New York City Mayor-elect Bill de Blasio on Thursday tapped Bill Bratton to become the city's next police commissioner, a selection that was hailed by many as pragmatic but drew skepticism from some members of de Blasio's progressive base.

The choice of Bratton is a throwback to the administration of Rudy Giuliani, when Bratton was the commissioner for two mostly tumultuous years that featured personal clashes with Giuliani.

"Together, we are going to preserve and deepen the historic gains we’ve made in public safety — gains Bill Bratton helped make possible," de Blasio said in a statement. "And we will do it by rejecting the false choice between keeping New Yorkers safe and protecting their civil rights. This is an Administration that will do both."

De Blasio highlighted the fact that felony crime dropped 39% under Bratton's watch in the mid-90s. Bratton followed up his efforts in New York City by moving on to become the Los Angeles Police Commissioner in 2002.