Bloomberg Wins, But Barely

posted by John Nichols on 11/03/2009 @ 9:29pm

Email
Print
Share
- Buzzflash
- del.icio.us
- Digg
- Facebook
- Mixx it!
- Reddit
What is this?
Take Action
Comments (35)

Subscribe Now

Yes, of course, everyone was watching Virginia, New Jersey and upstate New York on Tuesday's off-year election night.

But one of the most dramatic stories played out in New York City, where Mayor Mike Bloomberg forced a rewrite of the city's term-limit law so that he could seek a third term.

Bloomberg left a Republican Party tha had turned exceedingly unpopular in the nation's largest city, spent an estimated $100 million of his own money and collected endorsements from the major daily newspapers and more than a few Democratic elected officials.

What did it get him?

A win so narrow that it was not declared until two hours after the polls closed.

At one point, with over half the votes counted, Bloomberg led less-than-dazzling Democrat Bill Thompson by barely 3,000 votes.

Bloomberg eventually edging ahead to win by a 50-46 margin.

The mayor said he was "humbled" by the result.

And rightly so.

The margin was too close to make the independent mayor a credible contender for the presidency in 2012.

It wasn't even a mandate for a third term -- at least not a meaningful one.

And people thought Bloomberg was overspending!

Turns out he really did need all $100 million.

Comments (35)

Well, you have to give Bloomberg credit for doing his best for the NYC economy....his personal Pork Bill to compensate for the $400 million of income lost after Rush `moved' his domicile to the Sunshine State!

Posted by Happy at 11/03/2009 @ 9:47pm
this column reads like a poorly written amateur blog.

do better john.

Posted by urmygyro at 11/03/2009 @ 9:47pm
If Bloomberg lost and replaced by a progressive...would anybody notice a change in policy?

Posted by Citizen_Carrier at 11/03/2009 @ 9:58pm
While election politics dominated today's `fun', it should also be noted that gold bugs ruled the day! Tomorrow, US stocks ought to soar, as the Obama Express is about to run off the rail:

Gold surges to an all-time high

Prices settle near $1,085 an ounce after India buys $6.7 billion worth of gold from the International Monetary Fund.

By Ben Rooney, CNNMoney.com staff writer

Last Updated: November 3, 2009: 3:04 PM ET

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Gold prices surged to a record high Tuesday after the International Monetary Fund said it had sold 200 metric tons of the precious metal to India's central bank.

November gold rose $30.90 to settle at $1,084.90 an ounce, after climbing to a high of $1,085.20. The previous intraday record was set Oct. 13, when gold rose to $1,069.70 an ounce....

Posted by Happy at 11/03/2009 @ 10:05pm
Gold surges to an all-time high Prices settle near $1,085 an ounce after India buys $6.7 billion worth of gold from the International Monetary Fund. By Ben Rooney, CNNMoney.com staff writer Last Updated: November 3, 2009: 3:04 PM ET NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Gold prices surged to a record high Tuesday after the International Monetary Fund said it had sold 200 metric tons of the precious metal to India's central bank. November gold rose $30.90 to settle at $1,084.90 an ounce, after climbing to a high of $1,085.20. The previous intraday record was set Oct. 13, when gold rose to $1,069.70 an ounce.... Posted by Happy at 11/03/2009 @ 10:05pm | ignore this person | warn this person

--who cares?

Posted by urmygyro at 11/03/2009 @ 10:10pm
'V' aims at Obamamania....

Learning of this earlier, I watched the second half of this new show......pretty clear, yep, Obamamania was the theme....the Aliens said they would bring, exact quote, "universal health care" to all earthlings!

Another rather spot-on scene, when the Alien Obama, was very forceful in demanding the interviewer ONLY pose questions that will put the Aliens in a good light!

Would it catch on like Fox's 24? I plan to see it next Tuesday!

Posted by Happy at 11/03/2009 @ 10:14pm
--who cares?

Posted by urmygyro at 11/03/2009 @ 10:10pm

You....enough to respond...like little school kids when the HAPPY kid says, I've got a new transformer, and the urchin says "who cares?"......LOL!

