Bloomberg-Boren?



(image via ti)

Clearly Michael Bloomberg -- despite what he says -- is examining all options with regards to an Independent run. He is presently in New Hampshire for, he assures us, "social" reasons. . And, it would seem, he is examining his Midwestern options closer than others. You'll remember that New York's mogul-mayor broke bread with Nebraska maverick Senator Chuck Hagel. Now, David Boren of Oklahoma. From our favorite Dickensian villain, Robert Novak:

"WHEN Mayor Bloomberg delivered the University of Oklahoma commencement address May 11, he engaged in a long, private discussion about 2008 politics with university president and maverick Democrat David Boren.

"According to New York political sources, they discussed a role Boren might play in an independent Bloomberg campaign for president - generating speculation about a Bloomberg-Boren ticket. In introducing Bloomberg for his commencement speech, Boren praised the mayor's record stabilizing his city's budget and strengthening its economy after the 9/11 attack.

"Boren was governor of Oklahoma before serving 16 years in the U.S. Senate. A moderate Democrat, he clashed with President Bill Clinton and left the Senate in 1994 to take the University of Oklahoma post. He declined Ross Perot's offer of the Reform Party vice-presidential nomination in 1996 but said he might be open to a 2000 draft."

In a May 11 commencement speech to the graduates of the University of Oklahoma, Bloomberg said:

"Good evening to you all, and thank you, President Boren, for that very eloquent introduction. You are a true leader, an inspiring teacher, and a great American. (Have you ever considered a career in politics?) President Boren and I actually have a lot in common: We are both heads of large organizations, we are both devastatingly handsome and we were both students of distinction. While David was at the top of his class, I was the kind of student who made the top half of the class possible."

What about the top of the ticket?


(NYPOST)