De Blasio Targets "Con Don" on Iowa Strain

SIOUX CITY, Iowa – New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio presents to the Democratic supporters of the Iowa caucus as the party's best chance to defeat President Trump, ignoring the skepticism that prevailed at home. him while he was visiting an ethanol plant and was hearing farmers on Friday in trouble.

"Who better to beat Donald Trump than someone who knows every turn, every game, every strategy because I've been watching him for decades," Blasio told the 30 or so people who attended the fundraising event. Woodbury County Democrat Party on Friday night to hear his remarks.

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De Blasio, who has long sought to be known nationally, made it clear that he had already met Trump – and won – in a battle against federal funding for security that was tied to immigration from the city. He also tried to please the game of Trump's nickname, calling him "Con Don" and urging all participants to use the derogatory title.

But the Mayor's attention on the Republican President's defeat contrasted with a comment that he had made during a trip to Iowa in February: "We will not win by talking about Donald." Trump all the time. " The president has already attacked Blasio twice. since he's officially declared his candidacy on Thursday, first on Twitter, then in a video, the caller "the worst mayor of the United States".

De Blasio welcomed the fight.

"I would like to savor the possibility of debating this type," Blasio said Friday. "His Achilles heel is that he lied to the workers. … He told them he was going to be on their side and he was on the side of 1%. "

Participation in the fundraising is well below that of the crowd of other candidates who participated in the party demonstrations. Amy Klobuchar, Kirsten Gillibrand, Cory Booker and Julian Castro all led bigger crowds, several participants said.

But de Blasio received a warm welcome throughout the state of Hawkeye.

Voters who spoke to POLITICO said that they appreciated his efforts to understand their problems, which are quite different from the problems facing New Yorkers. A few said they were willing to take it into account when sorting out the 23 Democratic candidates, many of whom had a lot more money and a higher profile than Blasio.

"The Mayor of Blasio was very attentive and listened and asked questions. We talked about the economics of agriculture, what it's like to live here, "said Patti Naylor, a 62-year-old farmer who plans to travel to the Iowa caucus next year.

She and her husband, George Naylor, have organized a meeting between the mayor and other farmers in their modest home along a dirt road in Churdan, Iowa. In the course of the conversation, which was not open to the press, farmers shared with Blasio various concerns, ranging from low wages for workers to high land costs and trade policies in the country.

The Naylors, who said De Blasio's team had contacted them to arrange the visit, supported Bernie Sanders at the 2016 primary, but were open to assessing De Blasio's nascent bid.

Others have not been sold.

"I will not support him in caucus, not because he's not a good candidate or I do not agree with what he said," Tim said. Bottaro, who participated in the fundraising party. "I'd be a lonely person getting up on caucus night, caucus for him, because I do not think he'll get that much."

Bottaro, who asked Blasio to convince the public that he had "a chance to win the nomination, not to mention our caucus," said he simply had too many heads in his mind: Sanders, Kamala Harris, Joe Biden.

Marty Pottebaum, a long-time Democrat who has not chosen a candidate but who loves Biden, said de Blasio "is a very eloquent person" with "good ideas". He said he expects precise measures from Blasio when he evaluates the candidates.

One thing that dissuaded him: De Blasio's use of a nickname for Trump.

"It's good for him, but one of the things I've always hated about our president is that he's giving everyone a nickname," said Pottebaum.

The mayor, who often seems frustrated by the challenges of his work and the press reporting his mistakes, seemed almost transformed during his first visit to the campaign.

He wore a new fashionable wardrobe comprised of fashionable sneakers, fitted jeans and an open blue blazer.

"My hard-working staff had some suggestions. They suggested that it was the 21st century and that there were some new fashion trends that I should be aware of, "he joked.

The mayor spoke freely about his decision to get into the race after months of public indecision about the opportunity to intervene. He consistently emphasized his track record in reducing crime, supporting higher salary mandates and pre-kindergarten signing programs, and argued that his executive experience made him the most suitable for work.

He and his wife, Chirlane McCray, have said that their son and daughter will not participate in the election campaign any time soon. Their son Dante will graduate from Yale next week and their daughter Chiara is busy with her own life, they said. The biracial family of De Blasio played a central role in his 2013 mayoral election, with Dante in an advertisement about racial disparities in policing.

"We really want to respect the fact that they live their lives," Blasio said at a press conference in Des Moines. "They focus on a lot of things and you'll have to get along with little old us."

The usually difficult exchanges between the mayor and the New York press have for the most part been replaced by friendly jokes, although he has refused to answer questions about whether taxpayer funds have been spent on his launch video and the trip to Iowa, to which several employees of the city attended. Spokesperson Olivia Lapeyrolerie said later that employees were paying for their own trips and would be reimbursed once the campaign committee started fundraising.

But even 1300 km from New York, Blasio could not escape one of the most pressing problems in the city.

Two women flew to Iowa, courtesy of the East Brooklyn Congregations organization, to confront the deteriorating conditions of the New York City Housing Authority. They also urged him not to promise to build more housing for the elderly on underutilized NYCHA land.

"We went to New York. we tried to talk with him, "said Tita Concepcion, a resident of this establishment. "All we have are stories of him. He does not listen. He avoids us as much as possible.

De Blasio listened to them and promised to "stay in dialogue together".