With Michael Bloomberg grudgingly stepping down from his position as New York’s mayor-for-life, it’s time for a dramatic regime change. Bill de Blasio is set to be sworn in as the city’s 109th mayor, its first in 12 years. Check out the oath-taking of the city’s newest officials, including Comptroller Scott M. Stringer and Public Advocate Letitia James, in the livestream below.
So far, we’ve heard a fiery poem bring the house down, and one of Stringer’s kids had to be dissuaded from batting at the Bible he was swearing upon. Overall, it’s a cheerfully serious atmosphere as Democrats assume offices with promises to challenge rising poverty and social inequality, and plenty of thinly veiled swipes at Republican policies.
Bill Clinton introduced the new mayor. “With all respect to the television show,” he said, “[De Blasio’s] is a real modern family.”
There were the usual jokes about #DeBlasiosNewYork, of course:
Fascinating turnout so far for de Blasio inauguration. pic.twitter.com/uuUDXByr6I
— Dave Itzkoff (@ditzkoff) January 1, 2014
But speaking of gritty movies, Steve Buscemi is also there:
BUSCEMI pic.twitter.com/SG9LP7zbDX
— Abraham Riesman (@abrahamjoseph) January 1, 2014
Presumably, he was there to lodge a formal complaint about garbage stalkers.
Photo by Kevin Case/Flickr