On Friday, December 6, 2019, Gayle King of “CBS This Morning” conducted Mike Bloomberg’s first extended TV interview since he entered the 2020 Democratic primary.
At the start of this 25-minute one-on-one, when Gayle King asked why he got into the race, Bloomberg said he looked at the other candidates and thought to himself: “Donald Trump would eat them up.”
Soon after, the media lit up when Bloomberg responded to King’s mention of a tweet by Senator Cory Booker: “A Democratic debate with more self-funding billionaires than candidates of color would be a disservice to our party.”
To this, Bloomberg told King (around 16 minutes in):
“Cory Booker endorsed me a variety of occasions and I endorsed Cory Booker a variety of occasions. He’s very well-spoken, he’s acquired some good concepts….”
Though many articles have reported Bloomberg’s use of this — at best — racially-insensitive phrase, not one report mentions an ironic fact: Bloomberg was sitting in front of a Black woman when he said it.
Gayle King remained remarkably poker-faced upon hearing the phrase however one can only imagine what she was thinking.
Cory Booker responded that he was taken aback at Bloomberg’s use of what many Black people consider a racist trope:
Daily Beast reports Bloomberg later apologized for the remark:
“I probably shouldn’t have used the word, but I could just tell you he is a friend of mine,” Bloomberg told reporters in Georgia later Friday. “He is a Rhodes Scholar, which is much more impressive than my academic background. I envy him.”
Let’s get back to the Gayle King interview.
Son of a Bookkeeper:
When Gayle King probed deeper into criticism from his primary opponents about using his wealth to buy into the race, Bloomberg remarked that using his own money means he wouldn’t “owe” anyone — reminiscent of a similar rationale made by trump in the 2016 Republican primary.
After providing a synopsis of his rise from the son of a humble bookkeeper, to the ninth-richest person in the US with a net worth of $54-billion, Bloomberg referenced his primary opponents and said, “Why didn’t they go out and do what I did.”
Mike Bloomberg On His Father:
During this interview, and also on his website, Bloomberg states that his father was “… a bookkeeper at a local dairy who never earned more than $6,000 a year in his life.”
Yet, on the Harvard Business School website, the page for the Baker Library/Bloomberg Center states former NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg is:
“The son of real-estate agent William Henry Bloomberg and Charlotte Rubens Bloomberg.…”
Could it be Mike Bloomberg is attempting to scrub from his bio any comparisons to trump being the billionaire son of a man in real estate?
Or, is the Harvard Business School website simply wrong about what Bloomberg’s father did for a living back in the day.
Perhaps it’s my cynicism that leads me to believe it’s the former: he’s scrubbing his bio.
My cynicism also had me questioning another comment made by Bloomberg at the end of his interview.
He tells Gayle King about the moment when he discovered his father had made a $50 donation to the NAACP. And when Mike asked his Dad why he donated the money, his father had said:
“Because discrimination against anyone is a threat to everyone.”
The reference to his father’s NAACP donation is also mentioned on the Bloomberg campaign website though it states the amount was “$25 or $50.”
This NAACP donation is also mentioned in his book, Bloomberg on Bloomberg, when explaining how his father taught him the importance of philanthropy at a “very young” age:
“I have never forgotten seeing my father write out a check for $25 or $50 – which was a lot of money for us – to the NAACP.”
Clearly, this interview with Gayle King will not be the last time we hear this personal anecdote about how his father inspired his philanthropy as the primary continues.
Yes – Michael Bloomberg has donated a lot of money to good causes to date. And I do not doubt his father made a donation to the NAACP.
In my opinion, his repeating of the family story about his father’s NAACP donation — on his website and again in the Gayle King interview — is something I find as a blatant attempt to woo Black voters.
Yet, at the same time, he reveals something troubling about himself when, in the same interview, he characterizes Rhodes Scholar and Yale Law School graduate, Senator Corey Booker, as “well-spoken.”
Even more mind-boggling to me, was Bloomberg’s response when it came to:
The ‘Stop and Frisk’ Question.
When Gayle King asked him about the timing of his recent apology for his ‘Stop and Frisk’ policy, Bloomberg said: “No one asked me about it until I ran for president.”
This is simply a lie.
‘Stop and Frisk’ has been debated in the NYC press, in the political arena, and nationwide, for many years.
Worse — until his 2019 apology, Mike Bloomberg consistently defended the policy when asked about it.
Especially when, in 2013, Floyd v. City of New York challenged the ‘Stop and Frisk’ policy.
“… the historic Floyd v. City of New York stop-and-frisk trial included an appearance and words from Reverend Jesse Jackson at the Communities United for Police Reform rally and press conference on the opening day (March 18). Speaking on the movement to change the NYPD and its abusive and discriminatory stop-and-frisk practices, Rev. Jackson said ''We will not give up until we get justice." He further criticized the department and the city administration for seeking to justify stop and frisk. Other speakers included individuals who have been unjustly stopped, elected officials, and community and faith leaders.
The week concluded with revelations of ongoing quotas (in classic NYPD doublespeak referred to as 'performance targets') and directives to target "male blacks 14-20, 21" from commanding officers….” (ChangeTheNYPD.org)
The same year, when the New York City Council proposed legislation to appoint an Inspector General to monitor the NYPD’s ‘Stop and Frisk’ practices, Bloomberg objected to the proposal in a speech at 1 Police Plaza:
In a speech brimming with vitriol, Mayor Michael Bloomberg took aim at all who have criticized the NYPD’s controversial stop-and-frisk policy, accusing them of encouraging a lawless mayhem state.
Mayor Michael Bloomberg unleashed a 45 minute tirade in defense of the police tactic, accusing those who support legislation for an Independent Inspector General of playing politics, and panning the media for turning a blind eye to murders in minority communities.
“Make no mistake, this is a dangerous piece of legislation and anyone who supports it is courting disaster,” Bloomberg said, addressing a crowd of dozens of uniformed police officers on the second floor of police headquarters. “If you end street stops looking for guns, there will be more guns on the streets, and more people will be killed. It’s that simple.”
Over the years, Bloomberg has consistently argued that ‘Stop and Frisk’ protected minority communities from gun violence when the facts proved otherwise.
After the 2013 Floyd v. NYC trial concluded, Think Progress reported:
“… weapons and drugs were more often found on white New Yorkers during stops than on minorities, according to the Public Advocate’s analysis of the NYPD’s 2012 statistics.
White New Yorkers make up a small minority of stop-and-frisks, which were 84 percent black and Latino residents. Despite this much higher number of minorities deemed suspicious by police, the likelihood that stopping an African American would find a weapon was half the likelihood of finding one on a white person.”
Like other 2020 Democratic candidates, Mike Bloomberg will likely find it a challenge to gain the confidence of Black voters considering his ‘Stop and Frisk’ history.
Again, it may be my cynicism leading me to question what I see as an attempt by Bloomberg to revise the facts.
Especially in an interview with a Black woman where he bluntly uses a racist trope to describe the only Black person still running for president in 2020.
Then again, back in 2007, Joe Biden made a highly-criticized comment about candidate Barack Obama when he said:
“I mean, you got the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy. I mean, that’s a storybook, man.”
After serving as President Obama’s Vice President, it appears Black voters have forgiven Joe Biden for his own — at best — racially-insensitive remarks.
The question is: will they forgive Mike Bloomberg for his sketchy history with People of Color and cast a vote for him in the primary?
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The entire King-Bloomberg interview is worth watching because there are other comments Bloomberg made that voters may find troubling. Go to:
https://www.cbsnews.com/video/michael-bloombergs-extended-interview-with-gayle-king/