The Daily News reports that, according to sources close to Democratic mayoral candidate Bill Thompson, President Barack Obama is refusing to endorse Thompson in the mayor's race unless Thompson can close the gap between his poll numbers and Michael Bloomberg's.The irony isn't lost on Thompson's supporters that Obama, the first black president, has told the state's first black governor not to run again and has refused to back the second black candidate for mayor of New York City.
With the mayoral election 5 weeks away, the flap over Obama's role in trying to get Governor David Paterson off the ballot next year has stolen the media spotlight from the mayor's race, making it even harder for Thompson to gain voter recognition.
The White House has made it clear to Thompson's campaign that it won't get involved in a race it doesn't yet see as "competitive" -- meaning Thompson would have bring Bloomberg's poll numbers into the single digits to get any play from Obama.
Thompson, who only recently qualified for public matching funds and released his first TV ads this month, isn't likely to do that.
As of July 11, Bloomberg, who has been airing TV ads since April, had spent $36.6 million of his own money on his campaign.
Obama, as a sitting president, apparently sees Thompson's fate as largely irrelevant to his political future, whereas Paterson's defeat in 2010 could cost the Democratic Party control of the State Senate, undermine Kirsten Gillibrand's bid for the U.S. Senate, and threaten four or more Democratic-held House seats.
The article from the Daily News.
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