Bloomberg in 2013: Civil libertarians and teachers union are like NRA 'extremists'

[DanTex]

Michael Bloomberg has made it his late life’s mission to take on the National Rifle Association, calling the organization “shameful,” “dangerous” and extreme.

The problem now that he’s seeking the Democratic nomination? In his final year as New York mayor, Bloomberg compared two groups core to the Democratic base — a local faction of the American Civil Liberties Union and the New York City teachers union — to the NRA.

“We don’t need extremists on the left or the right running our police department, whether it’s the NRA or the NYCLU,” the then-mayor Bloomberg said of the New York Civil Liberties Union, in a 2013 speech in which he defended the city’s controversial stop-and-frisk policy.

...

Referring to leadership of the United Federation of Teachers, Bloomberg said in 2013: "The NRA’s another place where the membership, if you do the polling, doesn't agree with the leadership.”

More at link.

https://www.politico.com/news/2020/02/16/michael-bloomberg-teachers-civil-libertarians-nra-115430

[rzemanfl]

1. Heaven forfend! n/t

[whathehell]

4. Um, yeah, being against labor unions and civil liberties are not

exactly Democratic values..Just sayin'.

[mr_lebowski]

2. Why would we want politics running the police department?

And the quote on the teacher's union requires more context. Could be something offensive, could be not.

The fact that he's staked out a position as a pragmatic moderate is very helpful in the states we really need to win come November.

Do I think it's unfortunate that this is 'the state of things'? Most definitely. But it is the state of things.

Also ... bullshit Politico headline FTL ...

[Squinch]

5. Nope. I'm not a teacher, but I'm a medical member of the teacher's union. He shit all over us.

Affected my earning capacity for years.

And you know what? I STILL think he's the only one who can beat Filthy Donnie.

This is kind of my point. I get that Bloomberg hurt people. I'm one of those people. BUT THAT DOESN"T MATTER! All that pales when you consider the stakes of this election.

He is the only one running a campaign that is appropriate for 2020. Everyone else is running a campaign for 2004.

Everything is at stake this year. Nothing else matters but getting Trump out.

[squirecam]

6. Really?

He is the ONLY one that can save us?

[Squinch]

7. Of these candidates? Unless we coalesce around one of the moderates really soon? Yes.

[squirecam]

9. Then we should drop Bloomberg from consideration

As he said he would spend $ regardless if he wins or loses.

Then we can pick someone else, more palatable to us and our values and beliefs.

[Squinch]

12. My fear is that we drop Bloomberg, we get BS, and we lose. Super Tuesday will

tell where things are going.

[uponit7771]

16. THANK YOU !!!

[Dream Girl]

8. I think so. I don't think Amy can do it.

[mr_lebowski]

18. I'll take your word for it as I don't know either way wrt his attitude towards teachers unions

And that is disappointing to hear.

I'm basically staking out a position here where I end up 'feeling OK about it' if he wins the nomination.

I really need to hear more about his positions on the issues, and I want to see how he handles himself on the debate stage and see if he can get people out to some campaign events.

It's one thing to throw your $60B around on fancy campaign commercials, leveraging the talent that $60B buys you. It's another to command a stage and a crowd in a public setting.

[Squinch]

21. He was actually pretty good to the cop and firefighter unions, though.

[mr_lebowski]

24. Well, to NOT be good to them in NYC in the post-9/11 era would've been political suicide

So it's hard to really gauge what that amounts to, if I'm honest.

[whathehell]

27. So was Rep. Gov. Scott Walker -- It was only the Female-dominated unions

Unions, i.e. the Teachers Union, he shat on.


.

[whathehell]

23. WHY are people consumed by the idea that "Only Bloomberg can beat Trump"?

It makes no sense to me or anyone I've talked to, especially since polls tell us ANY and all the candidates would beat him from a few to several points?

I think people need to calm down a bit before voting for someone who stands against everything the Democratic Party stands for, and that means RESPECTING people, especially those who are physically or socio-economically weaker.

[mr_lebowski]

25. He's pro-choice, pro-environment, pro-reasonable-gun-control, pro-LGBT rights ...

And demonstrably so.

That's hardly 'standing against everything the Democratic Party stands for'.

