Michael Brochstein/ZUMA
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio officially announced on Thursday that he’s running for president, becoming the 23rd person to enter the crowded field of Democratic candidates hoping to defeat President Donald Trump in 2020.
He did so even though three-quarters of his own constituents, former staff members included, advise against such a bid. According to one NY1 reporter stationed outside Gracie Mansion, the same pleas trailed de Blasio all the way up to his launch Thursday morning.
Outside Gracie Mansion just now, woman runs by and shouts, “Don’t do it, Bill!”
Me: “He’s doing it”
Jogger: “I can’t believe it. Nobody wants it.”— Grace Rauh (@gracerauh) May 15, 2019
In a video kicking off his campaign, the two-term Democratic mayor positioned himself as a progressive leader with a track record of fighting for working-class families in the country’s largest city, along with the personal experience required to take on Trump. He says in the three-minute clip: “I’m a New Yorker. I’ve known Trump’s a bully for a long time.”
“Donald Trump must be stopped,” de Blasio continues. “I’ve beaten him before, and I will do it again.”
The president dismissed de Blasio’s announcement, declaring on Twitter that “NYC HATES HIM!” While the sentiment might not be quite as strong as Trump claimed, de Blasio’s decision attracted predictable groans on social media:
One person, upon hearing that NYC Mayor De Blasio is officially running for president, asked @watchsavannah "Is that a joke?" and then started hysterically laughing. https://t.co/7mb3ddhzn0
— MSNBC (@MSNBC) May 16, 2019
tag urself in de blasio’s announcement video i’m this kid pic.twitter.com/c7GOYpV7TX
— Audrey Gelman (@audreygelman) May 16, 2019
Today's cover: Bill de Blasio officially launches 2020 presidential campaign pic.twitter.com/g973kWfGJ3
— New York Post (@nypost) May 16, 2019
