Public Advocate Bill De Blasio, endorsed by the Nation earlier this month, has recently gone from long-shot candidate to one of the front-runners in the New York City mayoral race. Running on a relatively progressive platform, he’s managed to stir up a latent liberal base in a city that hasn’t elected a Democratic mayor in over twenty years.

I caught up with the candidate yesterday at Good Stuff Diner near Union Square where he was holding court for the afternoon. Munching on a BLT sandwich, he seemed a bit fatigued from the weeks of campaigning as he fended off my questions.  He was in a good mood though, and the diners passing by all recognized him. A few mentioned that it was his son Dante’s appearance in a recent advertisement campaign that won them over.

We discussed labor issues, climate change, the New York Police Department, the city’s beleaguered community hospitals and the legacy of Alex Rodriguez.

The full transcript is up over at the Nation‘s website now.