I bought GOLD for the very first time in early May....I've got gold fever and that's Magic!

Posted by Happy at 11/03/2009 @ 10:17pm
I bought GOLD for the very first time in early May....

Posted by Happy at 11/03/2009 @ 10:17pm | ignore this person | warn this person

Little late to the party, Happ...

...but glad you decided to attend.

Posted by schnellerheinz at 11/03/2009 @ 10:31pm
OR...better late than never.

Posted by schnellerheinz at 11/03/2009 @ 10:32pm
LOL!

Posted by schnellerheinz at 11/03/2009 @ 10:33pm
Two sure things about the Obamanation admin. are the price of gold and defcit spending rising! I hope the leftist and the Obamanation continue to ridicule the tea parties, rightwing talk radio, and Fox also guaranteeing us even more success!

Posted by BigPasture at 11/03/2009 @ 10:34pm
Posted by BigPasture at 11/03/2009 @ 10:34pm | ignore this person | warn this person

So, what's the problem with gold?

Aren't you "happy" too???

Posted by schnellerheinz at 11/03/2009 @ 10:36pm
Little late to the party, Happ...

...but glad you decided to attend.

Posted by schnellerheinz at 11/03/2009 @ 10:31pm

Don't make me drag out my track record....pretty sure my stocks have outperformed gold over the past 10~12 years.....Gold has its place, at the right time....otherwise, it's even worse than real estate, no tax shelter value and no dividends!

Life is good!

Posted by Happy at 11/03/2009 @ 10:50pm
is anyone watching msnbc republicans big win. what about owens in a very republican district is winning and no one was shocked by virginia or newjersey. Whats happining in California in the not covered election?

Posted by tdblacksheep33 at 11/03/2009 @ 11:04pm
New York 23

Barack Obama sent Joe Biden to visit. Obama's White House negotiated Dede Scozzafava's endorsement of the Democrat. Scozzafava and Owens both supported and campaigned on supporting the stimulus.

New Jersey

Obama sent his top pollster to take command of the race. Obama visited multiple times, including the day before the election. Obama is featured in most of Corzine's advertising. The Democratic Governors Association and DNC all pumped in a ton of money. Corzine ran on helping Obama at the state level.

Virginia

The Democratic Governors Association spent $4 million to get Creigh Deeds elected. The Democratic National Committee spent $6 millino to get Deeds elected. Obama campaigned for Deeds multiple times. Organizing for America sent a mail piece to 300,000 "surge voters", or voters who voted for the first time in 2008, urging them to vote for Deeds. Organizing for America set up phone banks for Creigh Deeds.

The state owned media is going to tell us none of this matters and this was no rebuke of Barack Obama.

Don't believe it. The facts speak for themselves. This just a preview of 2010!

Posted by BigPasture at 11/03/2009 @ 11:17pm
Whats happining in California in the not covered election? Posted by tdblacksheep33 at 11/03/2009 @ 11:04pm |

Garamendi is ahead by a healthy margin (55.56% to 38.25% with 28% of precincts reporting).

This was the least-contested of the special elections by far (even with the bridge-and-tunnel crowd out in Contra Costa county considered).

Posted by snowball777 at 11/03/2009 @ 11:26pm
20. The economy is so bad that Barack Obama changed his slogan to "Maybe We Can!" 19. The economy is so bad that Sarah Palin is only shooting moose for food, not for fun.

18. The economy is so bad that when Bill and Hillary travel together, they now have to share a room.

17. The economy is so bad that instead of a coin toss at the beginning of the Super Bowl in February, they will play "Rock, Paper, Scissors."

16. The economy is so bad that Angelina Jolie had to adopt a highway.

15. The economy is so bad that my niece told me she wants to dress up as a 401(k) for Halloween so that she can turn invisible.

14. The economy is so bad that I ordered a burger at McDonald's (MCD Quote) and the kid behind the counter asked, "Can you afford fries with that?"

