New York, NY – Mayor Bloomberg finally issued a mea culpa today for the snow fiasco that has crippled the city – but vowed not to sack the sanitation chief for the screw up.
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“We did not do as good a job as we wanted to do, or as the city has the right to accept,” he admitted during a staged press conference in a Bronx hardware store.
Bloomberg, however, said the time to grill sanitation bosses on what went wrong is not at hand – that comes once all the streets are cleared.
“The time to worry about that is after we’ve gotten every street open and that’s what we’ll do,” he said.
Sanitation Commissioner John Doherty predicted all streets would be cleared by 7 p.m. tonight, but conceded “will someone find a street missed? Maybe.”
The mayor staunchly defended Doherty – and vowed not to ask him to step down.
“This is the best Sanitation Commissioner this city has ever had,” Bloomberg said, adding the “city is lucky to have him.”
Despite the blankets of white still on borough sidestreets, while most Manhattan streets are snow-free, Bloomberg insisted he is no Upper East Side snob.
“I care about all parts of this city,” he insisted.
Since most of the primary streets are in Manhattan, they were bound to get plowed first and many of the roads in Staten Island and other places made it more difficult to clear snow there, he explained.
“It’s not that we don’t care – it’s just that we have to do as much good as we can with [limited resources],” he said.
The Sanitation Department is operating with the same manpower and equipment as in similar storms that socked the city with 20 plus inches of snow, according to Bloomberg.
And he refused to grade his administration on how they handled the storm clean up.
“I cannot tell you for sure why it was a lot worse this time than the other times…could we do a better job? We are going to find out,” he said.
Bloomberg also lauded Newark Mayor Cory Booker for his city’s cleanup – which included Booker shoveling out constituents – but said he didn’t pick one up himself.
“I have not been out with a snow shovel but I have been answering emails,” said Bloomberg, admitting some were from disgruntled New Yorkers.
Mr.Mayor little to late!!!
to little to late someone finally told him he made a mistake sorry i lost two days of work my street is a mess in flatbush
lol, “This is the best Sanitation Commissioner this city has ever had,” Bloomberg said, adding the “city is lucky to have him.”
Does that go for you too Mr. Mayor.
When you see how you messed up you say sorry. What about all the loss we had?
Are you going to issue a ticket blitz to compensate the city’s loss.
We know your reputation by now, TOO LATE
Apologies don’t plow any streets.
how can he say doherty is good. thats like saying the titanic had a successfull voyage
ZOO YORK IS A WINTER HORRORLAND!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
People dying because streets aren’t cleared of snow. REDICULOUS
MR. MAYOR WOULD YOU PLEASE FOWARD YOUR ADDRESS SO WE CAN SEND YOU OUR BILLS FOR PAMENT? PLEASE!!!
We must call for the immediate impeachment of Bloomberg.
Obviously the Mayor is happy with the sanitation commissioner because they are both in cahoots in cutting the sanitation workforce.
If the Mayor DARES to contemplate firing the Sanitation Commissioner then the commissioner will spill the beans that it was all Bloomberg’s fault for cutting the workforce.
One hand washes the other.
Bloomberg is covering up the commissioners’ backside so that the commissioner will not expose the truth that it was all Bloomberg’s fault by cutting the workforce.
The sooner we all start calling for the Mayor to be impeached, the sooner the streets will get plowed.
Otherwise, we can expect to wait another week or 2 before it all melts without being plowed.
Let the mayor step down that’s a truthful apology .not some political words plus let him form the bill for the Brooklyn people .
Mr. Mayor and others a dollar short and a day late. In the private sector heads would have rolled
got this text yesterday:
“no wonder mayor bloomberg only gets paid $1 a year; he doesn’t deserve more”
The Mayors failure at cleaning the streets is a potential bonanza for all Terrorists, Chas Vesholom.
This time of the year, is traditionally the highest alert season, to avert potential terror.
Where is Homeland Security, when our Mayor is asleep on the job?
