Bill de Blasio was the worst performer at Democratic debate, poll finds – as New York mayor faces mounting questions over why he’s running at all
- Just 4 per cent thought his performance ‘excellent’ with 16 per cent ranking his performance ‘good’
- Elizabeth Warren was the runaway winner among those who ranked participants
- De Blasio was dubbed the winner by just one respondent
- Is described as running a hapless campaign in New York Times feature
- Struggled during campaign launch, mistakenly quoted Che Guevara, was out of town during recent city blackout
- Former aide: ‘I stopped defending his choices a long time ago’
A survey of people who watched the Democratic presidential debates last week put Sen. Elizabeth Warren in the lead – with New York Mayor Bill de Blasio getting rated last.
Just a single respondent in the Politico / Morning Consult poll rated de Blasio the most successful on stage in Detroit last week. By contrast, Warren was dubbed the winner by 99 respondents.
Twenty-six per cent rated his performance ‘poor,’ according to the poll. He scored an ‘excellent’ performance rating with just 4 per cent, ‘good’ with 16 per cent, and ‘fair’ with 34 per cent.’
A survey of people who watched the Democratic presidential debates last week put New York Mayor Bill de Blasio got rated in last place
The ratings coincided with de Blasio’s hits on the health plan pushed through by President Barack Obama in the debate. He accused fellow Democrats of ‘fear-mongering’ about universal health care and called for being ‘done with private insurance.’
De Blasio clashed with Colorado Sen. Michael Bennet, who called for adding a ‘public option’ to Obamacare during the debate.
Democratic presidential candidate New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio speaks while Washington Gov. Jay Inslee listens during the Democratic Presidential Debate at the Fox Theatre July 31, 2019 in Detroit, Michigan
De Blasio blasted private health insurance during the debate, but just 4 per cent rated his performance ‘excellent’
Democratic presidential candidate and New York Mayor Bill de Blasio speaks during an American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Public Service Forum in Las Vegas Saturday, Aug. 3, 2019
The New York mayor, who was reelected at home by a wide margin, was also subjected to a deep dive New York Times piece that reexamined many of his stumbles as a local politician and candidate with an eye on national office.
‘I’ve been defending de Blasio’s record for years. I stopped defending his choices a long time ago,’ said former de Blasio campaign advisor Rebecca Kirszner Katz in the story.
Respondents rated Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) the winner
Among de Blasio’s missteps: writing that a speaking engagement in Ohio ‘intrigues me’ just days after taking office; contributing to the death of a marmot on Groundhog Day; making daily commutes to his gym in Brooklyn; alienating police officers and putting off action in the Eric Garner case; and labeling President Trump ‘con don’ when ‘condon’ means ‘condom’ in Spanish.
Many of the advisors from his 2013 mayor race are not backing his presidential campaign, and one, John Del Cecato, is working for South Bend mayor Pete Buttigieg.
The Times piece also catalogues fits of ‘high-handedness’ including raging at his buildings commissioner: ‘You’re [expletive] bureaucrats,’ and complaints of repeated tardiness including blaming an alarm clock for being 40 minutes late to a live interview.
He defended himself against the notion he wasn’t satisfied with the job, calling it ‘soul-satisfying.’
‘I think there’s a little bit of an affectation in the question of, you know, ‘Is it fun?’ ‘ he told the paper. ‘I’d never thought it was going to be in that sense.’
He scored some effective moments in the first presidential debate in Miami, sparring with former Texas Rep. Beto O’Rourke when chief centrist foil Joe Biden wasn’t on the stage: ‘Congressman O’Rourke, private insurance is not working for tens of millions of Americans,’ he said.
But within hours, he created a blunder by quoting Cuban revolutionary leader Che Guevera, enraging some Cuban immigrants in Miami by saying: ‘Hasta la victoria siempre!’ He apologized and said he didn’t know about the association with the Guevara. He said he meant it in solidarity with striking airport workers.