Lillian Roberts

Michael Bloomberg hosted a fund-raiser in his East Side townhouse for Peter Vallone, Jr. last night.

Attendees included noted real estate developer Jack Rudin, former MTA Chairman Peter Kalikow aspiring mayoral candidate, John Catsimatidis, and DC 37 union boss Lilian Roberts, and president Ed Malloy of Building and Construction Trades Council.

Vallone apparently took the opportunity to unofficially declare his candidacy for higher office.

According to an attendee, Vallone pointed out that the mayor was on the cover of Newsweek with a big article about how he’s not running for president, then declared jokingly that he was "raising money to not run for borough president."

According to a source close to Vallone, the event raised $200,000.

Sorry to harp on this, but another point on the claim in the Times this morning that the Bloomberg campaign targeted not traditional demographics but "thought-based" groups:

Which thought-based group, exactly, was the target of a widely mailed flyer, colored in the green, yellow, and red associated with Africa, that was headed by the words "Join African-Americans for Bloomberg Today"?

The cover of the 8.5 by 11 inch piece shows Mike amid a group of black people, including public-workers' chief Lillian Roberts; inside are two pages of an African-American slanted take on Mike's record, stressing, for example, "improving the relationship between the police and our community," improving minority test scores, and "aid[ing] minority-owned businesses in bidding on City contracts."

The back features testimonials from Calvin Butts, Floyd Flake, and A.R. Bernard.  read more »

With the tag line "More Opportunity for Our Community," the piece was mailed to an, er, black-thinking family in my Brooklyn building.

Next week, New York voters in the Democratic Presidential primary will let the world know which of t  read more »