Cuomo sweet on soda ban, Bloomberg says

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Friday that Gov. Andrew Andrew Cuomo is sweet on his plan to ban large sugared sodas.

Speaking on his weekly radio show on WOR News Talk Radio 710, the mayor said he expects the governor to quash legislation backed by Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver that would overturn the ban, the New York Post reported.

"I assume the governor is going to veto [attempts to overturn] it," the mayor said, according to the Post.

Bloomberg has proposed a ban on sugary drinks over 16 ounces in delicatessens, restaurants, sports arenas and movie theaters in the city. The mayor wants the ban in place to help fight obesity.

The ban would be the first of its kind in the United States. It is expected to win approval from the city's Board of Health, which is made up of Bloomberg appointees and it could take effect as soon as March.

During his radio show, Bloomberg compared the sugar attack with his successful battle to hem in smoking in the city, calling both habits assaults on the poor and uneducated, the Post reported.

"The sad thing is all this stuff is targeted to poor people who understand less about nutrition and that sort of thing," Bloomberg said, according to the Post.

With The Associated Press