Robbie Savage

Robert William Savage (born 18 October 1974) is a Welsh football pundit and player for Stockport Town. During his career he played predominantly as a midfielder, starting off as a youth player with Manchester United before joining Crewe Alexandra when he failed to make the grade at Old Trafford. He became a regular for Leicester City in the late 1990s and early 2000s, and performed a similar role for Birmingham City and Blackburn Rovers. In 2008, he joined Derby County; after a short loan spell with Brighton & Hove Albion later that year, he returned to captain Derby, with whom he finished his playing career. He also played for the Wales national team on 39 occasions. He is now a pundit for the BBC and regularly presents 606 on BBC Radio 5 Live on Sunday evenings. He also co–presents Early Kick Off on BT Sport.

Savage gained notoriety for his playing style; in 2008, the Daily Mail labelled him as the dirtiest player in Premier League history, based on numbers of yellow cards received, though his record has since been overtaken
Club career
Early career
Savage started his playing career as a trainee striker at Manchester United. He played in the FA Youth Cup winning team of 1992, and was later given a professional contract, but never played a first team game for the club and signed for Crewe Alexandra in 1994.[5]

He played up front then switched into midfield and proved himself as a competent young player at Crewe, helping them reach the Division Two playoffs in his first two seasons at the club; a remarkable feat for a newly promoted club who had only played at this level twice in the previous 30 years. Crewe then made it third time lucky by sealing promotion via the playoffs in 1997. It was the first time that Crewe had reached the second tier of the English football league system, but shortly after helping Crewe win promotion, Savage handed in a transfer request to manager Dario Gradi.

Leicester City
Savage was transferred to Premier League side Leicester City managed by Martin O'Neill, for a fee of £400,000, in July 1997. Savage spent five years at Leicester, where he made his name as a reliable, competitive and fiery midfielder. In 1999, Leicester reached the League Cup final against Tottenham Hotspur. In a controversial incident, Savage made a poor tackle on Tottenham's Justin Edinburgh who retaliated by swinging his arm out. Contact was minimal, but Savage fell to the ground. Edinburgh was sent off for raising his arms, and although Tottenham went on to win the final, many Spurs fans still hold a grudge against Savage for the incident to this day. However, a year later Savage reached the League Cup final again, this time winning 2–1 against Tranmere Rovers. The cup win was Savage's only winners medal.

Birmingham City
When Leicester were relegated from the Premiership at the end of the 2001–02 season he transferred to newly promoted Birmingham City for a fee of £1.25 million, signing a three-year contract.[6] He won the club's Player of the Year award in 2003.[7] At the beginning of January 2005 he submitted a written request for a transfer, allegedly wishing to be nearer his ailing parents in Wrexham, despite the fact that Birmingham is closer to Wrexham than Blackburn is.[8] On 19 January he completed a move to Blackburn Rovers for a fee of £3 million.[9] Savage played well in his time at Birmingham, scoring 11 goals in 82 league games.

Blackburn Rovers
In his first five months as a Blackburn player, Savage helped his new club to Premier League safety and reached the FA Cup Semi-final, a 3–0 loss to Arsenal in his homeland's Millennium Stadium.

In March, Savage called an end to his international career after new manager John Toshack dropped him for a World Cup 2006 qualifying game against Austria.[10] His feud with Toshack and the Welsh FA continued long into the 2005–06 season as Savage insisted he retired from international football only because Toshack told him he was not good enough to play for Wales.[11]

In 2005–06, Savage was a regular performer for Blackburn, making 42 appearances and scoring once,[12] against former club Birmingham.[13] The following season, he scored against Salzburg[14] and Wisla Krakow[15] in Rovers' UEFA Cup campaign, but his season was cut short by a broken leg in January, which kept him out for the rest of the season.[16]

During the 2007–08 season, Savage endured further problems with his knee, suffering a knock in the 2–1 win at Spurs after being caught by Robbie Keane. Surgery was required which kept him out of the starting lineup for six weeks. Following the return of Steven Reid to the Rovers starting lineup and some good form by David Dunn, he found it harder to get into the starting XI. Savage was well liked by the Blackburn fans and was given a standing ovation by a near capacity ground by the Rovers fans when he returned with Derby.[17]

It was revealed by then Sunderland manager Roy Keane in his 2014 autobiography, that he had been given permission by Blackburn to sign Savage during the end of his time at Blackburn; however he was put off by Savage's "wazzupp" voicemail, with Keane describing his thoughts after hearing this as "I can't be fucking signing that".[18]

Derby County
On 9 January 2008, Savage joined Derby County for a fee of £1.5 million on a two-and-a-half-year contract,[19] and later revealed that he had taken a pay cut to join Derby in his search for first-team football and had rejected a move to Sunderland because he felt Derby had wanted him more.[20] As the number 8 shirt, which he had worn at previous clubs, was already allocated to then-captain Matthew Oakley, he took the number 44 shirt because the numbers add up to 8.[21] He was appointed the new Derby captain after Oakley was sold to Leicester, and he skippered the Derby side in his first match, a 1–0 home defeat to Wigan Athletic.[22] Savage's arrival, however, could not prevent his first season at the club from ending in relegation, and his performances were frequently below-par, something he acknowledged.[23]

Rumours of Savage leaving Derby came in July 2008 when he missed out on every pre-season match. In August, Leicester City chairman Milan Mandaric declared an interest in Savage, which was dismissed by Derby.[24] Paul Jewell repeatedly left Savage out of the team, after Derby's poor start to the 2008–2009 season,[25] and he was replaced as captain by Alan Stubbs. Stubbs was forced to retire shortly into the new season through injury, but Savage was not considered for the role due to not being in the first team, and the armband went to Paul Connolly.

After failing to break back into the first team, Savage was sent out on loan in October to Brighton for a month to keep match fit.[26] He would later reveal one year later, in a build-up to a match between Leicester and Derby County, that he had tried to secure a loan deal to the Walkers Stadium (Leicester had declared an interest in him months earlier). Savage even telephoned club ambassador Alan Birchenall and former teammate Paul Dickov to put in a good word with manager Nigel Pearson. Pearson, however, "said no", despite Derby offering to pay "90 or 95 per-cent" of Savage's wages.[27] Following Jewell's resignation as Derby manager, Savage found himself brought back into first team contention by new manager Nigel Clough, who made him first choice in central midfield. Savage scored his first goal for the club in a 2–1 loss to Doncaster Rovers on 27 February 2009.[28]

Savage signed a year extension to his Derby contract with the club on 10 August 2009 to take him through to the end of the 2010–11 season. The next day, he was named in the Championship Team of the Week for his performance in the opening day victory over Peterborough United.[29] Later that month, Savage was renamed as Captain of Derby County, replacing Paul Connolly, who manager Nigel Clough wanted to "concentrate on his own game".[30] In response, Savage said that: "I did not deserve the captaincy when I first came to the club. I was handed it from the first day and I shouldn't have been. It was too much pressure for me and I had a nightmare. I let it get to me. I think I'm ready for it now. I feel more comfortable with it now."[31] Derby struggled once again during the season, not achieving safety until the 44th fixture, but the season was a personal success for Savage as he appeared in all but one of Derby's 51 league and cup fixtures during the campaign, the match which he missed being due to suspension, starting 49 of them. He also scored twice; a free kick against Queens Park Rangers in a 4–2 home defeat and a volley at Sheffield United in a 1–1 draw. He also won the club's own Player of the Year award[32] but lost out on the fan's award to Shaun Barker.[33]

Savage again started in the Derby first XI in the 2010–11 season in a new 4–2–3–1 formation around new signing James Bailey, though Derby got off to a poor start winning just one of their opening seven league games, with Savage's form making fans question the justification for his place in the team and his status as skipper.[34] He made his 100th appearance for the club in a 2–2 draw against Queens Park Rangers before he was dropped to the bench for a 1–1 draw at Barnsley, the first game he had played no part in for Derby (barring unavailability for selection) since Nigel Clough's arrival as manager in January 2009.

Savage played in goal for Derby on 11 March 2010, when Stephen Bywater was taken off with a back injury against Reading. He let in two goals during his 45 minutes in the Derby goal.[35]

On 16 October 2010, Savage played his 600th career match in a 3–0 victory on Preston North End, scoring an injury-time penalty to seal the win.[36] In January 2011, Savage revealed that he was considering leaving the club for a move to Vancouver Whitecaps, Savage stating: "One thing is for sure, I will be leaving Derby County at the end of the season, if not before, even if they offer me a new contract. My time is up here. I've thoroughly enjoyed my time with Derby and I want to walk away with my head held high".[37] One fan responded by telephoning Savage during an interview on Radio Five Live and telling him to "leave the club now" and "take young Mr. Clough with him".[38] Savage eventually rejected the move, stating it was too big a move for his family.[39] On 31 January 2011, Savage announced that he would be retiring at the end of the season to concentrate on his growing media career.[40] In his last two games, a home loss against Bristol City and an away defeat at Reading, he was met with a round of applause and a standing ovation from both sets of supporters.

Stockport Town
In November 2019, Savage came out of retirement to join Stockport Town of the North West Counties League.[41]

International career
Savage played at under-18 and under-21 level for Wales[42] before making his senior international debut in 1995 against Albania while at Crewe. Savage attained 39 caps, scoring two goals, both in World Cup qualifying against Turkey and Norway, before retiring from international football in September 2005, saying he wished to concentrate on his club career.[43] However, many people believe the reason he quit was due to a spat with Wales manager John Toshack. Savage did give the explanation that "John Toshack said it was my way or the highway – well I'm on the M56."[44]

On 6 March 2006, he appeared on Welsh radio, partaking in a debate with pundit Leighton James over his exclusion from the Welsh squad. Early in his international career he clashed with former Wales manager Bobby Gould when he jokingly threw a replica of Paolo Maldini's shirt into a disposal bin before a match against Italy.[45] Savage was initially dropped by Gould from the squad only to be reinstated the next day.[45]

Style of play and controversies
Savage's style as a midfield player was all-action and energetic, and he regularly collected yellow cards, and for a while held the dubious distinction of being awarded the most yellow cards of any Premiership player in the league's history – 89, although he has now been overtaken by Lee Bowyer, Kevin Davies and Paul Scholes.[46] Fans of Aston Villa, Tottenham, West Ham and Arsenal have accused him of simulation, whether to win a set piece or to get an opponent red carded.[47]

During a match against Newcastle United in August 2003, the referee Matt Messias swung his arm out and accidentally hit Savage in the face as Savage was running behind him.[48] On 17 January 2010, whilst commentating for BBC Radio 5 Live's coverage of a Premier League match between Aston Villa and West Ham United at Villa Park, a clearance by Villa midfielder Stiliyan Petrov hit Savage in the face causing some minor bleeding to the nose.[49]

Savage has, however, only been sent off twice in his career: once during an international game for the Welsh national team, and once during a Premier League game for Blackburn. He received his first-ever red card when he was sent off in Wales' World Cup qualification match against Northern Ireland in September 2004 for reacting to a foul on him by midfielder Michael Hughes. Both Hughes and Savage were sent off, but, on later review, the punishment of Savage seemed harsh to some. Savage was ridiculed for threatening to appeal to the European Court of Human Rights over the decision. His once-impressive statistic of never being sent off in a Premiership match ended on 18 March 2006 when he was dismissed against Middlesbrough for two bookable offences. Both were controversial – the first for a challenge on George Boateng where he appeared to take the ball, and the second for handball when it seemed unintentional. Savage later admitted that he was probably due a controversial sending off because he had escaped punishment for illegal challenges in the past.

