Why Isn't Bloomberg Acting Like a Candidate?

Bob McManus, editorial page editor of the New York Post, offered some insight into Michael Bloomberg’s thinking with respect to whether or not to try seeking a third term as mayor amid a financial meltdown on Wall Street, an issue that is getting some attention lately.

Speaking on Fred Dicker’s radio show this morning, McManus said he’d been talking with people for the last few days about whether they thought Bloomberg would seek to change term limits in order to run again, and help steer the city through this financial crisis.

Mcmanus said, “There’s some real ambivalence in his mind about what to do.”

Which underscores a point a smart reporter made to me earlier today. Despite his limited efforts to address this issue publicly, he certainly hasn’t gone all-out to use this financial crisis to increase his public profile or cement his image as a national leader on the economy. Which, one would think, he'd do if he were truly in campaign mode.

In fact, Bloomberg seems intent on downplaying the issue, downplaying the issue (especially as compared to, say, David Paterson.)