The Revolutionary

To reporters, Giuliani's people stay above the fray. "I've never heard Rudy or his people bust [Bloomberg's] chops," said a Giuliani political adviser, who asked for anonymity when discussing internal campaign matters. "People come to Rudy with problems [related to city administration] and he'll say: 'I'm not the mayor any- more'," the adviser says, adding that Giuliani "doesn't see himself competing" with his successor and gives Bloomberg credit for continuing policies started by Giuliani, such as policing methods that have kept city crime rates low and manageable.

If his potential opponents' fears come true and Bloomberg runs, he would campaign, predictably, as an outsider. What is less predictable is the impact nearly a billion dollars of TV and Internet advertising might have. The possible theme of such advertising, and of such a campaign, is becoming clearer by the day. In speeches Bloomberg has begun to be more explicitly critical of the capital culture. "The people at both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue and on both sides of the aisle just aren't facing up to the problems that need facing," he says, and has taken to referring to Washington as a "swamp of dysfunction." He is pro-choice, pro-gun control and pro-gay rights. He has become a devoted campaigner against global warming. He raised property taxes in New York, but could legitimately claim to be the biggest fiscal hawk and an unabashed supporter of free trade. Who could be a bigger believer in the power of markets than the inventor of the Bloomberg Terminal?

At the moment, he is enjoying the benefits of a classic American political phenomenon: he seems a great candidate in part because he is not a candidate. He tries, but fails, to stay clear of commenting on foreign policy: he really cannot help himself if asked. "The current situation is intolerable in Iraq," he says. "The public doesn't understand why we are there, and part of leadership is explaining, bringing people along." On Iran: "You've got to stop nuclear proliferation, but I don't see any rational case for invasion or bombing. I've always thought that you should talk to everybody. Now I am not saying that the president of the United States should be talking to the president of Iran, but there ought to be back channels, ways of engaging."

At Gracie Mansion the other day, Bloomberg stuck to his script on the White House question. "I am not running for president. I have 790-odd days to go in this job, the greatest job in the world—maybe the second greatest job. The mayor's job is where you can really get things done." He enjoys the idea that he, like Henry Kissinger, has mastered different fields. "Agree or disagree with him, Kissinger was a success in academe, government and business," Bloomberg says. "And I have been successful in business, and I hope when I leave this job they will say I was a good mayor or a great mayor. Philanthropy will probably be the next big thing. I am lucky enough to have a lot of money, I am planning on giving it all away, and I think you change the world that way."

Pressed once more, he says he is not running, but then offers a lucid, if indirect, case for a man like him at a time like this. "I think that the candidates are not addressing, in a way at least I can understand, what they would do if they got elected. Unfortunately in the process that we go through—all of these, quote, 'debates'—you've got 30 seconds to tell us what you're going to do about the Iraq War, 30 seconds to tell us how to solve health care, 30 seconds on how to repair our relations around the world, 30 seconds on solving Social Security—there's no way to do that.

"The job of being president is to lead the country and the legislature, and it is pulling those together. And because America is the only remaining superpower, you are the leader of the free world, it is having the credibility and working with other countries to get them all to work together to stop genocide, to stop nuclear proliferation, to make sure we have fair trade among countries … Trade, immigration, terrorism, fighting disease—all of those things require cooperation. And one of the sad things is that at the moment America is not liked around the world. We are closing our eyes. We have this view that we can do it alone, as we are getting more into a world where you can't. You couldn't do it before, and you certainly can't do it now, and it's inconceivable that you could do it tomorrow. And I don't hear from the candidates how they would go about pulling the world together, getting people to respect us. How do you get people to respect you? Show them recognition, respect, that you are listening to them. I don't care how smart we are, other people have good ideas, and what works here isn't perfect for them." He sketches two portraits of different neighborhoods in New York. In one, he says, patriotism is overt and common. ("They don't just pledge allegiance at the beginning of the school day, they do it before every class," he says.) In the other, outward displays of civic pride are less common. ("They would never wear a flag in their lapel," he says, pointing to his own.) "And the thing I'm proudest of is I got 75 percent of the vote in both neighborhoods. My job is to bring people together."