Michael Bloomberg: Birther Issue A 'Terrible Mistake' For Republicans

WASHINGTON — New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg said that Republicans are making "a terrible mistake" in pushing the "birther issue" during an appearance on this weekend's edition of "Fox News Sunday."

The New York City mayor, an independent, said President Barack Obama "was born here" on the program. Despite calling Donald Trump a friend and "a New York icon," he took issue with the potential presidential candidate's persistence in raising skepticism over the president's birthplace.

Bloomberg said that "anybody can run for president if [he or she] is 35 and an American citizen," including Trump. He noted, however, that the billionaire is by no means the only one pushing the birther issue on the right side of the aisle. “There are a lot of roots that have glommed onto this," he said.

Bloomberg asserted that it's time for Republicans to address pressing policy issues that are important to Americans.

"We have immigration, we have the deficit, we have the economy," he said. "Those are the things that the public cares about."

 

 

Comments

[bvf]

02:21 AM on 04/28/2011

Any idea where Jeff went? I was going to ask him if he'd seen my wallet, now that he has nothing else of interest to occupy his mind.

- bvf

[StillIRise]

03:59 PM on 04/26/2011

What's a micro-bio????

[hemorrhage]

10:38 AM on 04/26/2011

Once again, Sc*mbag Billionaire stands up for his monied friends!

[JDZSB]

03:48 AM on 04/26/2011

Who of any importance in the Republican party is making a big deal about the birth place of Obama? The answer is NO ONE. Donald Trump is pushing it to get publicity and the lame street media is giving it to him, and he is loving it. The President's birth certificate is not going to even be in the top ten of issues to be debated in next year's election cycle, so give it a rest. The economy, the budget deficit, the national debt, the unemployment rate, the overgrown size of the federal government, the cost of a gallon of gas, the lack of a plan to cut the size and cost of government, the debt limit, the national energy strategy, and the wars in the middle east, just all might be a little more important then the birthplace of a sitting President. Don't you think?

[Bonnie511]

10:27 PM on 04/25/2011

what baffles me, is how anyone can dislike someone because of the color of their skin, especially if the skin is dark, but the tanning beds are making a killing.

[StillIRise]

09:37 PM on 04/25/2011

I've learned quite a bit today with some of the conversations I've had with the birthers and their defenders or sympathizers:
 
- I've learned that when facts are presented to dispute the birthers' arguments, the tro//s who're making the argument often either disappear altogether, or they change the subject ...
- I've learned that when they do stick around to persist in their argument, they tend to simply make things up to corroborate the lies that they want to believe ...
-I've learned that there's nothing President Obama can do or say that will persuade them to rethink their allegations against him, mainly because they don't want to rethink their allegations against him ...
- I've learned that they even refuse to accept that the President is black apparently for one or more of the following reasons:
a) because they are somehow diminished by the reality of this extraordinary black man with the intellect and integrity of character that President Obama embues, which raises the question of their own claim to racial superiority ...
b) or because by acknowledging that he's black, they indirectly substantiate the charges against them of racism ... Therefore as long as they insist, even to themselves, that he's not black, then they can't be racists, can they?  And if we say they're racists anyway, then we're playing the race card ...
c) or because they simpy don't want to acknowledge that America elected its first black President, I guess because that's not the kind of America that they want to live in ...
- And finally I've learned that, though nothing can be taken for granted, there's a lot more of us than there are of them ...
 
... and our President will be re-elected in 2012.

[negogato]

08:09 AM on 04/26/2011

Hey StillIRise,
That sums it up!
The Republicans were disaffected and overconfident in 2008 and we have to watch out that does not happen to Democrats Independent and all thinking voters in 2012.

I think Birtherism got most of its juice from the shock of the election that they so too confident that Obama could not win.
It was there before but after the election 'how could this be?' needed a remedy. A legal pretzel but enough to make them feel like victims and that Obama should not be there – even if he was elected.
That is pretty insulting to the great plurality of Americans who voted for him if you ask me.
The Birther crowd is the same crowd that hooted it up when Bush stole the election in 2000. Winning somehow without the voters is what Birtherism is all about.

