Bloomberg Quits G.O.P., Stirring Talk About ’08 Race

By ADAM NAGOURNEY
The New York Times
June 19, 2007

Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg of New York announced this evening that he was quitting the Republican Party and changing his political affiliation to independent.

The announcement came after Mr. Bloomberg gave a speech denouncing partisan gridlock in Washington, stirring renewed speculation that he is preparing to run for president in 2008 as an independent or third-party candidate.

“I have filed papers with the New York City Board of Elections to change my status as a voter and register as unaffiliated with any political party,” he said in a statement issued while he was in California delivering political speeches.

“Although my plans for the future haven’t changed, I believe this brings my affiliation into alignment with how I have led and will continue to lead our city,” the mayor said.

Mr. Bloomberg, a billionaire businessman, is a former Democrat who won the New York City mayoralty in 2001 by running as a Republican against Mark Green, the Democratic candidate. He easily won re-election in 2005.

The mayor, who cannot by law seek a third consecutive term, has said he had no plans to run for president, but he has declined to shut the door completely on a White House bid.

“We have achieved real progress by overcoming the partisanship that too often puts narrow interests above the common good,” Mr. Bloomberg said in his statement. “As a political independent, I will continue to work with those in all political parties to find common ground, to put partisanship aside and to achieve real solutions to the challenges we face”

He added: “Any successful elected executive knows that real results are more important than partisan battles and that good ideas should take precedence over rigid adherence to any particular political ideology. Working together, there s no limit to what we can do.”

The full text of his announcement can be found on the new City Room blog.

Mr. Bloomberg announced his decision after a campaign-style swing through California in which he gave a series of speeches that clearly previewed what aides have long said would be the thematic underpinnings of a Bloomberg presidential campaign, should he decide to run.

He presented himself as an antidote to partisan gridlock in Washington, suggesting that not withstanding his affiliation with the Republican Party, he brought nonpartisan government to New York.

“When you go to Washington these days, you can feel a sense of fear in the air, the fear to do anything or say anything that might affect the polls or give the other side the advantage or offend a special interest group,” Mr. Bloomberg said. “The federal government isn’t out front — it’s cowering in the back of the room.”

Should Mr. Bloomberg ultimately decide not to run for president or any other office, his announcement could become an interesting footnote to one of the more unusual mayoralties in a city that has produced a series of memorable mayors.

But Mr. Bloomberg’s decision to leave the Republican Party and become an independent was immediately viewed by many of his prospective rivals as a major jolt to the presidential campaign. Mr. Bloomberg has never shown any reluctance to use his huge personal fortune to advance his career. He spent more than $150 million on his two bids for mayor, and he would have no problem financing his own presidential campaign.

What is more, Mr. Bloomberg has arguably at least as strong a claim on New York City’s prosperity as his predecessor, Rudolph W. Giuliani, who is seeking the Republican nomination. If Mr. Bloomberg decides to run as an independent or third-party candidate, he might find that he enjoys the benefits of New York City’s successes without the ideological burdens that Mr. Giuliani has faced in trying to win the Republican nomination while being identified with such positions as supporting abortion, gay rights and gun control.

That said, several political analysts have argued that a third-party candidacy by Mr. Bloomberg could pose a problem for the Democratic Party. Until he ran for mayor, Mr. Bloomberg was a lifetime Democrat, and his success in New York reflected his ability to draw Democratic votes.

Should he enter the race, Mr. Bloomberg would join Mr. Giuliani and Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton as one of the three major New York figures seeking the presidency this year.

Mr. Bloomberg’s trip to California came in a week when he was on the cover of Time magazine and stood by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger , who told a crowd of reporters that he should run for president. Like Mr. Bloomberg, Mr. Schwarzenegger has proven successful in appealing for Democratic support after being elected as a Republican.

Mr. Bloomberg, while in California, told an audience of Google employees that the United States is “really in trouble” and used caustic language in describing what he said was timidity in Washington, contrasting that with his own approach to running New York City.

In his speech, he laid out what he said were the cornerstones of nonpartisan leadership — independence, honesty, common sense, innovation, teamwork and accountability. Mr. Bloomberg promoted his approach as mayor to issues like education, crime prevention and health care in putting those principles into practice.

“None of the initiatives we’ve undertaken are owned by the Republican or Democratic Party,” Mr. Bloomberg said. “They were built on the values of nonpartisan leadership, and they paid off.”