Bill de Blasio was out and about in New York City on Wednesday, as the announcement that the former mayor is to teach at Harvard was mercilessly mocked by Fox News anchor Tucker Carlson.
De Blasio, 61, said on Wednesday that he would be spending this fall as a teaching fellow at the university’s schools of government and public health.
The deeply unpopular Democrat in May announced he was running for Congress, but dropped out in July after it became clear he stood no chance of victory.
On Wednesday night Carlson, a long-time critic of de Blasio, laughed at his appointment, and said it was ‘to pay for his weed habit’.
Bill de Blasio, the former mayor of New York City, is seen on Wednesday walking through midtown Manhattan talking on his phone
The former mayor, 61, was spotted strolling Manhattan. He earlier announced he will teach at Harvard this fall
Tucker Carlson on Wednesday night mocked the news of de Blasio’s new job
‘He tried to be a congressional candidate, but no one wanted to vote for him,’ Carlson said.
‘So what do you do if you are Bill de Blasio?
‘You’ve got to pay for your weed habit. Where do you go?
‘Well, there’s one place in America that would hire Bill de Blasio. Harvard University.’
De Blasio said he was excited to teach at the Massachusetts university
The progressive politician has long been dogged by online rumors of regular marijuana use, without any evidence. He said he tried it as a teenager, but has not smoked since college. He did, however, commend the 2021 legalization of marijuana in New York, having initially been against it.
His wife, Chirlane McCray, has been open about seeking therapy to try and stop smoking marijuana, and his daughter Chiara said she abused alcohol and marijuana when she became depressed.
Carlson ridiculed Harvard for hiring de Blasio – who he said ‘oversaw the resurgence of the bubonic plague in New York.’
Carlson declared: ‘You can’t say Bill de Blasio doesn’t get stuff done.
‘It only took him only eight years and he basically destroyed the country’s biggest city.’
He added: ‘It’s measurable. De Blasio saw a 65 percent jump in homelessness. People living on the street, addicted to drugs.
‘During the pandemic he set government bureaucrats on small business owners.
‘He forced employees of private businesses to take the COVID vaccine, and ruined the lives of anyone who resisted.
‘So naturally you would think Bill de Blasio would have a shining career as a homeless person himself after his time in office.’
De Blasio, earlier on Wednesday, tweeted that he was delighted to be teaching at the venerable institution.
‘I am VERY optimistic about the generation of leaders and activists coming up,’ he said.
‘It will be a privilege to offer lessons I’ve learned through decades of public service.
‘My key message to them: we CAN make bold progressive change. I know because I’ve lived it.’
De Blasio, who served as mayor from from 2014 to 2021, will take part in ‘a variety of discussions, events, and programming’ at the Institute of Politics at the Harvard Kennedy School.
He will also teach classes on leadership and public service at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
Kim Janey, the former acting mayor of Boston, will also serve as a fellow at the public health school.
‘We are thrilled to welcome Mayor de Blasio and Mayor Janey to campus as Menschel Senior Leadership Fellows,’ Dean Michelle A. Williams said.
Williams said both officials grappled with public health crises including COVID-19, homelessness and the opioid epidemic.
‘Their insights and their mentorship will be tremendously helpful to students who aspire to public office, as well as to those who are looking to lead in other sectors,’ she said.
At the Institute of Politics, de Blasio will be joined by other fellows including former Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Löfven.
Setti Warren, interim director of the institute, said de Blasio’s ‘decades of experience in local government, federal agencies, national campaigns, and running the largest city in the country will provide invaluable insight to our students and the Harvard community.’
De Blasio, who grew up in Massachusetts and is a die-hard Boston Red Sox fan, was prevented by term limits from seeking a third four-year term as mayor.
After an unsuccessful campaign for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination, de Blasio flirted this year with running for governor of New York and later mounted a brief run for a congressional district that includes his Brooklyn home.
Former federal prosecutor and Trump impeachment counsel Daniel Goldman secured the Democratic nomination for that seat in a primary on Tuesday.