OBAMA-CLINTON OR OBAMA-BLOOMBERG?

Billionaire New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg took Senator Barack Obama of Illinois for breakfast at an upper east side Manhattan coffee shop last November and subsequently agreed to help arrange Obama’s speech today at the Cooper Union about the national economy, ongoing housing slump and the advancement of science and art. Bloomberg, a former Democrat, has not yet formally endorsed Obama for president, but in his brief introduction referred to him as a man from “the land of Lincoln,” and symbolically both Bloomberg and Obama spoke at the same lecturn that Lincoln used for his famous Cooper Union speech on February 27, 1860, that, together with the famous elegant photograph of  ungainly Lincoln by Matthew Brady, certainly propelled him to the presidency. According to Obama aides, as reported by New York City media, the senator called Bloomberg on the afternoon of March 26, the day before his speech to offer him a sneak peek at his draft speech and to suggest any modifications. The aides did not reveal whether Bloomberg suggested any revisions, but the previous independent presidential hopeful did make a point of reminding the audience and Obama  that he hadn't yet chosen a candidate. "As you know, I have not yet endorsed a candidate for president but I've been very clear in my hope that all the candidates will explain in detail how they will address the great challenges facing our country," Bloomberg told the audience. Obama, in his remarks, joked about the November breakfast with Bloomberg, saying he paid for the meal. "The reason I bought breakfast is because I expect payback for something more expensive," Obama said. "I'm no dummy” – an apparent reference to getting Bloomberg to contribute and raise funds for his campaign through Noivember. He had four fundraisers in New York City before heading to Pennsylvania for a six-day bus tour. There no way Obama would have Senator Hillary Clinton as his vice-presidential running-mate or vice versa, depending who wins enough delegates in the next ten primary contest to be nominated at the Democratic National Convention in August. Obama and Clinton and their staffs have grown to despise each other because of the nasty, bitter nature of their campaign against each other. Also, both Obama and Clinton have so many negatives –- Obama’s lack of nany government executive experience asnd Clinton’s being caught in so many untruths and exaggerations over the years that much of the electorate does not trust her and want to return her and husband Bill Clinton back to the White House. But Bloomberg would bring extraordinary business executive experience and his success running New York City as mayor to bolster Obama’s complete lack of any knowledge of running complex government agencies, programs, personnel, and tackling difficult problems. There’s no doubt Obama is attractive and speaks very well, but he’s basically an empty shirt when it comes to governance. Like Vice President Dick Cheney in what he has brought to President Bush’s administration, Bloomberg would bring years of success, maturity, and assurance to the American people that at least one mature person would know how to take the reins of government in the White House and as president of the United States Senate in order to steer the country confidently and properly. On policy, in his Cooper Union speech, Obama also called for the usual litany of tighter government regulation of mortgage lenders, banks and other financial institutions,  even as he talked of pumping $30 billion more into the economy to stimulate the economy and shield homeowners and local governments from foreclosures and insolvency resulting from the ongoing burst of the housing bubble. Obama and his campaign handouts at his speech blamed the impending difficulties, which some are already calling a recession, on the successful $300-million campaign by industry banking and insurance lobbyists in 1999 to get Congress to dismantle much of the regulatory framework overseeing energy, telecommunications and financial services by repealing the 1933 Glass-Steagall Act. President Clinton, who Obama did not name, signed the repeal legislation. The implied criticism of Hillary Clinton, who handled a lot of policy decisions in the Clinton White House, was very clear. As vice-president, Bloomberg’s background as a successful world-class businessman who knows the real detrimental effects of government over-regulation, would enable him to caution and temper Obama and his Cabinet, if elected, and rein-in their probable liberal-left excesses as indicated in Obama’s Cooper Union economic speech.