One famous example of his eccentric behaviour was while he played for Leicester City. In an incident to become known as "Poogate" he used the referee's toilet before a game, claiming he had an upset stomach due to antibiotics he was on at the time. The Football Association charged him and he was fined £10,000, a decision that he appealed against, but lost. Leicester fined him two weeks' wages for the incident.[50][51]

Whilst playing for Leicester, in the final minute of a league game between rivals Leicester and Derby at Pride Park in 2001, Savage dived in the penalty area. Leicester were awarded the penalty, which was converted, and meant they won the game 3–2. Savage's blatant dive, his hopeful look at the referee and his aggressive fist-pumping celebration in front of the home fans resulted in a torrent of abuse from the fans and in Savage being chased across the pitch by incensed Derby players, two of whom were booked. Derby fans regularly booed, jeered and abused Savage whenever he played against them, and when he became a Derby player in January 2008, he was treated with a mixture of hostility and indifference, partly over the incident, and partly over his average form.[52][53][54]

Savage is also famous for an incident at Villa Park, while playing for Birmingham City, in a bad-tempered Second City derby in March 2003. After a slide tackle on him by Dion Dublin, a confrontation between the two and several other players occurred before Dublin headbutted Savage. Dublin was then sent off by referee Mark Halsey as result.[55] Birmingham would go on to win the derby 0–2.

When being interviewed by BBC Radio Derby's Colin Gibson in January 2010, Savage reacted furiously to rumours he heard that the Derby players think the club's backroom staff are not up to the job. These rumours were brought up during a phone-in on Gibson's show on the station the preceding weekend, following the Rams' 4–1 defeat at home to Scunthorpe United on 9 January.[56]

Broadcasting career
Savage occasionally acted as a pundit during his club career,[57][58] and started working in the media more regularly in the 2009–10 season.[59] He worked in a number of different punditry roles during the 2010 FIFA World Cup before joining the presenting team for BBC Radio 5 Live's 6-0-6 show.[60] In September 2010, Savage signed up as official sporting ambassador for bookmakers William Hill.[61] In May 2011 he was awarded the Sony Radio Academy Rising Star Award,[62] as well as winning an award from the Plain English Campaign.[63]

Between 2009–2013, Savage was a pundit on ESPN, and has since moved to BT Sport.

Since retiring from football in May 2011, Savage has attempted to become a more prominent broadcasting figure beyond punditry. From September 2011 Savage took part in the 2011 series of Strictly Come Dancing,[64] partnering Ola Jordan. The show broadcast on 22 October saw Savage perform a dramatic knee-slide towards the camera, which resulted in a broken nose.[65] Savage left the competition on 4 December 2011, and as such was placed sixth.[66]

In October 2012, along with 463 other players, Savage took part in BBC Radio 5 Live's attempt to set a new Guinness World Record for the 'most players in a continuous 5 a side exhibition match'. This was for BBC Children in Need along with comedian Lloyd Langford and BBC Radio 5 Live travel reporter Lindsey Chapman.[67][68] Along with Ex-England cricketer Andrew Flintoff, Savage is part of a BBC Radio 5 Live podcast called Flintoff, Savage & The Ping Pong Guy, hosted by former table tennis player Matthew Syed, which discussed current sporting topics

Taylor Swift

Taylor Alison Swift (born December 13, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter. She is known for narrative songs about her personal life, which have received widespread media coverage. Born and raised in Reading, Pennsylvania, Swift moved to Nashville, Tennessee at the age of 14 to pursue a career in country music. She signed with label Big Machine Records and became the youngest artist signed by the Sony/ATV Music publishing house. Her 2006 eponymous debut album was the longest-charting album of the 2000s in the U.S., where it peaked at number five. The album's third single, "Our Song", made her the youngest person to single-handedly write and perform a number-one song on the Hot Country Songs chart. Swift's second album, Fearless, was released in 2008. Buoyed by the success of pop crossover singles "Love Story" and "You Belong with Me", Fearless became the best-selling album of 2009 in the U.S. The album won four Grammy Awards, and Swift became the youngest Album of the Year winner.

Swift was the sole writer of her 2010 album Speak Now. It debuted at number one in the U.S., and the single "Mean" won two Grammy Awards. Her fourth album, Red (2012), yielded the singles "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together" and "I Knew You Were Trouble". For her fifth album, the pop-focused 1989 (2014), she received three Grammys and became the first woman and fifth act overall to win Album of the Year twice. Its singles "Shake It Off", "Blank Space", and "Bad Blood" reached number one in the U.S., Australia, and Canada. The first two made Swift the first woman in the Billboard Hot 100's history to succeed herself at the top spot. Her sixth album, Reputation (2017), and its lead single, "Look What You Made Me Do", topped the UK and U.S. charts; with the release of Reputation, Swift became the first act to have four albums sell one million copies within one week in the U.S. Her seventh album, Lover (2019), spawned two U.S. number-two singles, "Me!" and "You Need to Calm Down".

Having sold more than 50 million albums—including 32 million in the U.S.—and 150 million singles, Swift is one of the best-selling music artists of all time. As a songwriter, she has received awards from the Nashville Songwriters Association and the Songwriters Hall of Fame, and was included in Rolling Stone's 100 Greatest Songwriters of All Time in 2015. Her other accolades include 10 Grammy Awards, one Emmy, 29 American Music Awards, 23 Billboard Music Awards, six Guinness world records, and appearances in Time's 100 most influential people in the world (2010, 2015, 2019). She also ranked first in the Forbes Celebrity 100 (2016 and 2019), and was the youngest to be featured in the magazine's listing of the 100 most powerful women (2015). In 2019, Billboard placed Swift on number 8 of its list of Greatest of All Time Artists, the highest for an artist that started in the 21st century.
Life and career
1989–2003: Early life
Taylor Alison Swift was born on December 13, 1989, in Reading, Pennsylvania.[1] Her father, Scott Kingsley Swift, was a stockbroker for Merrill Lynch; her mother, Andrea Gardner Swift (née Finlay), was a homemaker who had worked as a mutual fund marketing executive.[2] Swift, who has said she has Scottish heritage[3] was named after the singer-songwriter James Taylor.[4] She has a younger brother named Austin, who is an actor.[5] Swift spent her early years on a Christmas tree farm, which her father purchased from one of his clients.[6][7] She attended preschool and kindergarten at the Alvernia Montessori School, run by Franciscan nuns,[8] before transferring to The Wyndcroft School.[9] The family moved to a rented house in the suburban town of Wyomissing, Pennsylvania,[10] where she attended Wyomissing Area Junior/Senior High School.[11]

At age nine, Swift became interested in musical theater and performed in four Berks Youth Theatre Academy productions.[12] She also traveled regularly to New York City for vocal and acting lessons.[13] Swift later shifted her focus toward country music inspired by Shania Twain's songs, which made her "want to just run around the block four times and daydream about everything."[14] She spent her weekends performing at local festivals and events.[15][16] After watching a documentary about Faith Hill, Swift felt sure she needed to go to Nashville, Tennessee, to pursue a music career.[17] She traveled with her mother at age eleven to visit Nashville record labels and submitted a demo tape of Dolly Parton and Dixie Chicks karaoke covers.[18] She was rejected, however, because "everyone in that town wanted to do what I wanted to do. So, I kept thinking to myself, I need to figure out a way to be different."[19]

When Swift was about 12 years old, computer repairman and local musician Ronnie Cremer taught her to play guitar. He helped with her first efforts as a songwriter, leading to her writing "Lucky You".[20] In 2003, Swift and her parents started working with New York-based music manager Dan Dymtrow. With his help, Swift modeled for Abercrombie & Fitch as part of their "Rising Stars" campaign, had an original song included on a Maybelline compilation CD, and attended meetings with major record labels.[21] After performing original songs at an RCA Records showcase, Swift was given an artist development deal and began making frequent trips to Nashville with her mother.[22][23]

To help Swift break into country music, her father transferred to Merrill Lynch's Nashville office when she was 14, and the family relocated to a lakefront house in Hendersonville, Tennessee.[6][24] Swift attended Hendersonville High School[25] but after two years transferred to the Aaron Academy, which through homeschooling could accommodate her touring schedule; she graduated a year early.[26]

2004–2008: Career beginnings and Taylor Swift
In Nashville, Swift worked with experienced Music Row songwriters such as Troy Verges, Brett Beavers, Brett James, Mac McAnally, and the Warren Brothers,[27][28] and formed a lasting working relationship with Liz Rose.[29] They began meeting for two-hour writing sessions every Tuesday afternoon after school.[30] Rose thought the sessions were "some of the easiest I've ever done. Basically, I was just her editor. She'd write about what happened in school that day. She had such a clear vision of what she was trying to say. And she'd come in with the most incredible hooks." Swift was signed by the Sony/ATV Tree publishing house[31] but left RCA Records when she was 14.[16] She later said: "I genuinely felt that I was running out of time. I wanted to capture these years of my life on an album while they still represented what I was going through.
At an industry showcase at Nashville's Bluebird Cafe in 2005, Swift caught the attention of Scott Borchetta, a DreamWorks Records executive who was preparing to form an independent record label, Big Machine Records. She had first met Borchetta in 2004.[33] Swift became one of Big Machine's first signings, and her father purchased a three-percent stake in the company for an estimated $120,000.[34][35] She began working on her eponymous debut album shortly after. Swift persuaded Big Machine to hire her demo producer Nathan Chapman, with whom she felt she had the right "chemistry".[16] She wrote three of the album's songs alone, and co-wrote the remaining eight with Rose, Robert Ellis Orrall, Brian Maher, and Angelo Petraglia.[36] Taylor Swift was released on October 24, 2006.[37] Jon Caramanica of The New York Times described it as "a small masterpiece of pop-minded country, both wide-eyed and cynical, held together by Ms. Swift's firm, pleading voice."[38] Taylor Swift peaked at number five on the Billboard 200 albums chart in the United States, spending 157 weeks there—the longest stay on the chart by any release in the U.S. that decade.[39] As of August 2016, the album had sold over 7.75 million copies worldwide.[40]

