Bill de Blasio, New York City’s public advocate and the Democratic nominee for mayor, is running his first campaign commercial of the general election â€" a documentary-style excerpt from his lofty primary night victory speech. Titled “Everyone,†the 30-second ad began appearing on local network TV across New York City on Thursday.
The ad is an impressionistic statement of values that makes no new factual claims. But its message that Mr. de Blasio will defy naysayers to deliver a liberal vision of change is subject to debate.
Many doubt that Mr. de Blasio can muster the political support in the State Legislature to pass a central plank of his platform: a higher tax on income over $500,000 to pay for expanded prekindergarten.
Released within hours of a new commercial from his Republican opponent, Joseph J. Lhota, this ad is a sign that Mr. de Blasio will cede no political ground to his rival, despite Mr. de Blasio’s lopsided lead in the polls.
It highlights how deeply the de Blasio team is relying on the electorate’s craving for a new direction at City Hall, and the degree to which the campaign believes the tableau of the candidate’s interracial family projects a message of change.
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