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funny thing happened to Michael Bloomberg on the way to being sworn
in as New York City's 108th mayor: He became a Republican.
Maybe.
Bloomberg's
acceptance speech on a frigid New Year's Day was in many respects
the most conservative that has emerged from his lips since he first
began his run for City Hall a year ago. No, he didn't call for a
full round of tax cuts. That would have been too much to ask for.
But at the same time, he announced a 20-percent staff reduction
in his office and challenged all other all other city officials
— including city-council members — to do the same.
But most shocking
was this statement: "[W]e cannot repeat the mistakes of the
past. We cannot drive people and business out of New York. We cannot
raise taxes. We will find another way." No, there wasn't a
read-my-lips moment on Tuesday, but Bloomberg at least rhetorically
popped the balloon of those who thought he would be a rubber-stamp
liberal. Cuts and a promise not to raise taxes. Republicans couldn't
be more pleased.
On the other
hand, he did give his liberal constituencies something to be happy
about by directing a sideways compliment to George W. Bush: "Within
days of the tragedy, President George W. Bush stood at ground zero
and pledged that America stands with our city. Thank you, Mr. President,
for all you have done and all that you will do to fulfill that explicit
pledge."
This was greeted
by a hardy round of applause — particularly from New York's
Democratic senators Charles Schumer and Hillary Rodham Clinton —
because it unsubtly prodded Bush and congressional Republicans to
come forward with the full $20 billion in federal reconstruction
money Bush agreed to back in September. So far, $11.1 billion has
been delivered, with the remainder promised in next year's budget.
Of course, New York's politicians have been pushing for the full
amount immediately.
A request for
patience given the general demands on the budget caused by the prosecution
of the war has elicited charges that Bush has backed away from his
"pledge." Former Mayor Rudy Giuliani (and doesn't that
phrase sound so odd?) publicly gave Bush the benefit of the doubt
on the scheduling of the aid package. So, this was Bloomberg's first
departure from his predecessor's position.
Another departure,
though slightly less unexpected, was this passage: "We will
bring new life to our waterfront and stimulate new investment in
housing, schools and, when we can afford them, the world's best
cultural and athletic facilities." The key phrase is "when
we can afford them" in relation to "athletic facilities."
Rudy may have figuratively hit a two-run homer in the bottom of
the ninth by inking a $1.8 billion deal to build new ballparks for
the Yankees and Mets, but it's quite clear that Bloomberg is in
no hurry to go ahead with the projects. The fact is, simply, there's
no money for them right now. It is difficult to envision anytime
within the next couple of years that the resources will appear.
Another rhetorical
departure from the Giuliani's last few weeks is actually rather
welcome. As marvelous as Rudy was in the immediate aftermath of
the September 11th attacks, it's fair to say if even he became too
absorbed in the enormity of that event. It's not surprising that
Time would name the mayor its "Person of the Year,"
even though arguably either Osama bin Laden or George W. Bush were
by far the more active participants in the entire breadth of events
that occurred in 2001. Giuliani was the perfect individual symbol
of 9/11 and an ideal sentimental choice (in all senses of the term).
What was surprising
is how much the mayor seemed to hold onto that sentimentality. While
the pre-9/11 Giuliani always took time to go to cop and firefighter
funerals, the post-attack has acted as if the attacks now symbolize
everything about New York. The city has seemingly been transformed
from the "ground zero" of crime reduction and urban renaissance
that it became in the mid-90s to a "ground zero" of a
different sort. The old Giuliani would have been the one to create
a vision of renewal after having fallen to an awful low point. The
latter-day Giuliani seemed to want to remain — to use the title
of a recent U2 song, "stuck in a moment you can't get out of."
This was most
vividly seen in Rudy's official farewell address to the city. He
delivered it in St. Paul's Church, two blocks from "ground
zero." Elements of the combative Giuliani remained — he
pointed out how New York's crime rate was still plunging, especially
in comparison to cities like Boston and San Diego which utilized
supposedly superior and people-friendly police techniques. However,
the conclusion of the speech was, basically that the Twin Towers
should not be rebuilt. Instead, he declared the area "hallowed
ground" that required "a soaring monumental beautiful
memorial that just draws millions of people here that just want
to see it."
He went on
to compare ground zero to "Normandy or Valley Forge or Bunker
Hill or Gettysburg." It's undoubtedly true that hundreds of
cops and firefighters died saving lives as the World Trade Center
collapsed. But that doesn't automatically put the site on the level
of those fields of battle, which were places where contested armies
strived against one another. If anything, September 11th was a date
when the U.S.'s intelligence agencies failed massively. To put that
date on the level with those historical battlefields, smacks of
the type of new age sentimentality that many believed might have
been exorcised from the public sphere on that date in September.
Obviously,
there should be some kind of memorial in downtown Manhattan, but
not at the exclusion of new World Trade Center — which is what
Giuliani seemed to be suggesting. Giuliani has already moved in
the direction of a memorial, by erecting a viewing deck for tourists
to look at ground zero.
In contrast, Bloomberg declared on Tuesday, "We will rebuild,
renew and remain the capital of the free world."
That's the
true spirit of New York. Welcome aboard, Mike.
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