http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/newyork/ny-bc-ny--bloomberg-20081227dec27,0,4080429.story
Bloomberg not running but buying ads in Iowa, New Hampshire
3:27 PM EST, December 27, 2007
NEW YORK - Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who insists he is not running for president, placed two full-page advertisements in newspapers from states hosting the nation's first presidential contests.
The advertisements in Thursday editions of The Des Moines Register and The New Hampshire Union Leader feature a photograph of him surrounded by several other mayors from his anti-gun coalition.
The ads cost $22,200 and were purchased by the nonprofit group he founded called Mayors Against Illegal Guns, Inc. It is primarily funded by the billionaire mayor, according to a City Hall spokesman.
The ad's message is targeted at the declared presidential candidates, who unlike Bloomberg, are competing in Iowa's Jan. 3 caucuses and New Hampshire's Jan. 8 primary.
It asks "Where do the presidential candidates stand on illegal guns?" and features excerpts from a questionnaire that the gun coalition released on Dec. 9, asking for the candidates' responses by Jan. 2.
None have been turned in so far.
The survey asks questions like "Do you support increasing the maximum penalty for illegal firearms possession from 10 years to 15 years?"
It also asks if gun dealers whose licenses have been revoked for selling guns illegally should be allowed to continue selling guns in their inventory without background checks.
The coalition says it won't endorse a candidate but would publicize the responses on its Web site.