There is no way the FBI or the CIA nor the NY Police force can do their job today, when most city streets are blocked and no law enforcement can get through to do their job.
It is the biggest Miracle of Hashem that in spite of the fact the Homeland Security is 100% impotent in the city now, yet only Hashem himself is watching and averting potential terror plots.
Bloomberg’s failure is compromising NATIONAL SECURITY!!!!!!!!!
The National Guard needs to be brought in before we have to use HINDSIGHT as to why we did not worry about Homeland Security while our ‘Senile Mayor’ is telling us not to worry and go see a Broadway Show instead.
Do wee need to wait Chas Vesholom for Rampant Looting in the city, when the crooks realize that the cops are too busy to stop them because they can’t drive through the unplowed streets?
Still waiting on my block in BP!
A plow did go by once. But the plow was too high and barely scratched the surface!
I don’t understand what the mayer gained with this mess only killing his name it
Cost’ed anyways the same money by the end of the snow
Watch & see He’ll find a new TAX to impose , Hopefully He’ll be in Washington by that time…………………………………………………………………………
I don’t understand what the mayer gained with waiting so long to shovel the snow it will cost him the same price by the end of the snow he only killed his name
Once again, Bloomberg proves that he is not capable of leadership of a constituency. It takes a crisis to prove that beyond a doubt, and this did so in a big way. The proper reaction would be to resign now, and to absolutely refrain from getting into the firing mode – passing the buck to anyone else. Let the regime that takes over look to the other weak links in the chain of command.
Some say this was a union related matter. I can’t judge that, but if so, it would be best Reaganized (as Reagan did to the air traffic controllers). Either way, Bloomberg is 100% guilty, and he needs to leave public office forever.
Not one cross street in Boro Park was done yet. 45, 46, 47, 48 etc not once. Are you nuts or kidding.
Important question to ask Mayor:
Why can you say, you haven’t cleared the City from snow because of budget constraints? Why can’t I use the same excuse and not get a $300 summons for Not shoveling my snow 3 hours after snow ended. Hypocrite. We should go to court and not pay the fines.
Why are there so many garbage trucks stuck in snow? Its like a train being stuck on a piece of bubble gum. The is much more to this story. (Drudge where are you when we need you?)
He Claims he was answering emails can some one advise his email address and wonder if he will respond to mines as well.
Dov told us both we missed the mark. Congratulations Dov. Where would we be withouht you?
Shame on you bloomberg.
Actually maybe its better this way so he can forget to run for president in 2012.
The same way when someone does not shovel in front of their house they get a fine, The mayor should be fined and send us all a check….
yea this is crazy there are still blocks that are not plowed that are used for emergencys like 49 th and 47 th streed not once were they plowed this is not normal snow stopped fallong on sunday night come on lpow the streets !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I cant understand this , im like stunned at how the mayor reacted to all of this ,now he says he is sorry well guess what TOO LATE !!!!!!! U NEW HOW MUCH SNOW THE CITY WAS GANA GET HIT WITH !!!!!!!!!!!!!!! u should have done something monday morning this is not accepeted at all clean the streets that emergency cars need to get to the hospital like 47 th and 49 th its no joke ppl r dieing cause of the mayor not doing his job !!!!
Love the way Ocean Parkway has been turned into a parking lot!!! Clever!!!
Anyone how do we start taking action against the mayer ?
The Mayor may be smart, to delay knocking off any heads, until after the cleanup because if he blames the sanitation dept now, they will quit right now, resulting in even less cleanup now.
First let the sanitation workers finish cleaning first and by the time they are done, –
By Jan 10th (they should have at least 1/2 of the city side streets cleared by then 🙂 – after Jan 10th we can begin to have heads fly.
Of course the first head to fly should be Bloomberg himself, next the Sanitation commissionaire and next the sanitation workers and their union heads.
“Sanitation Commissioner John Doherty predicted all streets would be cleared by 7 p.m. tonight, but conceded “will someone find a street missed? Maybe.””
IS HE KIDDING? Theres hardly a street in brooklyn that has been properly cleared.