I take issue with Frederick R. Bedell Jr.’s March 5 letter “Bloomberg can help city recover economically,” which attempted to draw a parallel between former President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s four terms and Mayor Michael Bloomberg seeking a third term.
In Roosevelt’s case, there was no law at the time limiting presidential terms. In the case of the mayor, however, the people voted twice in referendums in favor of term limits. If Bloomberg wanted to revisit the issue, he could have easily arranged for a third referendum.
Fearing the public would again support term limits, Bloomberg and 22 term−limited City Council members enacted legislation giving themselves the right to seek a third term. It was a slap in the face of the democratic processes and does not inspire confidence in good government.
I also take issue with Bedell’s portrayal of Bloomberg as the city’s financial savior. Notwithstanding the mayor’s Wall Street background, he was as clueless as the rest of us about the impending Wall Street implosion and global financial and economic crisis, compounded by the fact he was instrumental in placing the city’s financial health almost entirely in Wall Street, a price taxpayers now have to bear.
The current crisis will not be solved during the next mayoral term and not by any city mayor. It is global and, if solved at all, will be on a global basis. There is no merit to suggest Bloomberg, to the exclusion of other qualified New Yorkers, must be given a third term.
Benjamin M. Haber
Flushing
