Regardless of how you might feel about Mayor Michael Bloomberg's three terms in office, there's no doubt that his tenure has produced some colorful quotes, to say the very least.
From the controversial to the plain ridiculous, here are some of our billionaire mayor's most eyebrow-raising comments. We're just weeks away from electing a new mayor and well, it's been real, Mike.
1. The Bathroom Is Where Your Career Goes To Die
"Don’t ever take a lunch break or go to the bathroom, you keep working. You don’t ever know when that opportunity is going to come along.”
2. Bloomberg On His Penchant For A Woman In Heels
"I like women and I think that they look stunning in high heels -- not that they look bad without high heels. I wouldn't criticize anybody. But, if I were a woman, I think I would wear high heels."
3. Homeless Shelters Are The City's Latest Hotspots
"We have made our shelter system so much better that, unfortunately, when people are in it, or, fortunately, depending on what your objective is, it is a much more pleasurable experience than they ever had before."
4. City Hall > White House
"I have my own army."
5. Medical Marijuana Is A Half-Baked Lie
"Medical, my foot. There is no medical. This is one of the great hoaxes of all time. The bottom line is, I'm told marijuana is much stronger today than it was 20, 30 years ago. That's one problem. No 2, drug dealers have families to feed. If they can't sell marijuana, they'll sell something else. And the something else will be something worse. The push to legalize this is wrongheaded."
6. Racial Profiling Is Also A Lie; Police Aren't Stopping And Frisking Enough Minorities
"The racial profiling bill is just so unworkable. Nobody racially profiles." Also: "There is this business, there's one newspaper and one news service, they just keep saying, 'Oh it's a disproportionate percentage of a particular ethnic group. That may be, but it's not a disproportionate percentage of those who witnesses and victims describe as committing the murder. In that case, incidentally, I think we disproportionately stop whites too much and minorities too little."
7. Why Not Show Appreciation For A Woman's Derriere
“Look at the ass on her.”
8. Stop And Frisk Works As Long As It Does Not Affect Me Personally
“If I had a son who was stopped, I might feel differently about it."
9. Drones Are Scary But They're Here To Stay
"It's scary, but what's the difference whether the drone is up in the air or on the building. I mean intellectually I'd have trouble making a distinction. You can't keep the tides from coming in. We're gonna have more visibility and less privacy. I don't see how you stop that."
10. Homeless People Don't Sleep On The Street
"Nobody's sleeping on the streets."
By Inae Oh