Michael Bloomberg's Polite Authoritarianism - New Republic

[Cal Carpenter]

Michael Bloomberg's Polite Authoritarianism

He never hid his callous indifference to civil liberties; too many people just didn't care.
By Alex Pareene

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Occupy and the 2004 RNC were special events, which, to Bloomberg and his defenders, justified the bulldozing of civil liberties. But his entire mayoralty was defined less by these mass displays of authoritarian force than by the everyday abuses his police committed against millions of New Yorkers of color as part of his police department’s stop-and-frisk policy. The NYCLU reports that the NYPD made more than five million “stops” during Bloomberg’s 12 years in office. The overwhelming majority of those targeted were black or Latino.

When a federal judge finally ruled the NYPD’s tactics unconstitutional, Bloomberg essentially threw a tantrum, accusing her of being anti-cop and insinuating that she would have blood on her hands once the murder rate crawled back up. (The bad old days will return if we ever take our foot off the necks of black New Yorkers is a common refrain in New York politics, and it’s one Bloomberg was happy to endorse while campaigning for his third term alongside his predecessor, one Rudy Giuliani.)

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Bloomberg said and did all these things because he is an authoritarian. He has explicitly argued that “our interpretation of the Constitution” will have to change to give citizens less privacy and the police more power to search and spy on them. In fact, he does not seem to believe that certain people have innate civil rights that the state must respect. If the NYPD wanted to spy on Muslims, even if they lived outside New York City, solely because of their religion or ethnicity, Michael Bloomberg thought it was a great idea. And as Jack Shafer recently pointed out, his dedication to ensuring submission began before he was an elected official—when he was the boss at a company notorious for its tyrannical treatment of employees.

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Today, Bloomberg remains popular among a certain class of journalist or media figure. The fact that they can dismiss the violation of the civil rights of literally millions of black New Yorkers in a single aside is depressing proof that they, too, are ultimately indifferent to the question of police power when applied to certain communities. Bloomberg’s authoritarianism, like his long history of sexist behavior, was a known fact long before he launched his presidential bid. While his defenders and voters spent the 2000s ignoring evidence of the latter, they often accepted the former; many even approved of it.


more....

https://newrepublic.com/article/156560/michael-bloombergs-polite-authoritarianism

I expect this from the media and some parts of the party leadership. What worries me is how many people right here on DU are dismissing these civil rights violations and unconstitutional policies that were applied to mostly black and brown communities.

[empedocles]

1. traitortrump does not have all these intraparty and bot attacks, a major

advantage for trump.

[PETRUS]

3. Who are you calling a bot, Alex Pareene, or Cal Carpenter? nt

[Skya Rhen]

2. Almost ALL of the MSM journalists are pushing Bloomberg on us, to a point where it's sickening.

[MBS]

4. Bingo.

I'm also amazed how many people think that his candidacy is OK, especially given his M.O. of buying the nomination with his personal funds, including targeted donations to political supporters. If we nominate candidates win the nomination this way, we will lose all credibility as a party, especially in the general election.

Anyone who doesn't think that Trump won't have a field day portraying Bloomberg in the GE as an old, east-coast elitist oligarch (never mind that the same description applies to Trump, who never lets hypocrisy stop him; plus Bloomberg is 4-5 years older even than Trump), or thinks that such a portrayal won't work, is dreaming. Nominating someone like this (yes, indeed, a septuagenarian east-coast oligarch who bought his nomination) will rob the Democrats of any claim to be a party that looks out for the interests of the common citizen.

[Garrett78]

6. He has a long history of literally buying support. Flat-out bribery. Plus racism, misogyny, etc.

Turnout will be suppressed and even more people will become disenchanted at a time when opposition to the status quo is already the driving force in the US.

This Bloomberg talk is both sickening and insane.

[Turin_C3PO]

9. I agree but

we need to get behind him 100% if he’s our nominee. We can’t risk a second Trump term. Same if Sanders is the nominee. Those two are my least favorites so I hope it doesn’t come down to that.

