the racie for gracie

Lhota Would Be a Great Mayor, If It Weren’t for This Pesky Campaign

NEW YORK, NY - OCTOBER 14: Republican New York City mayoral candidate Joe Lhota marches in the 69th Annual Columbus Day Parade on October 14, 2013 in New York City. With dozens of floats, marching bands and politicians on hand, the annual celebration of Italian American culture and heritage draws large crowds along 5th Avenue. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
Photo: Spencer Platt/2013 Getty Images

The New York Times interviewed both mayoral candidates on their managerial style, and as one might expect from a guy trailing his opponent by 39 points, Joe Lhota lamented that there’s a “shallowness” to campaigning, which he isn’t well suited for. “You can talk about a tale of two cities, but never once talk about how you’re going to deal with it,” Lhota said. However, he assured voters that if they can look past that shortcoming, he’d be an awesome mayor. “If this was a job that people were being hired to, and you went out and you did a search and did an executive recruiting, I’d feel very, very comfortable that I would end up being given that job.” (Lhota worried that might sound “arrogant and egotistical,” but Kanye raised that bar when he called himself a “creative genius.”)

If Lhota does manage to pull off one of the biggest political upsets ever, he and his staff will work very long hours, as he emphasized twice in the interview. “I will have an 8 a.m. staff meeting every morning,” he said. “Probably in the first six months it may be six days a week. Yeah, you’re not going to have much time off.” Early morning meetings and only one day off a week? Wow, where do we apply?!

Lhota: I’m a Bad Campaigner, Great Mayor