ON A BLOOMBERG RUN IN 2008

ONE MORE THING...

The 2008 Presidential elections just got more interesting.  The New York Times reports that:

"Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg announced Tuesday that he was dropping his Republican affiliation, a step that could clear the way for him to make an independent bid for the presidency."

Here's a guy I respect a lot not only for what he's accomplished in business, but also in politics. 

And because of his independent wealth, he's not forced to waffle on the major issues to fit the extreme demands of either party.

In particular, he's the one possible candidate who talks about immigration in terms of the economic well-being of America, not just in the context of physical security. 

This New York Sun piece covers his recent op-ed piece in the Wall Street Journal, focusing on this issue.  It's a position I'm in agreement with, having talked about a fair bit on this blog.

One has to be realistic though about the prospects of an "Independent" candidate historically in U.S. Presidential elections.  As the NY Times piece makes clear:

"Still, American voters have been reluctant to embrace independent candidacies. After spending $65 million in 1992, Ross Perot failed to get a single electoral vote.

And third-party candidates often struggle to get on the ballot, as they confront often byzantine election laws and frequent court challenges."

Nevertheless, the prospects of a Bloomberg candidacy is a breath of fresh air in this otherwise stale Presidential race so far.  More homework to do for all of us.

Comments

[Gwen]

I'm happy to seen Bloomberg's entrance into the race. Independents are beginning to make the statement to all the presidential candidates (and Bloomberg is not excluded from this) that they're going to have to convince us that they're more interested in changing America for the better and getting us on right track than getting themselves elected. Having some experience with what this means in NYC, hopefully Bloomberg will use these lessons wisely.

For more on the history of Bloomberg and independents, read The Bloomberg Story (by Jacqueline Salit who ran Bloomberg's independent campaign for mayor in NYC) at
http://www.independentvoting.org/Bloomberg.html