[jcmaine72]

10. So you agree with Garrett that he is responsible for "Flat-out bribery. Plus racism, and misogyny,"

But you're still urging people to get behind Bloomberg 100%?

Is there anyone left on this website who still believes we're better than this as a party? That we don't have to sell our souls to one demon to defeat another?

What planet am I living on?

[UniteFightBack]

13. What's RIDICULOUS is you calling him a demon and equating him with dump...he is NOWHERE in the same

fucking league. So just STOP. If Bloomberg is so offensive to you then get behind Biden since he is his main competition. I'm voting for who win by the largest margin IN THE SWING STATES and purity tests can be shoved.

[jcmaine72]

16. Sorry, but this guy earned his place beside beelzebub's bubbling cauldron

"We disproportionately stop whites too much and minorities too little".

Twelve years of systematic civil rights abuses against POC is about as demonic as it gets, so you STOP. That might be an easy thing for you to casually dismiss but I can assure it will not be to the countless African American voters who stay home on Election Day rather than vote for this proven and documented racist. The swing states will mean nothing then.

Besides, do you honestly think the image of Bloomberg standing on a milk crate to deliver his speeches is really gonna be such a home run in places like Wisconsin and Michigan? Yeah, purity tests won't matter, but he literally won't have anything else to stand on then.

[UniteFightBack]

18. If you think black folks are gonna stay home on election day then you don't know any black folks

and your exact same attack on Bloomberg about his height is what dump said. You have ZERO credibility.

[jcmaine72]

20. If you think African Americans will just casually forget his racist past you know even less.

And your casual dismissal of twelve years of systematic civil rights abuses against POC in NYC puts your credibility rating at less than zero.

You really need to ask yourself if this is who you really want to represent our diverse party. If you honestly think Bloomberg is the best choice given his history of racism, misogyny and support for Dumbya Bush, then go right ahead and embrace him and his past. Just don't be shocked if the people who see Bloomberg for what he really is take a pass.

[UniteFightBack]

21. I'm from NYC so save it....and by the way black folks are ALREADY breaking for Bloomberg.

So what are you talking about?

If black folks see he can win and beat dump they are going to vote for him....don't be surprised if Biden bombs that black folks go to Bloomberg. IT'S OBVIOUS.

[jcmaine72]

22. Just out of curiosity...

Can you you link me to a source showing this massive upsurge in African American support for Bloomberg?

Thanks

[UniteFightBack]

23. I presume you know how to google. "Black support Bloomberg rise". nt

[jcmaine72]

31. I did, and got jack diddley squat.

Since you couldn't link to any credible news sources either showing this grassroots explosion in popularity Bloomberg is allegedly enjoying in the African American community, you probably got a similar result.

[UniteFightBack]

33. OK here you go...maybe you ain't so good with the google.

https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/482613-biden-sees-black-support-erode-to-bloomberg

https://www.newsweek.com/michael-bloomberg-voter-support-grows-surpassing-pete-buttigieg-new-poll-finds-1484667

https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/02/bloomberg-and-the-black-vote-in-2020.html

https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/jury-black-voters-bloomberg-stop-frisk-apology/story?id=67117781
snip from the abc article:

A nationwide Quinnipiac poll released Monday shows Bloomberg with 22% support from African Americans -- a 15-point boost from the same polling outfit two weeks earlier -- and within striking distance of Biden’s 27% support, down more than 20 points since late January.

[jcmaine72]

34. Even that same article you're quoting from asserts that the

verdict is still out on his scripted apology.

And Quinnipiac? Pfft! Hardly an unimpeachable source.

[Turin_C3PO]

14. I don't like Bloomberg.

At all. But he’s light years better than a Trump. Trump must go.

[jcmaine72]

19. No.

Joe Biden is light years better than Trump.

Elizabeth Warren is light years better than Trump.

Bernie is light years better than Trump.