Big Machine Records was still in its infancy during the June 2006 release of the lead single, "Tim McGraw". Swift and her mother helped "stuff the CD singles into envelopes to send to radio."[41] She spent much of 2006 promoting Taylor Swift with a radio tour, television appearances, and opening for Rascal Flatts on select dates during their 2006 tour[42][43] after they fired their previous opening act, Eric Church, for playing longer than his allotted time. Church jokingly told Swift she should give him her first gold record as thanks for getting fired. She sent him her first gold record with a note that said, "Thanks for playing too long and too loud on the Flatts tour. I sincerely appreciate it. Taylor."[44]

Borchetta said that record industry peers disapproved of his signing a 16-year-old singer-songwriter, but that Swift tapped into a previously unknown market—teenage girls who listen to country music.[6] Following "Tim McGraw", four more singles were released throughout 2007 and 2008: "Teardrops on My Guitar", "Our Song", "Picture to Burn" and "Should've Said No". All were successful on Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart in the United States, with "Our Song", and "Should've Said No" reaching number one. With "Our Song", Swift became the youngest person to single-handedly write and perform a number-one song on the chart.[45] "Teardrops on My Guitar" reached number thirteen on the Billboard Hot 100 songs chart in the United States.[46] Swift also released the holiday album Sounds of the Season: The Taylor Swift Holiday Collection in October 2007 and the EP Beautiful Eyes in July 2008.[47][48] She promoted her debut album extensively as the opening act for other artists on their tours.[49]

Swift won accolades for Taylor Swift. She was one of the recipients of the Nashville Songwriters Association's Songwriter/Artist of the Year in 2007, becoming the youngest person to be honored with the title.[50] She also won the Country Music Association's Horizon Award for Best New Artist,[51] the Academy of Country Music Awards' Top New Female Vocalist,[52] and the American Music Awards' Favorite Country Female Artist honor.[53] She was also nominated for Best New Artist at the 2008 Grammy Awards.[54] She opened for the Rascal Flatts on their 2008 summer and fall tour.[55] In July of that year, Swift began a romance with singer Joe Jonas that ended three months later.[56][57]

2008–2010: Fearless and acting
Swift's second studio album, Fearless, was released on November 11, 2008.[37] The lead single, "Love Story", was released in September 2008. It peaked at number four on the Billboard Hot 100[58] and number one in Australia.[59] Four more singles were released throughout 2008 and 2009: "White Horse", "You Belong with Me", "Fifteen" and "Fearless". "You Belong with Me" was the album's highest-charting single on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number two.[60] The album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 and was the top-selling album of 2009 in the United States.[61] Swift's first concert tour, the Fearless Tour, promoted the album;[62] it grossed over $63 million.[63] Taylor Swift: Journey to Fearless, a concert film, was aired on television and later released on DVD and Blu-ray.[64] Swift also performed as a supporting act for Keith Urban's Escape Together World Tour
In 2009, the music video for "You Belong with Me" was named MTV Video Music Award for Best Female Video.[68] Her acceptance speech was interrupted by rapper Kanye West.[69] The incident was the subject of controversy and widespread media attention, resulting in many Internet memes.[70] James Montgomery of MTV argued the incident and subsequent media attention turned Swift into "a bona-fide mainstream celebrity".[71] That year she won five American Music Awards, including Artist of the Year and Favorite Country Album.[72] Billboard named her 2009's Artist of the Year.[73] The album ranked number 99 on NPR's 2017 list of the 150 Greatest Albums Made By Women.[74]

At the 52nd Annual Grammy Awards, Fearless was named Album of the Year and Best Country Album, and "White Horse" was named Best Country Song and Best Female Country Vocal Performance. Swift was the youngest artist to win Album of the Year.[75] During the ceremony, Swift sang "You Belong with Me" and "Rhiannon" with Stevie Nicks. Her performance received negative reviews and caused a media backlash.[71][76] Jon Caramanica of The New York Times found it "refreshing to see someone so gifted make the occasional flub" and described Swift as "the most important new pop star of the past few years".[77] Swift became the youngest artist to be named Entertainer of the Year by the Country Music Association.[78] Fearless also won the Association's Album of the Year award.[79]

Swift contributed backing vocals to John Mayer's "Half of My Heart", a single featured on his fourth album, Battle Studies (2009).[80] She co-wrote and recorded "Best Days of Your Life" with Kellie Pickler,[81] and co-wrote two songs for the Hannah Montana: The Movie soundtrack—"You'll Always Find Your Way Back Home" and "Crazier".[67] Swift also provided vocals for Boys Like Girls' "Two Is Better Than One".[82] She contributed two songs to the Valentine's Day soundtrack, including "Today Was a Fairytale", which became her first number one on the Canadian Hot 100 chart.[83][84] While filming her cinematic debut Valentine's Day in October 2009, Swift began a romantic relationship with co-star Taylor Lautner; they broke up later that year.[85][86] The romantic comedy, released the following year, saw her play the ditzy girlfriend of a high school jock, a role which the Los Angeles Times felt showed Swift had "serious comedic potential".[87] In a scathing review, a critic for Variety deemed her "entirely undirected", arguing "she needs to find a skilled director to tamp her down and channel her obviously abundant energy".[88]

Swift made her TV acting debut in a 2009 episode of CBS's CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, playing a rebellious teenager. The New York Times noted the character allowed Swift to be "a little bit naughty, and credibly so".[89] Later that year, Swift both hosted and performed as the musical guest on an episode of Saturday Night Live.[90] Entertainment Weekly described her as "this season's best Saturday Night Live host so far", noting she "was always up for the challenge, seemed to be having fun, and helped the rest of the cast nail the punchlines".[91]

2010–2014: Speak Now and Red
In August 2010, Swift released "Mine", the lead single from her third studio album, Speak Now. It entered the U.S. charts at number three, making Swift the second female artist in the history of the Hot 100 (after Mariah Carey) to debut multiple tracks in the top five in one year; the other was "Today Was a Fairytale" at number two.[92] Swift wrote the album alone and co-produced every track.[93] Speak Now, released on October 25, 2010,[37] was a commercial success, debuting at number one on the Billboard 200, and becoming the 16th album to achieve opening week sales of one million copies.[94] It became the fastest-selling digital album by a female artist, with 278,000 downloads in a week, earning Swift an entry in the 2010 Guinness World Records. She earned a second entry after she became the first woman to achieve 10 track debuts on the Billboard Hot 100.[95][96] Three of the album's singles, "Mine", "Back to December", and "Mean", peaked in the top ten in Canada.[84] Later in 2010, she briefly dated actor Jake Gyllenhaal.[97]

"Mean" won Best Country Song and Best Country Solo Performance at the 54th Annual Grammy Awards.[98] Swift performed it during the ceremony. Claire Suddath of Time felt she "delivered her comeback on-key and with a vengeance";[99] Jayme Deerwester of USA Today wrote that the criticism in 2010 seemed to have "made her a better songwriter and live performer".[100] Swift won other awards for Speak Now, including Songwriter/Artist of the Year by the Nashville Songwriters Association (2010 and 2011),[101][102] Woman of the Year by Billboard (2011),[103] and Entertainer of the Year by the Academy of Country Music (2011 and 2012)[104] and the Country Music Association in 2011.[105] At the American Music Awards of 2011, Swift won Artist of the Year and Favorite Country Album.[106] Rolling Stone placed Speak Now at number 45 in its 2012 list of the "50 Best Female Albums of All Time", writing: "She might get played on the country station, but she's one of the few genuine rock stars we've got these days, with a flawless ear for what makes a song click.
The Speak Now World Tour ran from February 2011 to March 2012 and grossed over $123 million.[108] In November 2011, Swift released her first live album, Speak Now World Tour: Live.[109] The following month, she contributed two original songs to The Hunger Games soundtrack album: "Safe & Sound", cowritten and recorded with the Civil Wars and T-Bone Burnett, and "Eyes Open". "Safe & Sound" won the Grammy Award for Best Song Written for Visual Media.[110] Swift contributed vocals to rapper B.o.B's "Both of Us", released in May 2012.[111] From July to September 2012, Swift dated political heir Conor Kennedy.[112] In August, Swift released "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together", the lead single from her fourth studio album, Red. It became her first number one in the U.S. and New Zealand[113][114] and reached the top slot on iTunes' digital song sales chart 50 minutes after its release, earning the Fastest Selling Single in Digital History Guinness World Record.[115] Swift released the album's second single, "Begin Again", in October. It reached number seven on the Billboard Hot 100.[116] Other singles released from the album include "I Knew You Were Trouble", "22", "Everything Has Changed", "The Last Time", and "Red". "I Knew You Were Trouble" was a major commercial success,[117] peaking at number two in the United States.[116]

Red was released on October 22, 2012,[37] incorporating new genres for Swift, such as heartland rock, dubstep and dance-pop. The album was a critical and commercial success,[14] and debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 with first-week sales of 1.21 million copies. This marked the highest opening sales in a decade in the United States, and made Swift the first female to have two million-selling album openings, a record recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records.[118][119] The Red Tour ran from March 2013 to June 2014 and grossed over $150 million; the tour broke the ticket sales record in China with all 18,000 tickets sold in 60 seconds.[120][121] Red earned several accolades, including four nominations at the 56th Annual Grammy Awards.[122] Its single "I Knew You Were Trouble" won Best Female Video at the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards.[123] Swift was named Best Female Country Artist at the 2012 American Music Awards and Artist of the Year at the 2013 ceremony.[124][125] She received the Nashville Songwriters Association's Songwriter/Artist Award for the fifth and sixth consecutive years in 2012 and 2013.[126] Swift was also honored by the Association with a special Pinnacle Award, making her the second recipient of the accolade after Garth Brooks.[127] During this time, she had a short-term relationship with British singer Harry Styles.[128]

In 2013, Swift co-wrote and co-produced "Sweeter than Fiction" with Jack Antonoff for the One Chance soundtrack, and received a Best Original Song nomination at the 71st Golden Globe Awards.[129] She provided guest vocals for Tim McGraw's song "Highway Don't Care", featuring guitar work by Keith Urban.[130] Swift performed "As Tears Go By" with the Rolling Stones in Chicago, Illinois as part of their 50 & Counting tour,[131] and said that the band was a major influence on her career outlook.[132] She also joined Florida Georgia Line on stage during their set at the 2013 Country Radio Seminar to sing "Cruise".[133] Swift voiced Audrey, a tree lover, in the animated film The Lorax (2012),[134] made a cameo in the sitcom New Girl (2013),[135] and had a supporting role in the film adaptation of The Giver (2014).[136]

