Mayor Bloombe𒐪rg slammed Democratic m🔯ayoral front-runner Bill de Blasio for running a “racist” campaign that exploits his biracial family and promotes “class warfare.”
Hizzoner made the claim in a posted onl🌸ine Saturday.
🧜He was asked about de Blasio’s “class-warfare campaign.”
“Class warfare and racist,” the mayor responded.
Asked to clarify “racist,” Bloomberg said, “Well, no, no. I mean he’s making an appeal using his faꦆmily to gain support.”
At the mayor’s request, the magazine amended the mayor🔜’s remarks to add the “well, no, no” phrase, which wasn’t included in the original transcript of the posted interview.
“That was inaudible in our audio tape of theꦕ interview,” the magazine said in a note. “In our view, the added words do not alter the meaning of the exchange.”
De Blasio, the public advocate, has proudly promoted his biracial family in h𝄹is campaign. His wife, Chirlane McCray, is black, and they have a daughter, Ciara, 18, and a son, Dante, 15.
A TV ad featuring Dante, who sports a hug🔯♉e Afro, has been lauded as the most touching and effective of the campaign.
Bloomberg made it clear he did not agree.
“I think it’s pretty obvious to anyone watching what he’s been doing. 𒅌I do not think he himself is racist,” the 🌜mayor said. “It’s comparable to me pointing out that I’m Jewish in attracting the Jewish vote.
“You tailor messages to your audiences and address issues you think your audiences care about.”
De Blasio and his family — and even the candida♊te’s Democratic mayoral rivals — ripped Bloomberg’s remarks as offensive.
“I am exceptionally proud of my family. They are each strong 🐠and independent and make their own decisions,” de Blasio said at a Brooklyn appearance with DA candidate Ken Thompson.
“I hope the mayo𝄹r will reconsider what he said and realize it was inappropriate.”
McCray said, “Do I look like an inanimate object? I walk. I talk. I make my own decisions. Stop the se꧃xism!”
Ciara sai🎃d, “I suspect that 20 years ago, my dad didn💎’t know he was running for mayor and would marry a black woman to put her on display.
“Every decision I make is my own decision, and I ca♏n see from afar people may think my dad is using his family. But if you look at the facts, my dad didn’t seek out 20 years ago to marry a black woman.”
The de Blasios got a rousing ovation at a rally held at the Rev. Al Sharpton’s National Action Ne♐twork in Harlem Saturday.
S☂harpton joked that he wo🐎uld take Dante to get a haircut.
From the audience▨, Dante shook his head and shouted, “The Afro’s back!”
Inside the de Blasio campaign, advisers said Bloomberg’s attack would only🌠 energize voters ahead of Tuesday’s primary.
In the latest Quinnipiac University poll, de Blasio was backed by 43 p💙ercent of likely voter﷽s, enough to avoid a runoff.
His Democratic rivals rappeꦿd the mayor for playing the race card.
Bil𝐆l Thompson, the race’s only black candidate, called Hizzoner’s comments “utterly ridiculous.”
“Bill de Blasio is proud of his family, just like I’m proud of my familꦗy, and Joh🌱n Liu, Anthony Weiner and Christine Quinn are all proud of their families. So I see no problem. If his family wants to be involved and out there, that’s fine,” Thompson said.
Quinn called Bloomberg’s statements “extr🌳emely unfortu𝄹nate.”
“These remarks are inappropriate,” the council spe🍃ak🙈er said, “especially because they involved Mr. de Blasio’s family.”
In the interview, Bloomberg blasted de Blasio for pitting 🐬the haves against the have-nots.
“His whole campaign is that there are two different cities here. And I’ve never liked that kind o🍌f division,” Hizzoner said.
“The way to help those who are less fortunate is, Number 1, to attract more very fortunate peo♏ple. They are the ones that pay the bilꦍls.”
“Tearing people apart with this ‘two cities’ thing doesn’t make any sense to me. It’s a destructive strategy . . . He’s a very populist, very left🐬-wing guy, but this city is not two groups.”
Bloomberg also ripped de Blasio for “not having any ideas” other than taxing the rich — referring to the candidate’s plan to finance pre-K🦹 and after-school programs by raising taxes on those making more than $500,000 a year.
🥃Such hikes would require approval from the state Legislature and Gov. Cuom💫o.
“You kꦯnow that Albany, under no circumstances, nor the governor, under any cir♊cumstances, is going to allow that! So come up with some real ideas, Bill!” the mayor chided.
Bloomberg also said he agreed with a Post ed🍎itorial supporting Republican Joe Lhota and Quinn in thﷺeir respective mayoral primaries.
The Post h𓄧as reported that Bloomberg was strongly considering endorsing Lhota if de Blasio wins the Democratic nomination.
He also praised Quinn’s work as council speaker.
“She did a very good job for seven and half years of keeping legislation that never should have made it to the floor, that would have been damaging to the city, from getting there. And she deserves a lot of the credit for what’s gone on in t🍒he city in the last seven a♈nd a half years,” Bloomberg said.
Additional reporting by Sabrina Ford and Kathryn Cusma