Just sayin'

[whathehell]

32. So are all of the other candidates, and NONE of them have

almost 40 Sexual Harassment and Discrimination suits filed against him & his company by 64 women.....Just sayin'.

[Squinch]

33. And none of them is running against Filthy Donnie. They are all running against

each other. This election is different from any that has ever been run before. None of the others have given any indication that they understand this.

We can't afford to lose.

[whathehell]

34. Of course they are, but the Primaries are part & parcel of the process

and Mke will soon have to "dirty his hands", as it were, by joining them.
.
As a 70 year old lifelong Democrat, I KNOW what this election is about.

[Squinch]

35. Mark my words: Bloomberg will never enter the dogfight the other candidates are waging

among themselves. He will laser all his energies on Trump.

He knows his record is out there for all to see. Clearly, from his actions, he knows where his hands are dirtiest. He's doing what he can to mitigate that.

But he'll never get into a back and forth with any other candidate but Trump, and because of that there will be a very subtle psychological effect on the voters that he is above all that, that he is a person of more weight and gravitas, and that he has already beaten those people he won't engage with. It was a tactic he used in NYC. It is very effective.

[whathehell]

36. So you think he'll just try and buy his way in?

Sorry, but I don't believe that will work for him..New York City doesn't represent the country, and I think many voters, certainly Democrats, will be repulsed at perceived efforts to "buy" his way out of the rough and tumble all the other, less wealthy candidates must endure.

In the #MeToo era, I very much doubt he'll get nominated by a Female Majority party...He can run as an Independent, but that's a huge pitfall as well.

[Squinch]

37. That has nothing whatsoever to do with what I said.

[whathehell]

46. Oh, I think it definitely does

because the scenario you've presented is of one who creates an image of himself with paid advertising he can control, rather than of one stepping onto a debate stage he cannot.

[Squinch]

48. Now you're just making up shit in your head and having a conversation with it.

[whathehell]

54. Lol..Looks like I hit a nerve

I'll just take it as "surrender noises"

[Squinch]

55. Wow! Keep going. This is fascinating.

[whathehell]

57. So glad you enjoyed it

I, on the other hand, am getting a bit bored and so will be saying "adieu"

[aikoaiko]

14. Maybe then police wouldn't have conducted stop and frisk which led to people rotting in jail.

Oops, I keep forgetting that's what Bloomberg wanted.

[Squinch]

19. No. The crime bill that Bernie voted for led to people rotting in jail.

Stop and frisk led to unconstitutional stops and frisks.

[mr_lebowski]

26. Did Biden vote for that bill? I forget ... (nt)

[Squinch]

28. He wrote it.

[mr_lebowski]

39. OH YEAH, that's right. I knew there was SOMETHING ... thanks ;) (nt)

[Squinch]

41. We should take this on the road.

[mr_lebowski]

51. Not to take anything away from ya ...

But I'm thinking Lebowksi & Squinch is the better name than the converse. It flows, ya know?

I'd go see us, we sound hella funny just by the name.

When are going to meet and get our act together?

Also, you reminded me of a favorite song (prolly figure out why from the opening verse), so I'ma post it here ... maybe lighten the tense mood with some unifying and collective appreciation for genius ...

[Squinch]

52. I LOVE that song! I can live with Lebowski & Squinch but we'll have to talk about the split!

And YOU wear the tutu.

[mr_lebowski]

56. Yes, and if I may say, while my taste in music is unquestionably impeccable ...

It's really my humility that's most-admired

50-50 of course ... and it WOULD be funnier if I wore the tutu ... so ... SURE!

Bring the Family and Slow Turning are absolutely drop-dead GREAT records ... college days for me. LOVE THEM still.

[Squinch]

60. They were the background music to my early years working

in NYC in a career that was lots more glamorous than the one I have now.

I was that swanky thing with the shoulder pads and big hair.

[aikoaiko]

29. Oh Biden's Crime Bill? Bernie criticized the problem of jailing too many people at the time.

The unconstitutional stops and frisks led to jail time.