2014–2017: 1989
In March 2014, Swift relocated to New York City.[137] Around this time, she was working on her fifth studio album, 1989, with co-writers Antonoff, Max Martin, Shellback, Imogen Heap, Ryan Tedder, and Ali Payami.[138] She promoted the album through various campaigns, including inviting fans to secret album-listening sessions.[139] Credited as her "first documented, official pop album", it marked a departure from her country albums.[140] The album was released on October 27, 2014, to positive reviews
1989 sold 1.28 million copies in the U.S. during the first week of its release and debuted atop the Billboard 200. This made Swift the first act to have three albums sell more than one million copies in their opening release week, for which she earned another Guinness World Record.[142][143] As of June 2017, 1989 had sold over 10 million copies worldwide.[144] The lead single, "Shake It Off", was released in August 2014 and debuted at number one on the Billboard Hot 100.[145] The album generated two additional number-one singles—"Blank Space" and "Bad Blood" (featuring Kendrick Lamar)—as well as the top-ten entries "Style" and "Wildest Dreams", and other singles "Out of the Woods" and "New Romantics".[146] "Shake It Off", "Blank Space", and "Bad Blood" also topped the charts in Australia and Canada.[59][84] After "Blank Space" reached number one in the U.S. following "Shake It Off", Swift became the first woman in the Hot 100's history to "succeed herself at the top spot".[147] The music video for "Blank Space" was briefly the fastest video to reach one billion views on Vevo.[148] The videos for "Blank Space" and "Bad Blood" earned four nominations at the 2015 MTV Video Music Awards. "Bad Blood" won Video of the Year and Best Collaboration.[149] Swift's headlining tour, the 1989 World Tour, running from May to December 2015, grossed over $250 million, and was highest-grossing tour of the year.[150]

Swift was named Billboard's Woman of the Year in 2014—the first artist to win the award twice.[151] That year she also received the Dick Clark Award for Excellence at the American Music Awards.[152] In 2015, "Shake It Off" was nominated for three Grammy Awards, including Record of the Year and Song of the Year; Swift won the Brit Award for International Female Solo Artist.[153][154] Swift was one of eight artists to receive a 50th Anniversary Milestone Award at the 2015 Academy of Country Music Awards.[155] In 2016, she won three Grammy Awards for 1989—Album of the Year, Best Pop Vocal Album, and Best Music Video for "Bad Blood". She became the first woman, and the fifth act, to win the first of these twice.[156]

Prior to 1989's release, Swift stressed the importance of albums to artists and fans.[157] In November 2014, she removed her entire catalog from the streaming service Spotify, arguing that its ad-supported free service undermined the premium service, which provides higher royalties for songwriters.[158] In a June 2015 open letter, Swift criticized Apple Music for not offering royalties to artists during their free three-month trial period and said she would pull 1989 from the catalog.[159] The following day, Apple announced it would pay artists during the free trial period,[160] and Swift agreed to stream 1989 on their streaming service.[161] Swift's intellectual property rights management and holding company, TAS Rights Management, filed for 73 trademarks related to Swift and the 1989 era memes.[162] She re-released her entire catalog plus 1989 to Spotify, Amazon Music and Google Play and other digital streaming platforms in June 2017.[163]

In 2015, Swift performed "I Saw Her Standing There" and "Shake It Off" with Paul McCartney at the Saturday Night Live 40th Anniversary Special after-party.[164] She joined Kenny Chesney to sing "Big Star" on the opening night of his Big Revival Tour in Nashville.[165] In March 2015, Swift started dating Scottish DJ and record producer Calvin Harris.[166] By June 2015, the duo were ranked as the highest-paid celebrity couple over the past year by Forbes with combined earnings of over $146 million.[167] Before Swift and Harris announced the end of their relationship in June 2016,[168] they co-wrote his song "This Is What You Came For" (featuring Rihanna), for which she was initially credited under the pseudonym Nils Sjöberg.[169] The same month Swift began dating English actor Tom Hiddleston;[170] the relationship ended several months later. In August, Swift addressed her mother's cancer diagnosis and encouraged others to get a medical checkup.[171] In September 2016, Swift began dating British actor Joe Alwyn.[172][173] In October, Little Big Town released "Better Man", written solely by Swift, for their seventh album, The Breaker.[174] She had emailed them the song and offered it to them, having their vocal harmonies in mind.[175] The song earned Swift an award for Song of the Year at the 51st CMA Awards.[176] Two months later, Swift and British singer Zayn Malik released a single together called "I Don't Wanna Live Forever", for the soundtrack of the film Fifty Shades Darker (2017). The song reached number one in Sweden and peaked at number two in the United States.[177][178] At the 2017 MTV Video Music Awards, the duo won the award for Best Collaboration for the song's music video.[179]

2017–2019: Reputation
In August 2017, Swift successfully sued David Mueller, a former morning show personality for Denver's KYGO-FM. Four years earlier, Swift had informed Mueller's bosses that he had sexually assaulted her by groping her at an event. After being fired, Mueller accused Swift of lying and sued her for damages from his loss of employment. Shortly after, Swift counter-sued for sexual assault. The jury rejected Mueller's claims and ruled in favor of Swift.[180] Swift thereafter cleared her social media accounts[181] and then released "Look What You Made Me Do" as the lead single from her sixth album, Reputation.[182] The song topped the charts in Australia, Ireland, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States.[183][184] Its music video had over 43.2 million views during its first day on YouTube, breaking the site's record for the most-viewed music video in 24 hours.[185] In October, Swift released the album's second single "...Ready for It?",[186] which charted at number three in Australia and at number four in the United States
Two promotional singles were released from Reputation, "Gorgeous" and "Call It What You Want". "Gorgeous" later became the album's fifth single but was released as such only in Europe.[188] The album was released on November 10. It sold 1.216 million copies in the United States becoming 2017's the country's top-selling album (pure sales only). First-week worldwide sales amounted to two million copies.[189] With this achievement, she became the first act to have four albums sell one million copies within one week in the U.S.[190] The album topped the charts in several countries, including the U.S., the UK, Australia, and Canada.[191][192] Later that month, Swift performed "...Ready for It?" and "Call It What You Want" on Saturday Night Live.[193] "End Game", featuring Ed Sheeran and rapper Future, followed in November as the third single; it peaked at number 18 in the U.S.[194] Other singles from the album include "New Year's Day" released exclusively to country radio, and "Delicate".[195]

In April 2018, Swift featured on Sugarland's "Babe" from their album Bigger.[a] In support of Reputation, Swift embarked on her Reputation Stadium Tour from May to November 2018.[197] The tour broke multiple venue attendance and gross earnings records in the United States, taking in $266.1 million—selling more than two million tickets. Swift broke her own record for the highest-grossing domestic tour by a woman[b] and surpassed The Rolling Stones' $245 million-grossing A Bigger Bang Tour (2005–2007).[198] Worldwide, the tour grossed $345.7 million,[199] making it the second highest-grossing concert tour of the year.[200] At the American Music Awards of 2018, Swift won Tour of the Year award, Artist of the Year, Favorite Pop/Rock Female Artist, and Favorite Pop/Rock Album for Reputation. With a total of 23 awards, she became the most awarded female winner in AMA history, a record previously held by Whitney Houston.[201] Reputation was nominated for a Grammy Award in the Best Pop Vocal Album category.[202]

Reputation was Swift's last album under her 12-year contract with Big Machine Records. In November 2018, Swift signed a new multi-album deal with Big Machine's distributor Universal Music Group; in the United States, her future releases will be promoted under the Republic Records imprint. Swift said the contract included a provision for her to maintain ownership of her master recordings. In addition, in the event that Universal sells any part of its stake in Spotify, Spotify agreed to distribute a non-recoupable portion of the proceeds among their artists.[203] In late November, Big Machine Records released a Reputation Stadium Tour playlist for streaming services. The playlist includes every song performed on B-stages during the Reputation Stadium Tour.[204] On December 31, Reputation Stadium Tour, a concert film, was released on Netflix.[205]

2019: Lover
Swift released "Me!", featuring Brendon Urie of Panic! at the Disco on April 26, 2019, as the lead single from her seventh studio album, Lover.[206][207] The song debuted at number 100 on the Billboard Hot 100 three days after its release, and jumped to number two the following week—the biggest single-week jump in the Hot 100's history.[208] The music video for "Me!" broke a Vevo record by amassing 65.2 million views within its first day of release.[209] On June 14, she released the second single "You Need to Calm Down", which debuted and peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100,[210][211] and gave a surprise performance at the Stonewall Inn in Greenwich Village, Manhattan, to commemorate Stonewall 50 – WorldPride NYC 2019.[212] On July 23, she released a promotional single from the album, "The Archer".[213] The title track was released as the third single on August 16.[214]

Lover was released on August 23 to positive reviews,[215] and debuted atop the Billboard 200 with first-week sales of 679,000 copies.[216] Upon the album's release, all of its 18 songs entered the Billboard Hot 100, setting the record for the most simultaneous chart entries for a female artist.[217] It also sold more copies than all the other 199 albums on the chart combined that week.[218] At the 2019 MTV Video Music Awards, the videos for "Me!" and "You Need to Calm Down" received twelve nominations. "Me!" won Best Visual Effects, and "You Need to Calm Down" won Video of the Year and Video for Good.[219] Swift was cast as Bombalurina in the movie adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical Cats, which will be released on December 20, 2019.[220] Swift and Lloyd Webber wrote the original song "Beautiful Ghosts" for the film, which was released on November 15.[221]

In June, Big Machine, Swift's former record label, was purchased by music manager Scooter Braun, including the masters for her first six albums.[222] Swift voiced her displeasure in a Tumblr post, saying she had been trying to buy the masters for years and describing Braun as an "incessant, manipulative bully".[222] In August, Swift announced plans to rerecord the albums in November 2020.[223] In November 2019, Swift said that Braun and Big Machine founder Scott Borchetta blocked her from performing her older songs at the 2019 American Music Awards, where she is to receive the Artist of the Decade award, as well as using older material for a Netflix documentary.[224] Big Machine denied the allegations in general terms in a statement, and accused Swift of owing "million of dollars and multiple assets" to the label.[225][226] In response, Swift's representatives released correspondence showing a Big Machine executive refusing to grant licenses for the documentary, and stated Big Machine owes Swift nearly $8 million in unpaid royalties.[227] On November 18, Big Machine issued a statement that it had "agreed to grant all licenses of their artists' performances to stream post show and for re-broadcast on mutually approved platforms" for the American Music Awards, though it did not mention Swift by name.[228]