[negogato]

08:18 AM on 04/26/2011

II
Without Birtherism the Republicans would have to face the miserable failure of 8 years without a balanced budget and the absolute ruin of the economy that blew up in George Bush’s face while he was sitting in the oval office.
They would have to say the sacred Tax Cut failed the nation.
And that the Clinton Tax code worked for America just fine as it was. And was leading toward a surplus - eliminating the national debt.
They would have to admit that Bush deliberately misleading the country into war with Iraq was wrong from the beginning and it was still killing people. And the cost of that immoral war made the sacred Tax Cuts ruinous to the nation.

And Americans voted for Change from all of that. And we elected the best man with the best chance of saving the county from Republican failure. How can the Republicans still feel right? They even changed their name to Tea Party and still that was not enough. The Birth Certificate fairy tale gets them by – they need it.

[StillIRise]

03:57 PM on 04/26/2011

I concur 100% with everything you've written ...
 
Very well said.  F&F

[fightthapower]

05:25 PM on 04/26/2011

Spot on! F&F

[Roscheblue]

08:48 PM on 04/25/2011

There is no room for any voices of reason in the Conservative echochamber. He can just stop wasting his breath on them.

[negogato]

08:20 AM on 04/26/2011

Very True Roschelblue.
Marked as Favorite (3)

[NYC07]

08:44 PM on 04/25/2011

All the King's horses and
All the King's men
Will never put this "Snow Bird's
Political career together again.

[ltague]

08:07 PM on 04/25/2011

Very reasonable of you, Mayor Bloomberg, but I'd rather they keep showing their absurdity and dig their own grave.

[Nantuck Laelstom]

08:06 PM on 04/25/2011

And he knows this, how?

[Dosadi]

09:11 PM on 04/25/2011

He has brains.  Anyone with brains knows this fact.

[jonnyquest]

11:10 AM on 04/26/2011

So you think Bloomberg is good for NYC?

[1776 or 1984]

07:56 PM on 04/25/2011

Never trust a billionaire as a political leader because Bloomberg has proven that they simply do what they want (i.e., trampling term limits). They don't know the art of democratic compromise because they are used to being the king.

[firefox52]

09:43 PM on 04/25/2011

And Obama does? I think Obama and his party have trampled our constitutional rights. Your worried about a Billionaire?

[1776 or 1984]

10:09 PM on 04/25/2011

He sucks too, but at least you won't see him goosestepping into a 3rd term

[yill danniel]

07:00 PM on 04/25/2011

Let the Republicans keep talking about this birther nonsense and Obama will be elected easily.

[bvf]

02:28 AM on 04/28/2011

Fingers crossed, except it'll be something else equally idiotic in the coming months, would be my guess.

He'll be elected easily anyway, I hope. The good news here is for the 2012 congressional elections and the growing number of intervening state recalls / referenda.

Please thank your respective gods for Donald Trump, Orly Taitz, and what's-her-name.


- bvf

[jseener]

06:33 PM on 04/25/2011

"We have immigration, we have the deficit, we have the economy," he said. "Those are the things that youre right my mayor . so lets close the border, reduce spending across the board except military , and lower taxes for business. problems solved .

[LinkTren]

06:10 PM on 04/25/2011

Look Bloomie, as a NYer, I can tell you that Trump is not a icon he's an embarrassment. And Birtherism is the gift that keeps on giving.......to the Democratic party.

OT: I cannot wait till Anthony Weiner runs for mayor. Bye bye Bloomie.

[Bob Pomilla]

07:47 PM on 04/25/2011

"Trump is not a icon he's an embarrassm­ent."

+1

[wilray]

06:02 PM on 04/25/2011

Let's hope no one listens to Bloomberg.