City Hall: How has the transition from covering City Hall to the presidential race been?
Michael Saul: It’s a whole new world. For the past six years I’ve focused all of my professional energy and attention on Mayor Bloomberg, his administration and the major issues facing the city. In my new job, I’m now concentrating on the candidates who aspire to be president and the major issues facing our nation. In the past, on a busy day, I’d travel to a few boroughs on the press van; these days, I’m flying around the country. The southeast Bronx is very different from southeast Iowa—trust me.

CH: What has been the toughest part?
MS: Getting up to speed on all the new players and the new issues. With Bloomberg, I know (almost) everything he’s said and done publicly since June 2001. With my new beat (and any new beat), I need to learn quickly the history of the candidates and their specific policy positions. It takes time to learn the ropes.
CH: How have you managed your new travel schedule?
MS: I love to travel. During my time with Bloomberg, I’ve traveled to the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Athens, Singapore, Israel and a slew of cities around the United States. But that was spread out over six years. With the new gig, I’m traveling much more frequently. In July alone, I’ve been to Iowa, Detroit, Miami Beach and St. Louis. Sure, air travel can be frustrating. On my way to Detroit, I was stuck on the runway at La Guardia for three hours, diverted to Louisville and Chicago and didn’t arrive at my hotel in the Motor City until close to 1 a.m. But, hey, that’s all part of the glamour of being on the presidential campaign trail, right?

CH: Do you think Mayor Bloomberg will run for president?
MS: There is no question Mayor Bloomberg and his aides are contemplating the possibility of his running for president. I suspect sometime next year, after the Democrats and Republicans choose a nominee, the mayor will assess the political landscape and make a decision. If he thinks he could win—and that’s a big, big, big if—my guess is he’ll go for it. Mayor Bloomberg’s entire professional life has been about taking risks. What’s riskier than running for president? And if he runs, it will—without question—have an enormous impact on the race.

CH: What have you found that reporters tend to overlook in the presidential race?
MS: Well, I’m too new to presidential politics to be offering criticism of the media’s coverage. But, much like any political contest, whether it’s for the White House or Gracie Mansion, members of the media often devote more ink and airtime to the horse race and inconsequential political flaps and not enough ink and airtime to important policy issues and substantive investigative reporting.

CH: Looking back, what story that you have written is most memorable to you?
MS: I’m proud of a great many stories. But rather than choose one, I’d say I’m most proud of consistently and doggedly asking the mayor the tough questions and doing my best to do what he says journalists should be doing—holding elected officials and government accountable.