Bloodless Coup

he presents an appealing alternative, for sure, especially for those of us who are looking for an excuse to vote outside the two parties. while giuliani gets all the fame for a couple of good speeches, bloomberg's quietly gone about bing a tremendous mayor of a nigh-ungovernable city.

Why do you think he has been "tremendous"?

well, off the top of my head, he negotiated an effective (read, pleases no one, but that was inevitable) resolution of the intractable ground zero mess. i've bitched about the solution, because as someone who could see the trade center from my hometown i have strong feelings about how the tragedy should be commemorated, but considering how impossible the situation was, he did a damned good job. giuliani doesn't have half the compromise in him that it required, and his inability to escape his fundamental autocracy is precisely what makes him one of the most overrated officials anywhere in a long long time. bloomberg is understated, conciliatory, and largely free of ideological entanglements. i'm not even saying i would vote for him, but i think his genuinely independent vibe, and his ability to mount a credible campaign without currying the favor of big donors, would at a minimum liven up the debate a great deal.

speaking of which, perhaps one of the wonks can educate this poseur on how money screws with the assumptions behind duverger's law. or rule. or whatever it is you call duverger's thingie.

I too think he's been a most impressive mayor. He's shown remarkable management skills. He's done an excellent job building coalitions. One can agree or disagree with his policies, but when it comes to leadership, management, and skill at achieving what he wants to achieve, he's been a successful mayor.

what about Billionaires v. Duverger? i want answers.

a propos, this small piece in today's Times provides a nice sketch of Bloomberg's successes and peculiarly effective approach to governing the city. (as well as quoting Fred Siegel (as every single damned Times article mentioning Giuliani does these days), whom i took a class with over a decade ago, and before he'd made himself a cottage industry of Giulianiana.

If you mean the piece by Sam Roberts, yes, it's very flattering to Bloomberg - but that's not the link you provided.

oh, oops. sorry.