Artistry
Influences
One of Swift's earliest musical memories is listening to her maternal grandmother, Marjorie Finlay, sing in church.[2] As a child, she enjoyed Disney film soundtracks: "My parents noticed that, once I had run out of words, I would just make up my own".[229] Swift has said she owes her confidence to her mother, who helped her prepare for class presentations as a child.[230] She also attributes her "fascination with writing and storytelling" to her mother.[231] Swift was drawn to the storytelling aspect of country music,[232] and was introduced to the genre listening to "the great female country artists of the '90s"—Shania Twain, Faith Hill, and the Dixie Chicks.[233][234] Twain, both as a songwriter and performer, was her biggest musical influence.[235] Hill was Swift's childhood role model: "Everything she said, did, wore, I tried to copy it".[236] She admired the Dixie Chicks' defiant attitude and their ability to play their own instruments.[237] The band's "Cowboy Take Me Away" was the first song Swift learned to play on the guitar.[238] Swift also explored the music of older country stars, including Patsy Cline, Loretta Lynn, Dolly Parton, and Tammy Wynette.[15] She believes Parton is "an amazing example to every female songwriter out there".[239] Alt-country artists like Ryan Adams,[240] Patty Griffin[241] and Lori McKenna have also inspired Swift.[6]

Swift lists Paul McCartney, The Rolling Stones,[132] Bruce Springsteen, Emmylou Harris, Kris Kristofferson, and Carly Simon as her career role models: "They've taken chances, but they've also been the same artist for their entire careers".[6][242] McCartney, both as a Beatle and a solo artist, makes Swift feel "as if I've been let into his heart and his mind ... He's out there continuing to make his fans so happy. Any musician could only dream of a legacy like that."[243] She admires Springsteen for being "so musically relevant after such a long period of time".[244] She aspires to be like Harris as she grows older: "It's not about fame for her, it's about music".[245] "[Kristofferson] shines in songwriting ... He's just one of those people who has been in this business for years but you can tell it hasn't chewed him up and spat him out", Swift says.[246] She admires Simon's "songwriting and honesty ... She's known as an emotional person but a strong person".[247]

Swift has been influenced by other non-country artists. As a pre-teen, she enjoyed bubblegum pop acts including Hanson and Britney Spears, for whom Swift has said she has an "unwavering devotion".[248][249] In her high school years, Swift listened to rock bands like Dashboard Confessional,[250] Fall Out Boy,[251] and Jimmy Eat World.[252] She has also spoken fondly of singers and songwriters like Michelle Branch,[252] Alanis Morissette,[253] Fefe Dobson,[252] Colbie Caillat,[254] Beyoncé,[255] Justin Timberlake,[256] Pete Wentz,[257] Lana Del Rey,[257] and Halsey,[258] as well as the 1960s acts The Shirelles, Doris Troy, and The Beach Boys.[259] Swift's fifth album, the pop-focused 1989, was influenced by some of her favorite 1980s pop acts, including Peter Gabriel,[260] Annie Lennox, Phil Collins and "Like a Prayer-era Madonna".[261] Discussing Madonna, Swift said: "One element of Madonna's career that really takes center stage is how many times she's reinvented herself. It's easier to stay in one look, one comfort zone, one musical style. It's inspiring to see someone whose only predictable quality is being unpredictable."[262]

Musical style

Michael Bloomberg

Michael Rubens Bloomberg[1] (born February 14, 1942) is an American politician, businessman, and author. As of November 2019, his net worth was estimated at $58 billion,[2] making him the 9th richest person in the United States and the 14th richest person in the world. He has joined The Giving Pledge, whereby billionaires pledge to give away at least half of their wealth.[3] To date, Bloomberg has given away $8.2 billion, including his $1.8 billion gift in 2018 to Johns Hopkins University for student aid—the largest private donation ever made to a higher education institution.[4]

Bloomberg grew up in Medford, Massachusetts and attended Johns Hopkins University and Harvard Business School. He is the co-founder, CEO, and owner of Bloomberg L.P., a global financial services, software and mass media company that bears his name, and is known for its Bloomberg Terminal, a computer software system providing financial data widely used in the global financial services industry. He began his career at the securities brokerage Salomon Brothers, before forming his own company in 1981 and spending the next twenty years as its chairman and CEO. Bloomberg also served as chair of the board of trustees at his alma mater, Johns Hopkins University, from 1996 to 2002.

Bloomberg served as the 108th mayor of New York City, holding office for three consecutive terms, beginning his first in 2001. A lifelong Democrat before seeking elective office, Bloomberg switched his party registration in 2001 to run for mayor as a Republican. He defeated opponent Mark J. Green in a close election held just weeks after the September 11 terrorist attacks. He won a second term in 2005, and left the Republican Party two years later. Bloomberg campaigned to change the city's term limits law, and was elected to his third term in 2009 as an independent on the Republican ballot line.

Bloomberg was frequently mentioned as a possible centrist candidate for the presidential elections in 2008, and 2012, as well as for governor of New York in 2010. He declined to seek either office, opting to continue serving as the mayor of New York City. His final term as mayor ended on December 31, 2013.

After a brief stint as a full-time philanthropist, Bloomberg re-assumed the position of CEO at Bloomberg L.P. by the end of 2014. There was widespread speculation that he would run as a third-party candidate in the 2016 presidential election, though he chose not to run, later endorsing Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton for president. In October 2018, Bloomberg changed his political party affiliation back to the Democrats.[5] He announced on November 24, 2019, that he was seeking that party's nomination in the 2020 presidential election.
Early life and education
Bloomberg was born at St. Elizabeth's Hospital, in Brighton, a neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts on February 14, 1942.[7] His family is Jewish. He is a member of the Emanu-El Temple in Manhattan.[8] Bloomberg's father, William Henry Bloomberg (1906–1963), was born in Chelsea, Massachusetts, and worked as an accountant for a dairy company. He was the son of Alexander "Elick" Bloomberg, an immigrant from Russia.[1] The Bloomberg Center at the Harvard Business School was named in William Henry's honor.[9] His mother, Charlotte (Rubens) Bloomberg (January 2, 1909 – June 19, 2011) was a native of Jersey City, New Jersey.[10] Charlotte's father, Bloomberg's maternal grandfather, Max Rubens, was an immigrant from what is present-day Belarus.[11][12]

The family lived in Allston until Bloomberg was two years old, when they moved to Brookline, Massachusetts for the next two years, finally settling in the Boston suburb of Medford, Massachusetts, where he lived until after he graduated from college.[13]

Bloomberg is an Eagle Scout.[14][15]

Bloomberg attended Johns Hopkins University, where he joined the fraternity Phi Kappa Psi. In 1962, as a sophomore, he constructed the school mascot's (the blue jay's) costume.[16] He graduated in 1964 with a Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering. In 1966 he graduated from Harvard Business School with a Master of Business Administration.[17][18]

Business career
In 1973, Bloomberg became a general partner at Salomon Brothers, a bulge bracket Wall Street investment bank, where he headed equity trading and, later, systems development. In 1981, Salomon Brothers was bought[19] by Phibro Corporation, and Bloomberg was laid off from the investment bank.[20] He was given no severance package, but owned $10 million worth of equity as a partner at the firm.

Using this money, Bloomberg went on to set up a company named Innovative Market Systems. His business plan was based on the realization that Wall Street (and the financial community generally) was willing to pay for high-quality business information, delivered as quickly as possible and in as many usable forms possible, via technology (e.g., graphs of highly specific trends).[21]

In 1982, Merrill Lynch became the new company's first customer, installing 22 of the company's Market Master terminals and investing $30 million in the company. The company was renamed Bloomberg L.P. in 1987.[22] By 1990, it had installed 8,000 terminals.[23] Over the years, ancillary products including Bloomberg News, Bloomberg Message, and Bloomberg Tradebook were launched.[24]

As of October 2015, the company had more than 325,000 terminal subscribers worldwide.[25] His company also has a radio network which currently has 1130 WBBR AM in New York City as its flagship station. He left the position of CEO to pursue a political career as the mayor of New York City. Bloomberg was replaced as CEO by Lex Fenwick.[26] During Bloomberg's three mayoral terms, the company was led by president Daniel L. Doctoroff, a former deputy mayor under Bloomberg.[27]

After completing his final term as the mayor of New York City, Bloomberg spent his first eight months out of office as a full-time philanthropist. In fall 2014, he announced that he would return to Bloomberg L.P. as CEO at the end of 2014,[28] succeeding Doctoroff, who had led the company since retiring from the Bloomberg administration in February 2008.[28] Bloomberg remains the CEO of Bloomberg L.P.[29][30]

Bloomberg is a member of Kappa Beta Phi.[31] He wrote an autobiography, with help from Bloomberg News Editor-in-Chief Matthew Winkler, called Bloomberg by Bloomberg.[32]

Wealth
In March 2009, Forbes reported Bloomberg's wealth at $16 billion, a gain of $4.5 billion over the previous year, enjoying the world's biggest increase in wealth in 2009.[33] At that time, there were only four fortunes in the U.S. that were larger (although the Walmart family fortune is split among four people). He had moved from 142nd to 17th in the Forbes list of the world's billionaires in only two years (March 2007 – March 2009).[34][35] In March 2012, Forbes reported Bloomberg's wealth at $22 billion, ranking him 20th in the world and 11th in the United States.[22] By September 2013, Bloomberg's wealth was reported by Forbes as $31 billion and ranked him as the 10th richest person in the United States.[36] In September 2015, his net worth was $43.3 billion, ranking him the 6th richest person in the United States.[37] As of March 2019, he was ranked as the 9th-richest person in the world, with an estimated net worth of $57.1 billion.[38]

Political career
Bloomberg assumed office as the 108th Mayor of New York City on January 1, 2002. He won re-election in 2005 and again in 2009. As mayor, Bloomberg initially struggled with a low approval rating from the public; however, he subsequently developed and maintained high approval ratings.[39] His re-election meant the Republicans had won the previous four mayoral elections (although Bloomberg's decision to leave the Republican Party and be declared an independent on June 19, 2007, resulted in the Republican Party's losing the mayor's seat prior to the expiration of his second term). Bloomberg joined Rudy Giuliani and Fiorello La Guardia as re-elected Republican mayors in the mostly Democratic city. (John Lindsay was also elected mayor of New York City twice while a registered Republican; however, Lindsay did not receive the Republican Party nomination during his 1969 campaign for re-election but ran successfully on the Liberal ticket and joined the Democratic Party during his second term.)[40]

Bloomberg stated that he wanted public education reform to be the legacy of his first term and addressing poverty to be the legacy of his second.[41] According to the National Assessment of Educational Performance, fourth-grade reading scores from 2002 to 2009 rose nationally by 11 points. However, on May 10, 2010, The New York Times reported:

According to the test [NAEP], New York City eighth graders have shown no significant improvement [in math or reading] since they began taking it in 2003, mirroring the largely flat performance of American eighth graders as a whole during that period. In the city, the lack of improvement held true across ethnic groups and also among lower-income students.

