Former Bloomberg Campaign Manager Posts 'Help Wanted' Site To Defeat De Blasio In 2017
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- In a novel way to find a candidate to run against Mayor Bill de Blasio, a digital "help wanted" ad has been placed by former Mayor Michael Bloomberg's former campaign manager.
As CBS2 Political Reporter Marcia Kramer reported, it is a serious attempt to find the right person to send the mayor packing.
There were no sightings of Mayor de Blasio on the steps of City Hall Tuesday. And if a certain political wunderkind has his way, the present mayor would be banished permanently after the next election – visiting only to see his portrait hung next to other past mayors.
"New York City deserves a mayor who's competent and honest, and I think at the moment, we have a mayor who is neither of those things," said political strategist Bradley Tusk.
Tusk is behind a new website, NYCDeservesBetter.com. The site in days to come will serve as a digital "help wanted" site to find someone to challenge Mayor de Blasio.
"For 12 years, we had in Mike Bloomberg someone who ran a government in an apolitical way – just focused on what was best for the city; didn't care about ideology or politics," Tusk said, "and we elected a mayor who is ultra-political; ultra-ideological, and the results show."
Tusk, who ran Bloomberg's successful campaign for a third term, said he has come up with a sophisticated strategy to expand turnout in the Democratic primary – people who he hopes will vote against de Blasio.
"We really just have to be able to identify a couple hundred thousand votes max," Tusk said.
For his part, the mayor is hoping that seven investigations of his actions are over by the time his reelection campaign begins, and that he will be able to showcase a record of solid accomplishments.
"You do that through affordable housing; things like minimum wage, paid family leave. You do that with educational advancements like universal pre-kindergarten," said de Blasio senior adviser Phil Walzak. "All those things together create a record that New Yorkers can have faith and trust in."
While Team de Blasio says "bring it on," Tusk is polling to see how New Yorkers feel about a slew of potential candidates – some who now hold elective office, some who do not, and some who Tusk said might decide to give it a go if they know they have a seasoned campaign operative behind them.
The first poll by "New York City Deserves Better" will be released on Wednesday. Tusk said there will be some unexpected names on the list, and he said he is also open to suggestions.
