Highlight Of De Blasio's 1st Term: Befriending Bernie Sanders

NEW YORK, NY — Bill de Blasio has met hundreds of New Yorkers in his first four years as mayor, but one stands out — a U.S. senator from Vermont.

Asked Thursday what he'd name as the most fun part of his first term, de Blasio pointed to his budding friendship with Brooklyn-born Sen. Bernie Sanders, who will swear the mayor in for his second term on Monday.

"I’ve met some extraordinary people along the way. I mentioned having this growing relationship with Bernie Sanders — that’s an amazing thing, it’s a fascinating and positive thing, but so many other people as well," de Blasio said at an unrelated news conference Thursday.

While helming America's largest city is "not fun in the conventional sense," de Blasio said, he's enjoyed traversing the boroughs and hearing New Yorkers' stories.

But Sanders was the only person he brought up by name.

"I don’t have a perfect vignette for you, but just meeting the people of this city in every borough and every neighborhood and hearing about their lives means a lot to me," de Blasio said.

The mayor has aligned himself with Sanders, the de facto leader of the Democratic Party's left wing, as he's sought to become a national voice in progressive politics. Though he didn't publicly support it, de Blasio has credited Sanders' unsuccessful presidential campaign against Hillary Clinton last year with igniting a national conversation about income inequality.

Sanders got behind the mayor's re-election bid this year, speaking at an October campaign rally and endorsing de Blasio's proposed tax hike for the rich to fund subway repairs.

The mayor said it's been a "tremendous honor" to befriend and work with Sanders. De Blasio picked the senator to preside over his inauguration because he wants the event to bear Sanders' progressive message, he said.

"I wanted to make very clear that we remain committed to addressing income inequality and creating a fairer city and no one personifies that better than Bernie Sanders," de Blasio said. "And on top of that he’s a born and bred Brooklynite and very proud of the city he comes from."

(Lead image: Sen. Bernie Sanders and Mayor Bill de Blasio appear at a de Blasio campaign rally in October. Photo by Eduardo Munoz Alvarez/Getty Images)