The head of New York’s Republican Party predicted the 2016 Democratic presidential nominee will be Mayor Bill de Blasio — not former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton.
New York state Republican Party Chairman Ed Cox recently told leading Republicans that Mr. de Blasio’s attempts to showcase himself as a leader of the “urban progressive centers of the nation” are not accidental, but rather a purposeful strategy that will platform him into the highest political office in the land, Newsmax reported.
The fact that he’s a political newcomer doesn’t really matter, either, Mr. Cox said.
“It’s like Barack Obama — he was a brand-new freshman senator and he ran for president and won,” Mr. Cox said, Newsmax reported. “I think de Blasio is going to do it.”
Mr. Cox also said Mr. de Blasio recently hinted at a president run with a piece he penned for The Huffington Post, blaming Democrats for the Election Day trouncing.
“This year, too many Democratic candidates lost sight of those core principles — opting instead to clip their progressive wings in deference to a conventional wisdom that says bold ideas aren’t politically practical,” the New York City mayor wrote in the op-ed.
Mrs. Clinton is largely expected to run for the Democratic nomination in 2016, but some progressives have blasted her for being too cozy with Wall Street, suggesting Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren — a staunch progressive — might be the better candidate.
• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.
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