13. The economy is so bad that I saw four CEOs over the weekend playing miniature golf.

12. The economy is so bad I saw the CEO of Wal-Mart (WMT Quote) shopping at Wal-Mart.

11. The economy is so bad that Bill Gates had to switch to dial up.

10. The economy is so bad that rapper 50 Cent had to change his name to 10 Cent.

9. The economy is so bad that they Pequot tribe built a reservation on the site of one of their casinos.

8. The economy is so bad that the Treasure Island casino in Las Vegas is now managed by Somali pirates.

7. The economy is so bad that if the bank returns your check marked "Insufficient Funds," you call them and ask if they meant you or them.

6. The economy is so bad that I bought a toaster oven and my free gift with the purchase was a bank.

5. The economy is so bad that the only company hiring this week is the one that sends people to scrape bankers off of Wall Street sidewalks.

Posted by frosty zoom at 11/03/2009 @ 11:28pm
4. The economy is so bad that I went to my bank to get a loan, and they said, "What a coincidence! That's just what we were going to ask you!"

3. The economy is so bad that a picture is now only worth 200 words.

2. The economy is so bad that Hot Wheels stock is trading higher than GM.

And the No. 1 sign how bad the economy is...

1. The economy is so bad that the guy who made $50 billion disappear (Madoff) is being investigated by the people who made over $1 trillion disappear (our policymakers)!

Posted by frosty zoom at 11/03/2009 @ 11:28pm
Posted by frosty zoom at 11/03/2009 @ 11:28pm

The economy is so bad that India just bought 200 tons of gold.

Posted by Benchrest at 11/03/2009 @ 11:32pm
the economy is so bad that sarah palin will win in '12.

Posted by frosty zoom at 11/03/2009 @ 11:34pm
Posted by frosty zoom at 11/03/2009 @ 11:34pm

That's not funny.

Posted by Benchrest at 11/03/2009 @ 11:36pm
Whats happining in California in the not covered election? Posted by tdblacksheep33 at 11/03/2009 @ 11:04pm |

Garamendi is ahead by a healthy margin (55.56% to 38.25% with 28% of precincts reporting).

This was the least-contested of the special elections by far (even with the bridge-and-tunnel crowd out in Contra Costa county considered).

Posted by snowball777 at 11/03/2009 @ 11:26pm

that lines up with the voter registration which gives Dems a 19 pt advantage.

Posted by antisocialist at 11/03/2009 @ 11:39pm
Well, I believe we got a fairly good indication of how reliable the youth vote is, was...

whatever...

Posted by Benchrest at 11/03/2009 @ 11:41pm
That's not funny.

Posted by Benchrest at 11/03/2009 @ 11:36pm

i know.

Posted by frosty zoom at 11/03/2009 @ 11:45pm
Another tid bit of "economy is so bad"...

Oct. business bankruptcy was up 24% vs. Oct. `08

Year-to-date figure is up 16% vs. `08

In another word, they are accelerating.....fits with my own recent observations of retail storefronts closing up!

Ain't Hopey and Changey Great? Yes, We Can....

There is, as usual, a silver lining.....the remaining businesses will get a bit more business....and the cycle repeats.....

Magic needs to continue his policies and NOT turn to supply-side, trickle-down economics! He just needs more time, don't we all agree on that? Even for entirely different reasons?

The US needs to educate another generation of conservatives-to-be and there is no better `professor' than The Messiah of Unemployment!

Jimmy Carter will soon be a distant memory.....his Legacy to be replaced by pure Magic!

Hoffman `10!!

Posted by Happy at 11/03/2009 @ 11:47pm
oh, fuck off, happy.

president "i know dick all" mccain would have blundered this mess even more.

and you know it.

so just shut up and enjoy the last of the fiatscos you can scrape out of america's festering financial hide.

Posted by frosty zoom at 11/03/2009 @ 11:50pm
It's hardest to shut myself up when I am extra HAPPY!

All in all, losing a House seat in deep Blue NY, and gaining two Governors, one in deep, deep Blue NJ, and assorted downticket dessert.....not bad, not bad at all!