[Squinch]

31. Bernie criticized it and then signed it. Which led to lots and lots of unwarranted incarcerations.

[Squinch]

38. PS: The incarceration rate during Bloomberg's tenure actually dropped. A lot.

[guillaumeb]

3. Recommended.

If Bloomberg thinks that being a union member is extremist, or supporting the ACLU, that tells me what I need to know about Bloomberg.

[mr_lebowski]

20. Per that quote, he's not saying union members are extremist ...

He's saying the rank-and-file don't necessarily agree with the leadership's positions.

Same could totally be said about many Unions. Teamster's are definitely one, much to my chagrin.

Rush DYING might help a bit with that one. His being on the radio EVERYWHERE these guys drive, with no reliable counter-voice ... is definitely not helping that situation.

[MineralMan]

42. I've heard the same kind of arguments from Sanders supporters

when some union endorses Biden. "The union leaders don't really represent the membership...."

[aikoaiko]

10. Holy fuck he hates the New York Civil Liberties Union and Teacher's Unions.

[uponit7771]

11. OK, so more and more MB sounds like a republican AT HEART and we're supposed to believe he's

... going to be a democrat in office ?!

WTF man

[squirecam]

15. I know.

Incredible.

[mr_lebowski]

22. He's very pro-choice, very pro-environment, and very pro-reasonable-gun-control

And pro-LGBT rights.

Those are all pretty freaking important to me, personally.

And not something you're going to see from any Republican.

YMMV of course.

[uponit7771]

58. He also has a history of being very racist against PoC, the kind of take your kids level of racist

... which might be slightly better than Trump.

He's good to me the rest of you can go to hell is something I pray DNC isn't turning into.

[mr_lebowski]

59. If this was 2008 and my other option was McCain?

I'd be totally 'DOWN WITH BLOOMBERG' ... not going to lie. But I'm willing to give him a chance because of the current ... uh ... situation. Say what you want, I'll own it.

It's not 'to hell with everyone else', I'm making a specific retort to a specific (wrong, IMHO) claim.

[Amimnoch]

13. These working out for you, hun?

Making you feel better?

I sure hope so.

Maybe someday you can join us in going after Tramp.

Until then, goodday.

[jmg257]

17. OMG - I was unaware! ...

[bluewater]

30. K&R

[MineralMan]

40. Meanwhile, Bloomberg attacks nobody but Trump.

Do you think this kind of crap helps Bernie? Really?

Is Bernie really so frightened of Bloomberg that he puts out this kind of weak talking point? Or did you think it up on your own?

[DanTex]

43. Huh? Bloomberg is attacking NYCLU and AFT. Those groups aren't Trump.

Quite the opposite, in fact.

A lot of Dems and liberals generally are supportive of civil liberties groups and unions, and might be interested in where the various candidates stand with relation to them and the issues they fight for. Not everyone, of course.

[MineralMan]

44. Not really, he isn't. Read more closely.

What did Sanders supporters say when a couple of major unions endorsed Biden? Same thing.

Your talking points are getting weaker and weaker. Surely you aren't getting these from the Sanders campaign?

[DanTex]

45. Yes really, he is. Comparing them to the NRA isn't a compliment.

Bloomberg's anti-union and anti-civil liberties policies are well known, but I didn't know he went so far as to compare them to the NRA.

Like I said, I'm sure there are some Dem voters that aren't so concerned about civil liberties and unions, and for those voters, this story won't matter much. Maybe those voters are more interested in grainy videos from the 70s and 80s. Big tent and all. But for voters who care about those issues, this is significant.

[MineralMan]

47. Oh, bother. Nobody cares about your picky slams on Bloomberg.

Truly. You folks are wasting your time and hurting the Sanders campaign.

It's almost funny, really.

Here. Go read this!

https://www.mikebloomberg.com/policies/labor

[DanTex]

49. I'm guessing a lot of Dems actually do care about unions and civil liberties.

[MineralMan]

50. But we don't care about your talking points:

How does a 43% raise for teachers in NYC sound to you.

How about a 42% increase in high school graduation.

Look it up.

https://www.mikebloomberg.com/policies/education-college-access

[DanTex]

53. Guess it depends who you mean by "we".

If you mean people who will take what it says on Bloomberg's campaign website over what the actual teachers' unions say, then maybe.

Like I said, big tent. Different people care about different issues.