The Big Question

#257 The Big Question

The big question is not “will Mike Bloomberg run for President?” The big question is can you trust a guy who drinks weak coffee?

Can you trust a guy who wears a tie to work on “dress down Friday?”

Can you trust a guy who is less boring in person than he is while making a speech?

Can you trust a guy who swapped his chauffeur driven Cadillac for a Chevy Blazer when he remade himself from capitalist to candidate?

Probably, yes on most of those counts, except the coffee one.

So, then we get the Ed Koch Political Question (not “how’m I doin’?) It’s this: “Do you agree with me on, say, 50 or 60 percent of what I say? If so, you have to vote for me.”

To Koch, it was (and is) an equation: 100%-50% = Yes.

So, where does Mayor Mike stand on the issues? Pro gay, pro choice, pro workfare, pro business. So, the guy’s a pro.

The mayor was always a Democrat. Then, to avoid the idiotic New York City Democratic primary, always as confused and chaotic as a fire drill, he registered Republican. It’s okay for a billionaire to be a Republican. That’s pretty much what the old, original Republican Party was about.

But he doesn’t much act like a Republican.

Now, with the election of 2008 looming, Mayor Mike has bolted the Republican Party and joined…. And joined… nothing. A registered independent. (Ain’t to many of us around.)

Further positioning for a presidential run.

Last guy who did that flamed out. Ross Perot. Probably had no chance even if he were sane. Or projected an image of sanity. (Perception is reality!)

Mike is also a little nutty about some stuff (coffee, for one.) But he’s so dull, everyone listening to him thinks he’s both smart and sane. Smart, for sure. Sanity is a matter of degree. You have to be a little crazy to build the kind and size business he built. You have to be at least somewhat crazy to run for public office.

People who knew him in his middle class days say he hasn’t changed a bit. Except now he admits he’s short. Kind of like professional wrestling when it “admitted” it was fake. Everyone knew. No one was shocked.

What would a Bloomberg candidacy do? It might turn into a Bloomberg Presidency. On the other hand, it might also turn into a Mitt Romney or Fred Thompson Presidency.

(You can forget Giuliani. And you can forget a “subway series” election in which Bloomberg, Giuliani and Clinton are their parties’ or their non-parties “official” candidates. Ain’t gonna happen.)

You Mike credit, though. The city works better than it has in decades. And it was put in order without the hash that Giuliani created, the fighting, the factionalizing.

And America can use that kind of healing.

I'm Wes Richards, my opinions are my own, but you're welcome to them.

(c) 2007 WJR