Some activists (including Diane Ravitch) opposed Bloomberg's reforms, claiming his approach to the New York City education system was largely unsuccessful because of skewed numbers. Under the reformed approach, a school had to have done better than the previous year to receive funding. Due to this requirement, it was alleged that many successful schools were closed for being "unsuccessful" based on their inability to raise test scores, even though they were top performing schools, while many unsuccessful schools received the bulk of funding for simply raising their scores slightly.[42]

Bloomberg chose to apply a statistical, results-based approach to city management, appointing city commissioners based on their expertise and granting them wide autonomy in their decision-making. Breaking with 190 years of tradition, he implemented what New York Times political reporter Adam Nagourney called a "bullpen" open office plan, similar to a Wall Street trading floor, in which dozens of aides and managerial staff are seated together in a large chamber. The design is intended to promote accountability and accessibility.[43]

In efforts to create "cutbacks" in the New York City Spending Bracket, Bloomberg declined to receive a city salary. He accepted a remuneration of $1 annually for his services.[44] He maintains a public listing in the New York City phone directory,[45] and during his term as mayor, he lived not in Gracie Mansion – the official mayoral residence – but instead at his own home on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. He also has homes in London, Bermuda and Vail, Colorado.[46]

Bloomberg stated that during his mayoralty, he rode the New York City Subway on a daily basis, particularly in the commute from his 79th Street home to his office at City Hall. An August 2007 story in The New York Times stated that he was often seen chauffeured by two New York Police Department-owned SUVs to an express train station to avoid having to change from the local to the express trains on the IRT Lexington Avenue Line.[47]

He supported the construction of the 7 Subway Extension and the Second Avenue Subway; on December 20, 2013, Bloomberg took a ceremonial ride on a train to the new 34th Street station to celebrate a part of his legacy as mayor.[48][49]

Elections
2001 election
In 2001, the incumbent mayor of New York City, Rudy Giuliani, was ineligible for re-election, as the city limited the mayoralty to two consecutive terms. Several well-known New York City politicians aspired to succeed him. Bloomberg, a lifelong member of the Democratic Party, decided to run for mayor as a member of the Republican Party ticket. Voting in the primary began on the morning of September 11, 2001. The primary was postponed later that day, due to the September 11 attacks. In the rescheduled primary, Bloomberg defeated Herman Badillo, a former Democrat Congressman, to become the Republican nominee. Meanwhile, the Democratic primary did not produce a first-round winner. After a runoff, the Democratic nomination went to New York City Public Advocate Mark J. Green.

In the general election, Bloomberg received Giuliani's endorsement. He also had a huge spending advantage. Although New York City's campaign finance law restricts the amount of contributions which a candidate can accept, Bloomberg chose not to use public campaign funds and therefore his campaign was not subject to these restrictions. He spent $73 million of his own money on his campaign, outspending Green five to one.[50] One of the major themes of his campaign was that, with the city's economy suffering from the effects of the World Trade Center attacks, it needed a mayor with business experience.

In addition to serving as the Republican nominee, Bloomberg had the ballot line of the controversial Independence Party, in which "Social Therapy" leaders Fred Newman and Lenora Fulani exert strong influence. Some[who?] say that endorsement was important, as Bloomberg's votes on that line exceeded his margin of victory over Green. (Under New York's fusion rules, a candidate can run on more than one party's line and combine all the votes received on all lines. Green, the Democrat, had the ballot line of the Working Families Party). Bloomberg also created an independent line called Students First whose votes were combined with those on the Independence line. Another factor was the vote in Staten Island, which has traditionally been far friendlier to Republicans than the rest of the city. Bloomberg handily beat Green in that borough, taking 75 percent of the vote. Overall, Bloomberg won 50 percent to 48 percent.[citation needed]

Bloomberg's election marked the first time in New York City history that two different Republicans had been elected mayor consecutively. New York City has not been won by a Republican in a presidential election since Calvin Coolidge won in 1924. Bloomberg is considered a social liberal, who is pro-choice, in favor of legalizing same-sex marriage and an advocate for stricter gun control laws. Although 68 percent of New York City's registered voters are Democrats, Bloomberg decided the city should host the 2004 Republican National Convention. The convention drew thousands of protesters, many of them local residents angry over the Iraq war and other issues. The New York Police Department arrested approximately 1,800 protesters, but according to The New York Times, more than 90 percent of the cases were later dismissed or dropped for lack of evidence.[citation needed]

2005 election
Main article: New York City mayoral election, 2005
Bloomberg was re-elected mayor in November 2005 by a margin of 20 percent, the widest margin ever for a Republican mayor of New York City.[51] He spent almost $78 million on his campaign, exceeding the record of $74 million he spent on the previous election. In late 2004 or early 2005, Bloomberg gave the Independence Party of New York $250,000 to fund a phone bank seeking to recruit volunteers for his re-election campaign.[52]

Former Bronx Borough President Fernando Ferrer won the Democratic nomination to oppose Bloomberg in the general election. Thomas Ognibene sought to run against Bloomberg in the Republican Party's primary election.[53] The Bloomberg campaign successfully challenged enough of the signatures Ognibene had submitted to the Board of Elections to prevent Ognibene from appearing on ballots for the Republican primary.[53] Instead, Ognibene ran on only the Conservative Party ticket.[54] Ognibene accused Bloomberg of betraying Republican Party ideals, a feeling echoed by others.[55][56][57][58]

Bloomberg opposed the confirmation of John Roberts as Chief Justice of the United States.[59] Though a Republican at the time, Bloomberg is a staunch supporter of abortion rights and did not believe that Roberts was committed to maintaining Roe v. Wade.[59] In addition to Republican support, Bloomberg obtained the endorsements of several prominent Democrats: former Democratic Mayor Ed Koch; former Democratic governor Hugh Carey; former Democratic City Council Speaker Peter Vallone, and his son, Councilman Peter Vallone Jr.; former Democratic Congressman Floyd Flake (who had previously endorsed Bloomberg in 2001), and Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz.[60]

2009 election
On October 2, 2008, Bloomberg announced he would seek to extend the city's term limits law and run for a third mayoral term in 2009, arguing a leader of his field was needed following the financial crisis of 2007–08. "Handling this financial crisis while strengthening essential services ... is a challenge I want to take on," Bloomberg said at a news conference. "So should the City Council vote to amend term limits, I plan to ask New Yorkers to look at my record of independent leadership and then decide if I have earned another term."[61]

Ronald Lauder, who campaigned for New York City's term limits in 1993 and spent over 4 million dollars of his own money to limit the maximum years a mayor could serve to eight years,[62] sided with Bloomberg in running for a third term and agreed to stay out of future legality issues.[63] In exchange, he was promised a seat on an influential city board by Bloomberg.[64]

Some people and organizations objected and NYPIRG filed a complaint with the City Conflict of Interest Board.[65] On October 23, 2008, the City Council voted 29–22 in favor of extending the term limit to three consecutive four-year terms, thus allowing Bloomberg to run for office again.[66] After two days of public hearings, Bloomberg signed the bill into law on November 3.[67]

Bloomberg's bid for a third term generated some controversy. Civil libertarians such as former New York Civil Liberties Union Director Norman Siegel and New York Civil Rights Coalition Executive Director Michael Meyers joined with local politicians such as New York State Senator Eric Adams to protest the term-limits extension.[68]

Bloomberg's opponent was Democratic and Working Families Party nominee Bill Thompson, who had been New York City Comptroller for the past eight years and before that, president of the New York City Board of Education.[69] Bloomberg defeated Thompson by a vote of 51% to 46%.[70]

After the release of Independence Party campaign filings in January 2010, it was reported that Bloomberg had made two $600,000 contributions from his personal account to the Independence Party on October 30 and November 2, 2009.[71] The Independence Party then paid $750,000 of that money to Republican Party political operative John Haggerty Jr.[72]

This prompted an investigation beginning in February 2010 by the office of New York County District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. into possible improprieties.[73] The Independence Party later questioned how Haggerty spent the money, which was to go to poll-watchers.[74] Former New York State Senator Martin Connor contended that because the Bloomberg donations were made to an Independence Party housekeeping account rather than to an account meant for current campaigns, this was a violation of campaign finance laws.[75] Haggerty also spent money from a separate $200,000 donation from Bloomberg on office space.[76]

2013 election endorsements
On September 13, 2013, Bloomberg announced that he would not endorse any of the candidates to succeed him.[77][78] On his radio show, he stated, "I don't want to do anything that complicates it for the next mayor. And that's one of the reasons I've decided I'm just not going to make an endorsement in the race." He added, "I want to make sure that person is ready to succeed, to take what we've done and build on that."[79]

Prior to the announcement in an interview in New York magazine, Bloomberg praised The New York Times for its endorsement of Christine Quinn and Joe Lhota, respectively, as their favorite candidates in the Democratic and Republican primaries.[80][81] Quinn came in third in the Democratic primary and Lhota won the Republican primary.

Earlier in the month, Bloomberg was chastised in the press for his remarks regarding Democratic mayoral candidate Bill de Blasio's campaign methods.[82] Bloomberg said initially in a New York magazine interview that he considered de Blasio's campaign "racist," and when asked about his comment, Bloomberg explained what he meant by his remark.[83]

Well, no, no, I mean he's making an appeal using his family to gain support. I think it's pretty obvious to anyone watching what he's been doing. I do not think he himself is racist. It's comparable to me pointing out I'm Jewish in attracting the Jewish vote. You tailor messages to your audiences and address issues you think your audience cares about.[83]

On January 1, 2014, de Blasio became New York City's new mayor, succeeding Bloomberg.[84]

Political stances
Bloomberg has been a registered Democrat for most of his life. He is regarded as socially liberal or progressive on multiple issues, supporting abortion rights, same-sex marriage, strict gun control measures, environmentalism and a pathway to citizenship for illegal immigrants. On economics and foreign issues, Bloomberg has tended towards a conservative or moderate stance. He opposed a timeline for withdrawal from the Iraq War, and criticized those who favored one. Economically, he supports government involvement in issues such as public welfare, while being strongly in favor of free trade and pro-business, describing himself as a fiscal conservative because he balanced the city budget.[85] He is concerned about climate change and has touted his mayoral efforts to reduce greenhouse gases.[86] Bloomberg has been criticized for not allowing many emergency officials who responded to the September 11, 2001, attacks to attend the tenth anniversary observation of that day.[87] He was also at odds with many around the U.S. for not inviting any clergy to the ceremony marking the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.[88]

Social issues
Bloomberg supports abortion rights, stating, "Reproductive choice is a fundamental human right and we can never take it for granted. On this issue, you're either with us or against us." He has criticized "pro-choice" politicians who support "pro-life" candidates.[89]

