May 16, 2019

Most New Yorkers Don’t Want de Blasio to Run. He’s Doing It Anyway.

The New York mayor claims he’s beaten Trump before—and he’s the right man to do it again.

Michael Brochstein/ZUMA

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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.

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:

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PLEASE—BEFORE YOU CLICK AWAY!

“Lying.” “Disgusting.” “Scum.” “Slime.” “Corrupt.” “Enemy of the people.” Donald Trump has always made clear what he thinks of journalists. And it’s plain now that his administration intends to do everything it can to stop journalists from reporting things it doesn’t like—which is most things that are true.

We’ll say it loud and clear: At Mother Jones, no one gets to tell us what to publish or not publish, because no one owns our fiercely independent newsroom. But that also means we need to directly raise the resources it takes to keep our journalism alive. There’s only one way for that to happen, and it’s readers like you stepping up. Please do your part and help us reach our $150,000 membership goal by May 31.

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