Sharpton Leans Against Mayor’s Term Limit Plan

October 8, 2008, 9:12 am

By Jonathan P. Hicks
The Rev. Al Sharpton has been largely silent about the prospect of extending term limits by a vote of the City Council. But Mr. Sharpton said Wednesday morning that he was leaning against the legislation proposed by Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg that would allow the mayor and city officials to run for a third term.

In an interview, Mr. Sharpton said he had not made a final decision and that he found compelling arguments for and against extending term limits. However, he said: “I’m leaning toward those who advocate in favor of making changes in the law through a referendum. But I haven’t come to any final determination yet.”

Mr. Sharpton is apparently moving toward supporting a measure proposed by City Council members Bill de Blasio and Letitia James. The two legislators, both Brooklyn Democrats, have planned to introduce legislation calling for a citywide referendum on extending term limits, to be held in the spring.

“There are some legitimate problems with the arguments of each side,” Mr. Sharpton said. “On the one hand, there are voting rights issues with changing something that the voters have agreed to twice. On the other hand, you have people arguing that term limits themselves deny voters choice. I’m between and betwixt.”

Mr. Sharpton has had a cordial relationship with Mr. Bloomberg. And he is also extremely close with Gov. David A. Paterson, who has spoken favorably about Mr. Bloomberg’s proposal. And politicians close to Mr. Sharpton said he was not eager to offend either official.

Nonetheless, officials close to him and others within his National Action Network said that Mr. Sharpton was particularly troubled by the prospect of reversing a term limits law enacted and upheld in two citywide referendums.

When asked whether there were political considerations regarding his decision-making process, Mr. Sharpton said: “This is one of those difficult decisions based on what one believes.”

By taking a position against a Council vote to extend term limits, Mr. Sharpton would add a prominent name to the opposition to the mayor’s proposal. And that comes at a time when the Bloomberg administration is attempting to portray support for the mayor’s plan as extending beyond the wealthy of the city’s business community who have championed a third term for the mayor.

In fact, a group of a dozen or so black ministers, in a letter to the Council on Tuesday, voiced their support for the extension of term limits. The most prominent was the Rev. A. R. Bernard Sr., the pastor of the huge Christian Cultural Center in Brooklyn, who endorsed Mr. Bloomberg in 2001 and 2005 and served on his mayoral transition team after his election.

Over the weekend, Mr. Sharpton held a forum at which the topic of term limits was front and center. At the forum, United States Representative Anthony D. Weiner and City Comptroller William C. Thompson Jr., both mayoral candidates, made clear their opposition to extending term limits by a vote of the Council.

City Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn was also invited, but she decided not to attend, her spokesman said, because she did not want to cloud the term limits issue.

Over the weekend, Mr. Sharpton said his group had not yet determined what position to take regarding term limits.