Bloomberg supports governmental funding for embryonic stem cell research, calling the Republican position on the issue "insanity".[90] He supports same-sex marriage with the rationale that "government shouldn't tell you whom to marry."[91]

Bloomberg supports the strict drug laws of New York City. He has stated that he smoked marijuana in the past, and was quoted in a 2001 interview as saying "You bet I did. I enjoyed it." This led to a reported $500,000 advertising campaign by NORML, featuring his image and the quote. Bloomberg stated in a 2002 interview that he regrets the remark and does not believe that marijuana should be decriminalized.[92] In 2012, Bloomberg backed an effort by Governor Cuomo to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of marijuana.[93] In January 2019, Bloomberg said “Last year, in 2017, 72,000 Americans OD’d [overdosed] on drugs. In 2018, more people than that are OD-ing on drugs, have OD’d on drugs, and today, incidentally, we are trying to legalize another addictive narcotic, which is perhaps the stupidest thing anybody has ever done."[94][95]

Crime and punishment
In April 2006, along with Boston mayor Thomas Menino, Bloomberg co-founded Mayors Against Illegal Guns.[96][97] A December 2013 press release by the group said the bipartisan coalition included over 1,000 mayors.[96] In 2014, the organization merged with Moms Demand Action For Gun Sense in America to form Everytown for Gun Safety,[98] which in 2018 in collaboration with student groups organized the March For Our Lives.[99]

As mayor, Bloomberg increased the mandatory minimum sentence for illegal possession of a loaded handgun, saying: "Illegal guns don't belong on our streets and we're sending that message loud and clear. We're determined to see that gun dealers who break the law are held accountable, and that criminals who carry illegal loaded guns serve serious time behind bars."[100] He opposes the death penalty, saying he would "rather lock somebody up and throw away the key and put them in hard labor".[100]

Bloomberg was a staunch proponent of stop-and-frisk in New York City and has argued that it lowered the murder rate.[101] The manner in which the NYPD utilized the practice was ruled unconstitutional in 2013, but the practice itself was not deemed unconstitutional.[102][103] There is no evidence that the practice reduced the crime rate.[104] However, in 2018, Bloomberg said of stop-and-frisk "The history of the decline in police stops is misunderstood. As crime hit historic lows, and more than a year before any court ruling, I pledged to a Sunday congregation in Brooklyn and to all New Yorkers that 'we must and will do better' by reforming police practices while continuing to drive down crime. And that's exactly what we did, on our own accord. We cut police stops by 94 percent, while continuing to reduce crime and incarceration."[105]

On November 17, 2019, while speaking in Brooklyn's African American-dominated Christian Cultural Center, Bloomberg renounced his previous support for stop-and-frisk and issued an apology.[106][107] On his Twitter page, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio responded to Bloomberg's apology by stating "This is LONG overdue and the timing is transparent and cynical."[108] Police Benevolent Association President Patrick Lynch also criticized Bloomberg's apology, noting in a statement he released that "We said in the early 2000s that the quota-driven emphasis on street stops was polluting the relationship between cops and our communities,” and that “his administration’s misguided policy inspired an anti-police movement that has made cops the target of hatred and violence, and stripped away many of the tools we had used to keep New Yorkers safe.”[109]

Education
Bloomberg replaced the school board set up by the state with direct mayoral control over public education.[110] He raised the salaries of teachers by fifteen percent[111] while the test scores of students in the city and the graduation rate rose as well.[112] He opposes social promotion, stating that students should be promoted only when they are adequately prepared for the next grade level. He favors after-school programs to help students who are behind. As mayor, Bloomberg strengthened the cell-phone ban in schools.[113]

Environmental issues
During his second term as the mayor of New York City, Bloomberg unveiled PlaNYC: A Greener, Greater New York on April 22, 2007, to fight global warming, protect the environment and prepare for the projected 1 million additional people expected to be living in the city by the year 2030.[114]

Under PlaNYC, in just 6 years New York City reduced citywide greenhouse gas emissions by 19% since 2005 and was on track to achieve a 30% reduction ahead of the PlaNYC 2030 goal.[115] In October 2007, as part of PlaNYC, Bloomberg launched the Million Trees NYC initiative, which aimed to plant and care for one million trees throughout the city in the next decade. In November 2015, New York City planted its one millionth tree, two years ahead of the original 10-year schedule.[116]

In 2008, Bloomberg convened the New York City Panel on Climate Change (NPCC), an effort to prepare the city for climate change.[117] In 2012, Travel + Leisure readers voted New York City the "Dirtiest American City," for having the most extant litter.[118] Bloomberg has been involved in motivating other cities to make changes and has spoken about reducing carbon dioxide emissions, using cleaner and more efficient fuels, using congestion pricing in New York City, and encouraging public transportation.[119]

Bloomberg unveiled the Special Initiative for Rebuilding and Resiliency (SIRR) in June 2013, after the city was affected by Hurricane Sandy in October 2012. The $20-billion initiative laid out extensive plans to protect New York City against future impacts of climate change.[120] On September 26, 2013, Bloomberg announced that his administration's air pollution reduction efforts had resulted in the best air quality in New York City in more than 50 years.[121] The majority of the air quality improvement was attributed to the phasing out of heavy polluting heating oils through New York's "Clean Heat" program.[122] As a result of the improved air quality, the average life expectancy of New Yorkers had increased three years during Bloomberg's tenure, compared to 1.8 years in the rest of the country.[123]

Illegal immigration and border security
Bloomberg has criticized those who advocate for mass deportation of illegal immigrants, calling their stance unrealistic: "We're not going to deport 12 million people, so let's stop this fiction. Let's give them permanent status."[124] He supports a federal ID database that uses DNA and fingerprint technology to keep track of all citizens and to verify their legal status.[125] Bloomberg has held that illegal immigrants should be offered legalization and supported the congressional efforts of the late John McCain and the late Ted Kennedy in their attempt at immigration reform in 2007.[126]

Regarding border security, he compared it to the tide, stating, "It's as if we expect border control agents to do what a century of communism could not: defeat the natural market forces of supply and demand ... and defeat the natural human desire for freedom and opportunity. You might as well as sit in your beach chair and tell the tide not to come in. As long as America remains a nation dedicated to the proposition that 'all Men are created equal, endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness', people from near and far will continue to seek entry into our country."[127]

In 2006, Bloomberg stated on his weekly WABC radio show that illegal immigration does not strain the financial resources of New York City, since many immigrants are hard working and "do not avail themselves of services until their situation is dire".[128][citation needed]

Health regulations
In January 2011, city schools began a pilot program which allows girls over 14 years old to be provided with Plan B emergency contraception without parental consent, unless parents opt out in writing. Beginning with five schools, the pilot had been expanded to thirteen schools by September 2012.[129][130]

In September 2012, the city passed a law limiting the practice of circumcision among Orthodox Jews. The legislation requires that at each event, the mohel receives signed consent forms from the parents, acknowledging that they were notified of health risks associated with cleaning the wound by sucking blood from the male baby's organ. This regulation caused an outcry among certain Orthodox Jewish communities on this alleged infringement of their religious freedom,[131][132] and the matter was taken to federal court.[133]

During the same month, the NYC Board of Health approved Bloomberg's proposal to ban the sale of many sweetened drinks more than 16 ounces (473 ml) in volume. The limit would have applied to businesses such as restaurants and movie theaters, but did not apply to grocery stores, including 7-Eleven. Diet varieties of sweetened drinks were unaffected.[134]

On March 12, 2013, hours before the ban was scheduled to take effect, State Supreme Court Justice Milton Tingling struck it down, ruling that the Board of Health lacked the jurisdiction to enforce it and that the rule was "arbitrary and capricious". The city appealed the decision.[135] On July 30, the Appellate Division upheld the lower court's ruling, stating the Board of Health "failed to act within the bounds of its lawfully delegated authority" and the ban was a violation of the separation of powers doctrine, which reserves legislative power to the legislature and does not allow the board to "exercise sweeping power to create whatever rule they deem necessary". Bloomberg announced that the city would appeal the decision.[136]

Bloomberg has been criticized for some of his policies which have been described by many as facilitating the creation of a nanny state.[137] Comedian Bill Maher, while on Jimmy Kimmel Live, said that Bloomberg's soda ban "gives liberals a bad name".[138] In response to the soda ban, The Center for Consumer Freedom ran a full-page ad in The New York Times featuring an image of Bloomberg's face superimposed on an elderly female body wearing a dress and scarf, with the title "The Nanny", and the tagline "New Yorkers Need a Mayor, Not a Nanny."[139] Others have pointed out that the smoking rate dropped quickly during Bloomberg's time in office (which has involved the banning of smoking in certain areas).[137]

Criticism of Bloomberg's attempt to ban the sale of large soft drinks was picked up, mostly by Republican and libertarian commentators and politicians, as a line of attack in political campaigns around the United States. In one example, Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli and Kentucky Senator Rand Paul brought Big Gulps to a joint appearance for Cuccinelli's ultimately unsuccessful 2013 gubernatorial campaign to symbolize Bloomberg's efforts to restrict soft drink sales, criticizing the mayor for wanting "to buy the governor's office down here", a reference to pro-gun control advertisements his political action committee was running in the state.[140] Republican legislators in Wisconsin reacted to the ban by inserting language to prohibit communities from restricting the sale of large soft drinks throughout the state in a 2013 budget bill.[141]

Response to 9/11
Bloomberg believes that the September 11, 2001 attacks were not intended to be solitary events. When he assumed office, he set up a Counterterrorism Bureau which works along with the NYPD intelligence division to gather information about terrorism affecting New York City worldwide.[142] He believes that funding for Homeland Security by the federal government should be distributed by risk, where cities that are considered to have the highest threat for a terrorist attack would get the most money.[143] Bloomberg is also a supporter of the USA PATRIOT Act.[144]

After the April 15, 2013, Boston Marathon bombings, Bloomberg said that laws and the interpretation of the Constitution have to change to provide greater security against such attacks: "the people who are worried about privacy have a legitimate worry, but we live in a complex world where you're going to have to have a level of security greater than you did back in the olden days, if you will ... our laws and our interpretation of the Constitution, I think, have to change."[145]

Economic issues
Bloomberg characterizes himself as a fiscal conservative for turning the city's $6-billion deficit into a $3-billion surplus; however, conservative PAC Club for Growth has criticized him because he increased property taxes and spending while doing so.

