Bloomberg

NEW YORK (AP):

Mayor Michael Bloomberg lived most of his life as a Democrat before switching to the Republican Party when he ran for mayor, yet he never really fit in with either party.

Now, Bloomberg has apparently shaken off those labels and found the one that suits him, announcing this week that he has become an independent because it is more in line with his beliefs and gives him freedom to promote his agenda for the city.

To understand his motivation for leaving the Republican Party, and what it could mean if the billionaire former CEO were to mount a self-financed bid for president - something he denies he wants to do - one must look at how Bloomberg has governed and what he believes.

As mayor, he has raised taxes and cut them; he has fought with unions and won their support and he has supported the Iraq war, gay marriages, abortion rights, gun control and stem cell research.

There are Republicans and Democrats in the highest levels of his administration, and he has given money to candidates of all stripes.

Throughout his time in office, he has cast himself as the adult in a room full of squabbling children, taking great pride in promoting a pragmatic, no-nonsense style of leadership. More recently the mayor's aides and cheerleaders have been trumpeting this trait as the basis for a possible presidential campaign.

"He's a manager who sees himself as a problem- solver, that there are technical and managerial solutions to problems and that politics shouldn't intrude on this," said Doug Muzzio, professor of public affairs at Baruch College.

Bloomberg has won praise, for instance, for his cool, businesslike approach in the often fractious area of race relations, no easy feat for a New York mayor.

Some say he's the opposite of his predecessor, and potential presidential rival, Rudy Giuliani, who refused to meet with the Rev. Al Sharpton and had contentious relationships with other black leaders.