Former Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake has joined former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s presidential political team as co-chair of his campaign.
The new position is probably one Rawlings-Blake is head over heels about, given she has endured several verbal attacks against her city from President Donald Trump. Now she gets to join in on a crusade in an attempt to usher him out of office by serving on Bloomberg’s team.
“Stephanie Rawlings-Blake was an innovative leader for Baltimore and a strong advocate for Americans in cities across the country as president of the U.S. Conference of Mayors — and we’ve worked together to address important issues in this election, like protecting communities from gun violence,” Bloomberg said in a statement.
Rawlings-Blake brings her breadth of experience to the table and will serve as a national political co-chair of his campaign, but there’s no word on if the new job is a paid position.
In a prepared statement, the former mayor gushed about joining the billionaire presidential candidate’s team.
“I am proud to endorse Mike Bloomberg for president of the United States. Mike has been a good friend and mentor to me for many years,” Rawlings-Blake wrote in a prepared statement, according to WBAL TV.
“He is a no-nonsense leader who has taken on the country’s toughest fights. When we were both in office, we worked together to get illegal guns off the streets of Baltimore, New York, and cities across America. He continues to lead the national movement for gun safety, building grass-roots support and working to elect candidates fighting for common sense gun safety laws. I’m excited to join Mike’s campaign and do everything I can to help elect the best candidate to defeat Donald Trump and unite our country.”
Not long ago, Trump attacked late Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) and the city of Baltimore, calling it a “rat and rodent-infested mess” where “no human being would want to live.”
Bloomberg has now opened a campaign headquarters office in the city and his team includes former Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter, former Miami Mayor Manny Diaz and former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, according to The Baltimore Sun.
Rawlings-Blake’s role will include advising Bloomberg on policy development and strategy issues, the outlet reports.
While there has been a surge of concerns about Bloomberg’s record, particularly about the discriminatory practice of Stop and Frisk that affected Blacks, he’s been able to garner the support of prominent Black figures such as Rawlings-Blake and even the mayor of Washington, D.C. Muriel Bowser, who referred to the billionaire as a “friend.”
Some on social media feel the Rawlings-Blake alliance with Bloomberg is a form of a sellout.
