Bill de Blasio is TOTALLY not running for president in 2020…
Always a convincing statement when you're standing in Iowa … De Blasio in Iowa: ‘I’m not running for president’ https://t.co/NBS0D5en8D
— Joe Pounder (@PounderFile) December 20, 2017
…as he reminds the audience he has ties to their state:
Bill de Blasio is giving a speech in Des Moines, talking about his "personal grassroots connection to Iowa" – his grandmother was born in Blanchard, Iowa in 1888. So….
— Edward-Isaac Dovere (@IsaacDovere) December 20, 2017
And to make that point, he showed reporters how he can literally walk and chew gum at the same time:
.@NYCMayor Bill de Blasio just demonstrated his ability to walk and chew gum at the same time. pic.twitter.com/4MoZlMTGfO
— Jillian Jorgensen (@Jill_Jorgensen) December 20, 2017
More from the Washington Post’s Dave Weigel who covered de Blasio during his tour of New York City’s “6th borough”:
Bill de Blasio works the crowd in Des Moines, which if you think about it is really New York’s sixth borough. pic.twitter.com/Ps5zWpzmVp
— Dave Weigel (@daveweigel) December 20, 2017
But like any presidential candidate, de Blasio is already in full hypocrite mode. Shot…
de Blasio, sounding very Bernie-esque, says Dem hunt for donor cash diluted brand and made party lose. "I don't want the money if the money's going to stand between us and the people."
— Dave Weigel (@daveweigel) December 20, 2017
…chaser:
De Blasio faced an 18 month federal investigation about his donors that concluded with prosecutors saying his behavior was very sketchy but hard to prove as a crime. https://t.co/DHBcQ1r8ZK
— Josh Dawsey (@jdawsey1) December 20, 2017
As for Iowans, they’re not buying de Blasio’s act. They know he’s thinking about running, via the New York Times:
Even before he spoke, attendees at the holiday party were less convinced he lacked national ambitions.
Cindy Swanson, a Democrat from Des Moines, said she had also seen the mayor on one of his past trips — he came in 2015 and 2016 in a failed effort to influence the national debate.
“Anyone that comes to Iowa this many times, this early is testing the waters,” she said.
***
Related:
Puh-LEEZE! Bill de Blasio thinks THIS is a 'fundamental right' of Americans? https://t.co/f4fKMvbRJ6
— Twitchy Team (@TwitchyTeam) November 22, 2017
ICYMI ==> Come ON! Bill de Blasio's warning to Trump after attack MELTS hypocrisy detectors https://t.co/hh7y7hzkxX
— Twitchy Team (@TwitchyTeam) November 1, 2017
Will Bill de Blasio ever sound as tough on terrorism as he does on Trump? https://t.co/xri0T0m6j2
— Twitchy Team (@TwitchyTeam) November 1, 2017