Former NYC mayor and billionaire Wall Street tech mogul Michael Bloomberg is reportedly the main source behind the high-end TV ads pushing New York Governor Kathy Hochul‘s budget proposal. The New York Times reports that Bloomberg’s is the fattest wallet behind a group called American Opportunity, which is credited with the ads.
The Times characterizes Bloomberg’s support as a secretive affair, existing “beneath a maze of shell groups and indirection.”
Bloomberg, who ran for Mayor of New York as a Republican and served three terms, has been a reliable contributor to both parties over the years. Backing Democrats nationally, he has been a particularly staunch opponent of former president Donald Trump, who he called “not the right guy for the job” when Trump was POTUS.
Bloomberg even attempted to take Trump out himself, trying to win the Democratic nomination in 2020. But since leaving the mayor’s chair and being knocked out of the Democratic primary, he has primarily used money rather than elected office to influence policy.
Concerning Hochul’s budget, the Times reports “there is a lot in Ms. Hochul’s budget proposal for Mr. Bloomberg to like,” mentioning that Hochul’s plan “would not increase income taxes on the wealthy.”
As the narrator of the ad says: “Gov. Hochul kept her word not to raise income taxes.”
But Hochul’s is a $227 billion budget full with items that align with Bloomberg’s moderate politics — like $337 million aimed at reducing gun violence in the state, long a Bloomberg priority. Getting a tax break is less likely to be a reason for Bloomberg to keep his support quiet than the more general notion that billionaires paying for influence is a bad look for politicians, especially perhaps the Democrat Hochul.
Highlights of Hochul’s budget priorities, as she enumerates them, are reproduced below:
- $1 Billion Plan Will Fix New York State’s Continuum of Mental Health Care
- Governor Follows Through on Pledge Not To Raise Income Taxes for FY 2024 Budget
- New York Housing Compact Will Build 800,000 New Homes, Address Statewide Housing Shortage
- $337 Million Investment Aimed at Reducing and Preventing Gun Violence
- Addresses MTA ‘Fiscal Cliff’ While Investing in Public Transit Statewide
- Investing $5.5 Billion to Promote Energy Affordability, Reduce Emissions, and Clean Our Air and Water, Building on More Than $30 Billion Committed to Climate Action
- $7.6 Billion, Four-Year Child Care Investment Continues, Eligibility Increased To Include an Additional 113,000 Children
- $1 Billion Health Care Investments for Capital Projects at Hospitals and Other Facilities
- $1.3 Billion Economic Development Investments Will Create Jobs of the Future Across the Empire State
- $1 Billion Investment Will Provide Health Care, Shelter, and Other Critical Services to Asylum Seekers
- Fully Phases in Foundation Aid, a $24 Billion Commitment to Education that Includes $125 Million for Pre-K, and $250 Million for Learning Loss Tutoring