Being a fiscal conservative is not about slashing programs that help the poor, or improve health care, or ensure a social safety net. It's about insisting services are provided efficiently, get to only the people that need them, and achieve the desired results. Fiscal conservatives have hearts too – but we also insist on using our brains, and that means demanding results and holding government accountable for producing them. To me, fiscal conservatism means balancing budgets – not running deficits that the next generation can't afford. It means improving the efficiency of delivering services by finding innovative ways to do more with less. It means cutting taxes when possible and prudent to do so, raising them overall only when necessary to balance the budget, and only in combination with spending cuts. It means when you run a surplus, you save it; you don't squander it. And most importantly, being a fiscal conservative means preparing for the inevitable economic downturns – and by all indications, we've got one coming.

— Michael Bloomberg, speech to UK Conservative Party, September 30, 2007[85]
Bloomberg has expressed a distaste of taxes, stating, "Taxes are not good things, but if you want services, somebody's got to pay for them, so they're a necessary evil."[146] As mayor, he did raise property taxes to fund budget projects; however, in January 2007, he proposed cuts in property taxes by five percent and cuts in sales taxes, including the elimination of taxes on clothing and footwear. Bloomberg pointed to the Wall Street profits and the real estate market as evidence that the city's economy is booming and could handle a tax break.[147]

Bloomberg's self-described fiscal conservatism also led him to eliminate the existing $6-billion deficit when he assumed office. Bloomberg balanced the budget of New York City by raising property taxes and making cuts to city agencies.[148]

Bloomberg is in favor of providing tax breaks to big corporations for the good of the whole community. As mayor, Bloomberg lobbied the CEO of Goldman Sachs to establish its headquarters across from Ground Zero by promising $1.65 billion in tax breaks. Regarding this deal, Bloomberg stated, "This [New York City] is where the best want to live and work. So I told him [CEO of Goldman Sachs], 'We can help with minimizing taxes. Minimizing your rent. Improving security. But in the end, this is about people.'"[149]

Bloomberg had less cordial relations with unions as mayor. In 2002, when New York City's transit workers threatened to strike, Bloomberg responded by riding a mountain bike through the city to show how the city could deal with the transit strike by finding alternate means of transportation and not pandering to the unions.[150] Three years later, a clash over wages and union benefits led to a three-day strike. Negotiations led to the end of the strike in December 2005.[151]

Bloomberg is a staunch advocate of free trade and is strongly opposed to protectionism, stating, "The things that we have to worry about is this protectionist movement that has reared its head again in this country. ... " He worries about the growth of China and fears the lessening gap between the United States and other countries: "The rest of the world is catching up, and, there are people that say, surpassing us. I hope they are wrong. I hope those who think we are still in good shape are right. But nevertheless, the time to address these issues is right now."[152]

Bloomberg has placed a strong emphasis on public health and welfare, adopting many liberal policies. As the mayor he made HIV, diabetes, and hypertension all top priorities. He extended the city's smoking ban to all commercial establishments and implemented a trans fat ban in restaurants.[153] Bloomberg has been a strong supporter of the New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation – the largest urban healthcare agency in the United States – serving over 1.3 million New Yorkers, and has touted its use of information technology and Electronic Health Records to increase efficiency and enhance patient care.[154] He launched a program called Opportunity NYC which is the nation's first-ever conditional cash transfer pilot program designed to help New Yorkers break the cycle of poverty in the city. He instituted a $7.5-billion municipal affordable housing plan, the largest in the nation, that is supposed to provide 500,000 New Yorkers with housing.[155]

Bloomberg has expressed concern about poverty and growing class-divisions stating, "This society cannot go forward, the way we have been going forward, where the gap between the rich and the poor keeps growing."[152]

Foreign policy
As mayor, Bloomberg made trips to Mexico, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Israel in the first four months of 2007.[156] In late 2007 he conducted an Asia trip that brought him to China, where he called for greater freedom of information to promote innovation. He attended the United Nations Climate Conference in Bali.

Initially, Bloomberg strongly supported the war in Iraq and the rationale for going in. He stated, "Don't forget that the war started not very many blocks from here,"[157] alluding to Ground Zero. In regard to the global War on Terrorism including Iraq he said, "It's not only to protect Americans. It's America's responsibility to protect people around the world who want to be free." During the 2004 presidential election campaign, New York City hosted the Republican National Convention at which Bloomberg endorsed President George W. Bush for President of the United States.[158]

His enthusiasm seemed to have lessened somewhat over the course of the war. In August 2005, he said, "I think everybody has very mixed emotions about the war that was started to find weapons of mass destruction and then they were not found."[159] Bloomberg expressed criticism of Democrats in Congress who wanted to set a timetable for withdrawal from Iraq, calling them "irresponsible".[160]

Preservation and development issues
Bloomberg is a proponent of large-scale development. He has repeatedly supported projects such as the Pacific Park mega-development, the Hudson Yards Redevelopment and associated rail-yard development (even supporting a subway extension to Hudson Yards), and the Harlem rezoning proposal.[161] On smaller-scale issues, Bloomberg usually takes the side of development as well. He favors the demolition of Admiral's Row[162] to build a supermarket parking lot. However, Bloomberg has occasionally come down on the side of preservation, most notably in vetoing landmark revocation for the Austin Nichols warehouse.[163] This move was widely applauded by architectural historians. The City Council overruled the veto shortly thereafter, however.[164]

Political involvement outside New York
2008 presidential campaign speculation
On February 27, 2008, Bloomberg announced that he would not run for president in 2008, and that he would endorse a candidate who took an independent and non-partisan approach.[165] He had also stated unequivocally, live on Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve, on December 31, 2007, that he was not going to run for president in 2008.[166] Despite prior public statements by Bloomberg denying plans for a presidential run,[167] many pundits believed Bloomberg would announce a campaign at a later date. On January 7, 2008, he met at the University of Oklahoma with a bipartisan group, including (now former) Nebraska Senator Chuck Hagel and former Georgia Senator Sam Nunn, both of whom had been frequently mentioned as possible running mates, to pressure the major-party candidates to promote national unity and reduce partisan gridlock. Speculation that Bloomberg would choose this forum to announce his candidacy proved to be unfounded.[168][169]

In summer 2006, he met with Al From of the Democratic Leadership Council, a centrist group, to talk about the logistics of a possible run.[170] After a conversation with Bloomberg, Republican Senator Chuck Hagel of Nebraska suggested that he and Bloomberg could run on a shared independent ticket for the presidency.[171]

On This Week on June 10, 2007, anchor George Stephanopoulos included panelist Jay Carney, who mentioned a conversation between Bloomberg and top staffers where he heard Bloomberg ask approximately how much a presidential campaign would cost. Carney said that one staffer replied, "Around $500 million." According to a Washington Post article, a $500-million budget would allow Bloomberg to circumvent many of the common obstacles faced by third-party presidential candidates.[172] On June 19, 2007, Bloomberg left the Republican Party, filing as an independent after a speech criticizing the current political climate in Washington.[173][174]

On August 9, 2007, in an interview with former CBS News anchor Dan Rather that aired on August 21, Bloomberg categorically stated that he was not running for president, that he would not be running, and that there were no circumstances in which he would, saying, "If somebody asks me where I stand, I tell them. And that's not a way to get elected, generally. Nobody's going to elect me president of the United States. What I'd like to do is to be able to influence the dialogue. I'm a citizen."[175]

Despite continued denials, a possible Bloomberg candidacy continued to be the subject of media attention, including a November Newsweek cover story.[176] During a private reception in December 2007, Bloomberg conducted a version of bingo in which guests were to guess the meaning of the numbers on a printed card. When Bloomberg asked the significance of 271, one guest answered correctly: the number of electoral votes received by George W. Bush in 2000.[177] In January 2008, CNN reported that a source close to Bloomberg said that the mayor had launched a research effort to assess his chances of winning a potential presidential bid. According to the report, the unidentified source also stated that Bloomberg had set early March as a timetable for making a decision as to whether or not to run.[178] On January 16, 2008, it was reported that Bloomberg's business interests were placed in "a sort of blind trust" because of his possible run for the presidency. His interests were put under the management of Quadrangle Group, co-founded by reported Bloomberg friend Steven Rattner, though Bloomberg would continue to control particular investment decisions.[179]

In January 2008, the Associated Press reported that Bloomberg met with Clay Mulford, a ballot-access expert and campaign manager for Ross Perot's third-party presidential campaigns. Bloomberg denied that the meeting concerned a possible presidential campaign, and said the following month, "I am not – and will not be – a candidate for president." He added that he is "hopeful that the current campaigns can rise to the challenge by offering truly independent leadership. The most productive role that I can serve is to push them forward, by using the means at my disposal to promote a real and honest debate.[165]

At the same time that the presidential run was being considered, there was also some speculation that Bloomberg could be a candidate for the vice presidency in 2008. In a blog posting of June 21, 2007, Ben Smith of The Politico asked the question of whether a vice-presidential candidate can self-finance an entire presidential ticket.[180]

Bloomberg did not endorse a candidate for the 2008 U.S. presidential election.

Rumored gubernatorial campaign
In November 2007, the New York Post detailed efforts by New York State Republicans to recruit Bloomberg to oppose Governor Eliot Spitzer in the 2010 election. Early polls indicated Bloomberg would defeat Spitzer in a landslide. (The potential 2010 match-up became moot when Spitzer resigned on March 17, 2008.)[181] A March 2008 poll of New York voters showed that, in a hypothetical 2010 gubernatorial matchup, Bloomberg would defeat Governor David Paterson (who became governor after Spitzer resignation) and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani for the 2010 gubernatorial election.[182] Bloomberg did not run for governor.[183]

2012 presidential campaign speculation and role
In March 2010, Bloomberg's top political strategist Kevin Sheekey resigned from his mayoral advisory position and returned to Bloomberg LP, Bloomberg's company. It was speculated that the move would allow Sheekey to begin preliminary efforts for a Bloomberg presidential campaign in the 2012 election. An individual close to Bloomberg said, "the idea of continuing onward is not far from his [Bloomberg's] mind".[184]

In October 2010, the Committee to Draft Michael Bloomberg – which had attempted to recruit Bloomberg to run for the presidency in 2008 – announced it was relaunching its effort to persuade Bloomberg to wage a presidential campaign in 2012.[185][186] The committee members insisted that they would persist in the effort in spite of Bloomberg's repeated denials of interest in seeking the presidency.[186][187]

In a December 2010 appearance on Meet the Press, Bloomberg ruled out a run for the presidency in 2012.[188] In July 2011, in the midst of Democrats' and Republicans' inability to agree on a budget plan and thus an increase in the federal debt limit, the Washington Post published a blog post about groups organizing third party approaches. It focused on Bloomberg as the best hope for a serious third-party presidential candidacy in 2012.[189]

In the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Sandy in November 2012, Bloomberg penned an op-ed officially endorsing Barack Obama for president, citing Obama's policies on climate change.[190][191]

2016 presidential campaign speculation and role