Bloomberg for President - Of University?

Even though Mayor Bloomberg has put to rest speculation that he would run for president this year, he could find himself answering to "President Bloomberg" just the same.

In the last week and a half, a letter has been quietly circulating among professors at Mr. Bloomberg's alma mater, Johns Hopkins University, urging the school's presidential search committee to consider the mayor for the top position. Nearly 40 professors have signed the letter, a professor emeritus of political science who drafted the letter, Matthew Crenson, said.

Mr. Crenson, who was a fraternity brother of Mr. Bloomberg's, said the mayor would be a strong candidate because he knows the university well, was chairman of the board of trustees, and led a major capital campaign.

"We also understand he may be free soon," Mr. Crenson said in an interview with The New York Sun. "I think many of us realize this is exactly what we need right now, someone who has good management skills and thinks creatively," he added. The university's president, Dr. William Brody, has announced that he is leaving at the end of the year.

Mr. Bloomberg's second term as mayor ends January 1, 2010, and the city's term limit law prevents him from being re-elected. His name has been floated as a potential vice presidential candidate on both the Republican and Democratic tickets, but he has dismissed such suggestions, saying he is too old to work for someone else and that no one would ask him to run. Newsweek magazine is adding fuel to another piece of post-mayoral speculation, reporting in its April 28th issue that top associates of Mr. Bloomberg are encouraging him to acquire the New York Times.

Mr. Bloomberg has said he would focus on philanthropy when he leaves office. Over the past three years, the Chronicle of Philanthropy has listed Mr. Bloomberg as one of the country's top-10 donors. He gave away $205 million to charity in 2007.

The letter mentions the mayor's personal wealth, but says that's not what makes him an attractive candidate. It's possible that if he were to become president of Johns Hopkins, Mr. Bloomberg's wealth could save the school some money if the mayor offered to continue earning $1 a year, as he does at City Hall.

Mr. Crenson said one of the reasons he wanted to circulate the letter was to show the mayor that even though he doesn't have a Ph.D., professors at Johns Hopkins think he is qualified to lead the university. In March, Mr. Bloomberg told the Baltimore Sun he had "zero" interest in the job. After speaking with The New York Sun yesterday, Mr. Crenson wrote in an e-mail message that he planned to abandon the effort to bring the mayor's name before the search committee, because he said he was concerned that once the enterprise became public, it could be a potential embarrassment to the university and the mayor.