They Don't Call It the "Empire" State For Nothing

Ushering in the Bloomberg Monarchy:

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Mayor Michael Bloomberg won the right to seek re-election as New York's City Council voted on Thursday to extend the two-term limit for elected officials as the city grapples with the global financial crisis.

Bloomberg, a former Wall Street trader and self-made billionaire who was elected in 2001 and in 2005, wants to run again on grounds that his financial experience will be valuable in guiding the city through lean fiscal times ahead.

The 51-member council voted 29-22 to approve the measure. About two-thirds of the council would have been forced out of office under the two-term limit, but they can now run for a third term in the November 2009 election.

[...]

In 1993 and 1996, New Yorkers voted to limit the mayor and other city officials to two four-year terms. A Quinnipiac University poll on Tuesday found 89 percent of voters say a referendum, not a council vote, should decide the issue.

Council Speaker Christine Quinn told the council that New Yorkers could express any disagreement with the council's decision at next year's election by not voting for Bloomberg or other members seeking a third term go pound sand.

You mean, Bloomberg's an authoritarian with no respects for the rights of his subjects (aka: the citizenry)? Who knew?