Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer doesn't think NYC voters want 'Bloomberg 4.' (photo credit: azi paybarah / observer)

When the New York Times wrote this weekend about Mayor Bloomberg's likely endorsement of City Council Speaker Christine Quinn in the 2013 mayor's race, only one likely candidate for the office spoke about it, publicly: Scott Stringer, the Manhattan Borough President.

Stringer, who like Quinn, is a progressive Democrat from Manhattan's West Side, told the Times, "Bloomberg 3 has run its course."

He was referring to the number of terms Bloomberg has had. But after his press conference this morning across the street from City Hall, I asked Stringer to elaborate what he meant by his remark. What exactly had run "its course"?

"I think the race for mayor is not going to be about Bloomberg 4," said Stringer. " It's going to be about a vision for New York City in a post-Bloomberg era, which I think is good for New York. That's why I think the focus shouldn't be on Bloomberg 1, 2 and 3 going into 4, but rather, let's wipe the slate clean and figure out what we do next."