Left-handed Complement

MUDGE’S Musings

Like you, I’m crying out for a Mike fix! Found mine in the current Business Week (always a terrific read — between BW and The Economist I feel absurdly well informed on most issues, business related as well as geopolitical), where the letters to the editor section had three responses to the article (remember back to the grand old days of mm024?) that was key to my awakening interest in the presidential future of Michael Bloomberg. 

JULY 23, 2007

READERS REPORT

The Votes Are In For New York’s Mayor Mike

Your article confirmed my view that politics is a business (“The CEO mayor,” Special Report, June 25). It takes the right combination of managerial, risk-taking, and political skills to succeed in Corporate America, and those same skills can work on the national level in politics. The daunting task of fund-raising is all-consuming and reminds me of venture capital and the public-offering sequence of Wall Street. Imagine if a candidate could self-fund a campaign and extend successful, impatient pragmatism to the White House. Branding New York was a useful means of creating a perception that Gotham is a world-class city. Citizen-customers have been attended to, their needs have been considered, and now that can translate into votes.

A New York minute equals 30 days in Washington, and that gap has hurt the entire country. The 311 service initiated by the mayor helped New Yorkers see that communication with the government shouldn’t be exempt from the progress of the Information Age.

Michael Bloomberg’s fortune was made by showing the details of Wall Street finance, and he believes in openness, not obfuscation. Capitalism and efficiency shouldn’t be confined to the private sector. We are fortunate to have a person of Mayor Bloomberg’s caliber bringing energy and boldness to the challenges we face.

Steven A. Ludsin
New York

Your story on Michael Bloomberg nailed it: A high-profile politician can be pragmatic, progressive—and popular. And while New York City’s CEO has jumped from the Republican Party for a possible White House bid as an independent, his style should be a model for all conservatives. A well-run government is not all that different from a well-run business. Tough decisions today, even unpopular ones, can lead to a large payoff tomorrow when combined with a sound long-range strategy.

And Bloomberg is not only fiscally responsible. He’s also a champion of the environment, as he has proven with progressive initiatives ranging from the installation of hundreds of energy-efficient traffic lights to the promotion of hybrid taxis.

To be certain, the GOP is going to miss this CEO mayor, but if anyone can continue to keep the series of islands that make up New York City afloat, Bloomberg can.

Bob August
Tennessee Coordinator
Republicans for Environmental Protection
Nashville

Mayor Bloomberg may be doing great things for the city of New York. I don’t live there, so I’ll take your word for it. But those of us who live in other parts of the country wish he would leave the rest of us alone.

After he started harassing gun dealers in other states, the federal government told the mayor that not only had none of the targeted dealers broken any laws (none has been prosecuted based on the mayor’s actions), but Mayor Bloomberg himself may have violated federal gun laws in pursuit of those dealers.

David Husar
Arlington, Va.

The Votes Are In For New York’s Mayor Mike

So Michael, forget the NRA vote this time around! Two out of three wins most elections I can think of, thank you very much. My lunacy is found at another fringe altogether, and I remain very pleased with you.

It’s it for now. Thanks,

–MUDGE

This entry was posted on Monday, July 16th, 2007 at 8:58 pm and is filed under musings, Politics. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.