John,
In what may be the shining pinnacle of their political careers, eight long shot candidates for President will take the stage in the first 2024 Republican primary debate tonight.
I will not be watching the debate, in case you were wondering (I’m not even sure who #8 is).
But before any of these candidates debate each other tonight, did you know that one of them debated your New York City Comptroller first? :-)
Back in April, I had the opportunity to engage in a friendly “debate” with GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy on CNBC’s “Last Call” with Brian Sullivan. The debate topic was the urgent need to transition to a low-carbon economy, including divesting public pension funds from fossil fuel companies and launching our net-zero plan, the most ambitious in the U.S.
Vivek called me a “political actor" (which is pretty ironic, since he's the one pretending to run for President). I called him a grifter. And I sure stand by it.
His presidential campaign may be a joke, but it’s not a funny one. And his grift is real. Vivek is using his campaign to raise money for an investment fund designed to make him richer. I wonder where he got the idea for enriching himself via ugly right-wing politics...
If you really want to, John, you can watch my debate with Vivek here – then, will you please consider making a small-dollar donation to my re-election campaign? Even $5.00 will make a huge difference.
Needless to say, there is a little more than just divestment that Vivek and I disagree on. He’s running for president on a hateful anti-LGBTQ, anti-equality, anti-environment agenda that I’m sure he’ll try to defend during tonight’s GOP debate.
I, on the other hand, will always stand for compassionate, competent government. I will always work my heart out to make NYC a more sustainable, more equitable city for all of us. And I will always defend progressive ideals – even when “debating” grifters on television.
In solidarity,
Brad
