Bloomberg ’08 ‘Intriguing’ To Democrats

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The New York Sun

DENVER — If Mayor Bloomberg mounts a centrist-oriented, independent campaign for the presidency in 2008, the moderate Democrats gathered here for the Democratic Leadership Council’s annual meeting would be key to victory.

Several of the attendees here, many of whom are mayors or local officials, said yesterday that Mr. Bloomberg would be a serious candidate.

“It would offer an intriguing dimension to an already interesting campaign,” the mayor of Denver, John Hickenlooper, said. “Especially someone like Mayor Bloomberg, who likes to walk the line between the Republican and Democratic parties carefully.”

Mr. Hickenlooper, who ran a chain of restaurants before getting into politics, said the experience that Mr. Bloomberg gained running his business news empire is a definite political asset. “People from an entrepreneurial background can really be very effective running in these executive-type elections,” he said. “You’ve got to be pro-business.”

The mayor of Albuquerque, N.M., Martin Chavez, said Mr. Bloomberg’s centrist approach is common to that of local officials responsible for delivering city services. “Mayors for the most part are not members of any party except the pragmatist party,” Mr. Chavez said. “Potholes don’t have any party affiliation.”

In recent weeks, Mr. Bloomberg’s aides have stoked talk about a presidential bid, possibly as an independent candidate. The mayor himself has sometimes fueled the speculation, though on other occasions he has flatly denied that he is considering any campaign.

Mr. Chavez said Mr. Bloomberg could not immediately draw on a reservoir of support from other mayors because he is not regularly involved with their group, the U.S. Conference of Mayors. “I have tremendous respect for him, but I think if he wants to be president, he has to be active with the mayors,” the Albuquerque official said.

No one here committed to backing Mr. Bloomberg and most said they were more likely to back a Democrat, such as Senator Clinton.

A supervisor from upstate Brighton, near Rochester, Sandra Frankel, said Mr. Bloomberg’s views “are aligned with centrist Democratic positions.” However, she said the mayor wouldn’t win either party’s primaries and was unlikely to succeed as an independent. “It would be extremely difficult for anyone unaffiliated with either of the major parties to win in a national election,” Ms. Frankel said.


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