ideals.

Enter Mike Bloomberg. Sometimes irascible, often blunt, the man seems to not give a hoot about focus groups. And while that might not come across well for some, in other ways I think many people would find it refreshing. An ex-Democrat turned Republican, now Independent, he might appeal to that broad Center that everyone is always talking about. Sure, he has no foreign policy experience. But he ran a multi-billion dollar corporation. He knows how to run things. Since 9/11 he has straightened out New York City and he sure as heck could straighten out the United States. I could even imagine him saying from day one that he's only going to serve one term so he won't have to worry about what the consequences are of what he does.

Of course, if he decides to run, it could just backfire. He might just siphon off votes from one side or the other and be a spoiler, as third-party candidates almost always are. And given his more socially liberal attitudes, I have a suspicion it would hurt the Democratic side more than the Republicans.

If he runs, it sure will shake things up. It would be particularly amusing if both Rudy and Hillary won their respective nominations and it ended up being three New Yorkers vying for the Presidency. Sort of like a Subway Series!

One thing for sure, if the Mayor decides to run, it will make things interesting!