Amy Klobuchar is light years better than Trump.

Mike Bloomberg? No.

[MBS]

11. I agree 100%. N/t

[left-of-center2012]

5. Thank you for yet another attack on Bloomberg

I wish we'd put as much effort into attacking Trump.

[Cal Carpenter]

7. Any comments on the substance of the article?

Because these are FACTS, not attacks. Are you ready to dismiss the racist authoritarianism of Bloomberg because he's more polite than Trump and is opportunistically calling himself a Democrat these days?

-----------

Bloomberg on Guiliani: "He was a mayor who made a very good positive contribution to this city"

"You’ll never get me to say anything bad about Rudy Giuliani"

https://observer.com/2012/10/mayor-bloomberg-would-be-shocked-by-a-rudy-giuliani-comeback-campaign/

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Bloomberg happily took Guiliani's support and endorsement when he ran for a third term as NYC mayor:

"Mr. Bloomberg has had many opportunities to disavow Mr. Giuliani’s remarks, to say that as a city we’re better than that, to repudiate (as he has before) the very idea that exploiting fear and division for political gain is acceptable in this great city. But he has chosen not to. "

"This had all the appearance of Mayor Bloomberg piggybacking on Giuliani’s fear-mongering."

"The Mike Bloomberg that New Yorkers came to know during his first two terms as mayor was not the same man who remained shamefully silent last Sunday, willing to benefit politically from Mr. Giuliani’s toxic remarks. "

https://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/24/opinion/24herbert.html

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As I've said before, I will do everything I can to discourage support of Bloomberg in the primary because when it comes down to the general I can't look my black and brown friends in the eye and ask them to vote for him. It is unconscionable to think he can represent the Democratic Party and our nation.

I surely do hope he does fulfill his promise to spend a billion on whoever wins the primary. But given his inconsistency and lack of principle I won't believe it until I see it.

[BeckyDem]

24. +1 Thank you, Cal.

[emmaverybo]

8. He also mounted a spying and surveillance operation against Muslims post-9/11. Like his use of

stop and frisk, all Muslims were suspect for being Muslim. The FBI had to stop Bloomberg, His anti-Muslim program resulted in zero leads. He turned Muslims against Muslims, spied on Mosques, even had Muslims listened in on while chatting at restaurants. In these cases, no cause was needed to suspect Muslims of terrorist
activity.

The last line in the following paragraph should give all of us pause.

snip———————————

Bloomberg called for the weakening of constitutional privacy protections after the Boston Marathon bombing. “We have to understand that in the world going forward,” he stated, “we’re going to have more cameras and that kind of stuff. That’s good in some senses, but it’s different than what we are used to. And the people who are worried about privacy have a legitimate worry, but we live in a complex world where you’re going to have a level of security greater than you did back in the olden days, if you will. And our laws and our interpretation of the Constitution I think have to change.”

And he cannot be trusted to respect the civil rights of Muslims, as he illustrated after 9/11, when he presided over blatant religious profiling. Starting shortly after the attacks, officers infiltrated Muslim communities and spied on hundreds or perhaps thousands of innocents at mosques, colleges, and elsewhere.


Bloomberg called for the weakening of constitutional privacy protections after the Boston Marathon bombing. “We have to understand that in the world going forward,” he stated, “we’re going to have more cameras and that kind of stuff. That’s good in some senses, but it’s different than what we are used to. And the people who are worried about privacy have a legitimate worry, but we live in a complex world where you’re going to have a level of security greater than you did back in the olden days, if you will. And our laws and our interpretation of the Constitution I think have to change.”

https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2019/11/bloomberg-civil-liberties/602239/

[MerryBlooms]

25. This was a very big deal at the time- House Dems Slam Bloomberg on Muslim Spying

The Associated Press has reported that the NYPD systematically spied on Muslims neighborhoods, using informants and undercover officers to serve as "listening posts" in mosques and businesses in New York and New Jersey. Police documented the details of sermons, even when they were innocuous and peaceful, and infiltrated Muslim student groups on college campuses. NYPD officers catalogued where Muslims ate, eat and prayed — with no mention of criminal activity — and targeted Mosques using techniques typically reserved for criminal investigations.