It will be amusing to see how the Dems' media buddies superhype the NY-23 contest tomorrow.....

Hoffman `10!

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Posted by Happy at 11/03/2009 @ 11:56pm
$100 million from his own pocket, a weak almost unknown opponent & this is the best Bloomie can do? Not to mention a shamefully low turnout, even for a mayoral election.

Bodes not well for Bloomberg's buying the GOP nomination in '12 & seriously challenging Obama.

Good news for Romney & Huckabee perhaps, even better news for Obama.

Bloomie is usually a very smart guy when it comes to $$$. He may not throw good after bad after this.

Posted by sloper at 11/04/2009 @ 01:14am
Posted by Happy at 11/03/2009 @ 11:56pm |

"All in all, losing a House seat in deep Blue NY..."

Deep blue?!? They hadn't elected a Dem in NY23 since the reconstruction!

Apparently even the TeaParty(tm) machine couldn't help the human-vegetable hybrid they backed.

Posted by snowball777 at 11/04/2009 @ 08:27am
You'll like this one from Colbert, Happy:

CA is in such dire financial straits, they recently tried to burn it down for the insurance money!

Posted by snowball777 at 11/04/2009 @ 08:30am
Deep blue?!? They hadn't elected a Dem in NY23 since the reconstruction!

Posted by snowball777 at 11/04/2009 @ 08:27am

CA is in such dire financial straits, they recently tried to burn it down for the insurance money!

Posted by snowball777 at 11/04/2009 @ 08:30am

NY-23 is a rather interesting anomaly.....thought Hoffman would win, probably would bet on it.....just goes to show, I can be fallible....LOL!

NY-23, like the seat Tom Delay gave up and then lost to a Dem in a Speical Election, will revert back at the next Congressional election, not much doubt on that.

Whatever it is you folks in CA is drinking, please continue to do so, as demonstrated by Gara????'s win. We Texans are pulling for CA to be `business as usual' , those that don't like it, likely the productive class, are welcome here. Others like you, if you come, please confine your choice to Austin as it is already polluted.

Posted by Happy at 11/04/2009 @ 10:09am
Posted by Happy at 11/04/2009 @ 10:09am |

Not a chance, Hap...I like oceans and I've already lived near the Gulf when my dad was in the airforce.

It will be the exodus from El Centro turning your lone star a 'deep blue', I'm afraid.

As for flipping back...probably, but only because every incumbent will be under the gun next time around.

Posted by snowball777 at 11/04/2009 @ 11:28am
It will be the exodus from El Centro turning your lone star a 'deep blue', I'm afraid.

Posted by snowball777 at 11/04/2009 @ 11:28am

I have contact w/many more Hispanics than blacks, other than my tenants....

I don't buy into the Dems belief it has a lock on the Hispanic votes. Assimilated browns, bi-lingual to English-only, are not liberals....they know hard work and recognize opportunities....they were not born to take!

Posted by Happy at 11/04/2009 @ 2:49pm
Posted by Happy at 11/04/2009 @ 2:49pm

Yes, and this was the basis of George Bush and Karl Rove's initially successful attempts to make inroads in the Latino community. But then the Lou Dobbs wing of the GOP became dominant and, even though the MAINSTREAM media kept on saying that immigration "reform" would be one of the main issues in the 2008 elections, it ended up helping the right in only a few races and drove Latino support for the GOP right back down to historically low levels.

When you are the obvious political party of most of the rich and powerful, it will always be harder to win the support of the working stiff. That's why the ruling class keeps the Democrats around, to steer the oppressed into safe, acceptable "efforts" at reform.

Posted by cka2nd at 11/04/2009 @ 4:07pm
Posted by Happy at 11/04/2009 @ 2:49pm |

My admittedly skewed sample set from Mexico, Brazil, and Argentina are all liberals and have PhDs, but worry not, they found work in Boston, not Austin.

Posted by snowball777 at 11/04/2009 @ 4:42pm