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Saturday July 25, 2009

Naked Cowboy takes on billionaire

State Side by LIM AI LEE


WOULD you vote a Naked Cowboy for Mayor?

At a time when New Yorkers seem to have little mayoral choice other than the city’s richest billionaire Michael Bloomberg and a few unknowns, Robert Burck a.k.a The Naked Cowboy has offered himself as a candidate for the most powerful post in NYC.

A long-haired, tatooed busker at Times Square, Burke sings for his supper wearing a cowboy hat, briefs and boots.

He will be up against two-term Mayor Bloomberg who, with a net worth of US$20bil (RM71bil), is an institution himself.

Burke is definitely more conspicuous than the other contenders.

Most New Yorkers and visitors to Times Square know of The Naked Cowboy; he has been making regular appearances at the popular tourist attraction over the last decade, come rain, snow or shine.

For Burke, the mayoral race is more a stunt to gain publicity, and over the last few days he has certainly been getting a lot of free media coverage while at the same time providing some comic relief to an otherwise dull and lacklustre race.

Columnist and blogger James E. Causey noted that “everything is possible in politics”.

“You can’t argue with The Naked Cowboy’s popularity. He has shaken a lot of hands, kissed a lot of babies and had his picture taken thousands of times.

People pay this man money to have their picture taken with him,” he said.

Burke’s candidacy has elicited remarks like: “At least he doesn’t have anything up his sleeve”, “Will he campaign in his underwear?” and “Even if he does a terrible job, at least we can enjoy his music”.

Of course, there’s also the debate on whether he can rightly call himself a naked cowboy when he’s wearing underwear.

“We’ve had former actors as presidents and governors; former comedians and musicians as Senators; and a bunch of crooked and ignorant career politicians. Why not a naked cowboy?

“The cowboy already has a highly visible persona. You go cowboy!” a newspaper reader wrote.

There are other candidates running for Mayor in the November elections but ask nine out of 10 New Yorkers and they would not even recognise the names.

Those who have indicated plans to run for Mayor include William Thompson and Tony Avella from the Democrats and leaders from minor parties such as the Green Party (Reverend Billy) and the Rent Is Too Damn High Party (Jimmy McMillan).

The strongest of the challengers is perhaps Thompson, the current city comptroller who received the Working Families Party’s endorsement early this month. But Thompson is still struggling to be heard.

Two other fairly strong personalities – Christine C. Quinn, the City Council speaker, and Representative Anthony D. Weiner – have bowed out of the race.

Quinn scrapped plans after learning Bloomberg is seeking a third term, while Weiner indicated he could not match the incumbent when it comes to campaign funds.

The Naked Cowboy meanwhile has pledged to bring “transparency to a whole new level” and is promising to do “more for less”.

Beneath the cowboy hat though is a shrewd businessman who charges tourists a fee for posing with him as he strums his guitar, wearing tight fitting white briefs that has his trademark emblazoned on it.

He is probably the top grossing busker in Times Square, earning around US$1,000 (RM3,547) a day.

Burke, who has his own website selling a range of products from underwear to comics, has made appearances around the US and in the media.

He had auditioned for American Idol during its first season but failed to make it to the next round.

Last November, he became an ordained minister, and has since been officially registered as a marriage officiant by the City, charging couples a fee of US$499 (RM1,770) to marry them.

Still, no one is likely to take his sudden plunge into politics seriously.

Bloomberg, a Wall Street whiz, is expected to sail through the election with ease as there is no strong challenger.

His massive wealth has provided a strong war chest, and the Bloomberg campaign is estimated to exceed US$80mil (RM284mil).

A former Democrat, Bloomberg was elected as a Republican, succeeding Rudolph Giuliani in 2001, and again in 2005. In 2008, Mayor Bloomberg left the Republican Party and is now a political independent.

Last October, the New York City Council extended the former two-term limit for Mayor and Council to three terms, allowing Bloomberg to pursue a third term in office. Bloomberg is definitely the most visible candidate by far. Being Mayor, he has the advantage of appearing regularly in the news, and when he is not, television viewers are bombarded with commercials touting his success in improving public schools, creating employment and improving infrastructure.

A business consultant from Manhattan noted: “You either like Bloomberg or you hate him. Some like his guts and hard hitting remarks. “He speaks his mind and will take on anyone if he feels they are not doing their job, including top politicians. Others hate his guts, calling him arrogant and cocky.”

But for city folks facing a recession, getting Bloomberg to continue serving is getting a mayor to serve for free.

Taxpayers need not bear the burden of paying a high salary as Bloomberg only takes home a nominal US$1 (RM3.55) annual salary and stays in his own home instead of the official residence.

While New Yorkers pride themselves on being open-minded, they are also wise to the fact that they need someone who can steer the city in the right direction and out of the recession .

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