In a March 22 letter to Bloomberg, members of Congress called for an end to the NYPD's out-of-state spying. Lawmakers said they were troubled by the tactics and by the city's response to concerns.

Bloomberg has defended his department's actions as lawful and necessary to keep the city safe. He and his administration have brushed off concerns, sometimes flippantly, raised by lawmakers, community leaders and civil rights groups who say the NYPD's activities are constitutionally suspect.

https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/nypd-spying-bloomberg-letter-congress/1975255/

[emmaverybo]

28. Thank you for post.Not one lead was developed from Bloomberg's rogue operation. The FBI asked

him to stop. He put an undercover on a student rafting excursion to spy on young Muslims.

[UniteFightBack]

12. Calling him the same label as dump is really damaging to our cause. nt

[emmaverybo]

30. What will damage us and for years will be to embrace a man who shares some of Trump's worst

traits and who has shredded civil liberties at a local level on a wide basis. What could he be
empowered to do nationally under the guise of gun control, crime fighting, and counter-terrorism?

Endorsing a man who will be buying an election to become the most powerful person in the world will taint us and severely weaken our case against Trump and the Republicans.

We have good candidates who represent the cherished ideals of the Democratic Party. Many people will sit home if Bloomberg is our nominee.

[WhiskeyGrinder]

15. Quite a few on here are willing to go with a bigoted authoritarian, as long as he's OUR bigoted

authoritarian who WINS! It's horrifying.

[jcmaine72]

17. Sickening, isn't it?

[I_UndergroundPanther]

26. That is horrible

I don't like or trust Bloomberg. It's his past his authoritarian bullshit,and his disregard for term limits,

I will have to bring a barf bag to the voting booth if he wins the nomination. I feel a very strong
wariness about trusting him with power. A DINO..is my perception of him.

He has a very shady past and that bothers me alot. It's not a purity test, I just can't trust him,myself.

I don't want to vote for him if I don't have to....Because I will be voting blue no matter who , I might be forced to vote for him.

But Bernie or Warren I will vote for with a big smile on my face.

[Amimnoch]

27. You want to stop his support dead in its tracks? here's how..

Quit posting divisive bullshit like this, and do what he's doing that is gaining him the support he's getting..

Start attacking Tramp with just 1/10th the fervor that you, your compatriot supporters of BS, the Stein supporting brigade of campaign leadership of bS, and BS himself are wasting attacking Beto.. then Biden.. then Buttigieg.. now Bloomberg..

You THINK you can actually attack the actual Republican in office with just a tad bit of that same energy that you acolytes of BS have for attacking other candidates...

So here..

I don't give a FUCK what you Democratic Party candidate BS attack dogs drudge up on Bloomberg, or ANY of our other candidates any longer.. Totally numb to it. FFS, you've driven me and people like me to start viewing our candidates the same way they do..

So here you go.. Bloomberg could walk down fucking 5th avenue and shoot someone and I'd STILL support him over BS any fucking day. Biden could say "i'm PROUD of my vote for the Iraq war" and I'd still support him over BS. Articles could come to light that Buttigieg committed atrocious war crimes during his time in the military and I'd STILL support him over BS.

No more patience at all for the foolish independent detractor that spends all his time attacking our fellow Democratic Party members and leadership.. Hell, Gabbard could announce openly that she actually IS a Russian asset, and will go to war with Iran if elected, and I'd STILL support her before I'd support BS.

Bloomberg 2020.. He knows Trump's the enemy.

ANY Democratic Party candidate BUT BS 2020!

[Steelrolled]

29. I'm getting the impression

you aren't feeling the burn.

[BeckyDem]

32. Charles M. Blow @CharlesMBlow THREAD: 1.

Link to tweet