Bloomberg Wins, We Lose
Top three things I would do with one million dollars per day:
- Pay off all my student loan debt, plus all my homies’ debt, plus all their homies’ debt.
- Fund twelve deserving artists (including myself) for a year of creative output and responsible play in the world.
- I sure wouldn’t go to an African nation or Haiti to build a well or open a school – but I would provide the funds for local, native, grassroots organizers doing important work to do whatever they felt their nation most needed.
Or, if I was Mike Bloomberg, I could buy my way into a third term as NYC’s mayor in the most expensive, privately funded election in history. Bloomberg outspent his opponent Bill Thompson 14 to 1. He had the support of one of Harlem’s most influential churches behind him (after providing them with a very generous donation). Spending 90 million of your 17 billion fortune (and one million per day during the last days of the election) for executive power over one of the world’s most influential cities is chump change. Thing is, while Bloomberg has the money to burn in manicured fistfuls, the citizens of NYC (both legal and non – a real thing in these five boroughs) don’t. His win with 51% of the vote (to Thompson’s 46%) signals that folks understand that Bloomberg’s riches don’t equate to our own pockets holding the same weight.
As unimpressed as I am, this story isn’t exactly news: the bottom line usually comes down to who owns the fattest stack of dollar bills. The NY Times reports that those who make more than 200,000 annually are among Bloomberg’s base of supporters. I don’t imagine that many people pulling in that kind of money would be interested in voting for the Bed-Stuy native and former borough presiden
t.
People question the strength of Thompson as an opponent. Can’t lie – I wasn’t impressed with his offense approach in the first debate: instead of highlighting his work as a Brooklyn native and NYC educator, he focused on Bloomberg’s faults. We already know Bloomberg’s faults – we been knowing them for the past 8 years. Thompson should’ve used that time to allow us to get to know him. I’m just saddened by the missed opportunity for new energy that is not regulated by big business to run New York. But maybe I’m just idealistic. If Thompson had an extra 90 million to burn, he probably would’ve bought his election too.
White collar criminals and commerce steadily creeping in to all sectors tells me that the only rule with money is that there are no rules. Bloomberg says he won’t go for a fourth term in office. He’s already re-written the rule books once…bet you 90 million he changes his mind.
