Why don't you, and everyone else get off the money kick. It is irrelevant given the situation we are in. Who can beat Trump and get things done and run the country in a reasonable manner given that they need to work with many fools in both parties. Financial reform in politics is a great idea but is not going to change in our lifetimes. If Bloomberg wants to spend his own money and will get the mess we are in, OK. Get real.

How do we know that Russia isn't a big source of Bernie Sander's contributions through a lot of small donations from seemingly normal U.S. citizens. Isn't Bernie the one that Trump most wants to run against?

Every time I hear about Bloomberg's spending anew I feel physically sick. Literally sick to my stomach. What has the Democratic Party come to that, not only is this OK, but celebrated by many?

It is pure irony, and also fitting, that buying the presidency from one's personal fortune spells the end of the American Dream. Electing a Democratic Socialist may be the only thing that saves it.

It's amazing that Sanders seems to have been the most responsible with his money. His burn rate is the lowest relative to how much he is taking in and has the most cash on hand. Let me repeat, the socialist is the most responsible with the money! This is only surprising if you don't understand socialism. The city of Milwaukee had a string of socialist mayors during the first half of the 20th century. It became the largest city with the smallest amount of debt. They even made a show about it called "Happy Days" with the Fonz.

Seeing these sums leaves me of two minds. First, having to raise so much money to get elected in America is disgusting and frankly sorrowful. On the other hand, to see that Sanders has pulled in such enormous sums through very small individual donations does lend optimism to the idea that many like minded people with the same vision can help just a little bit and together great things can be done, which is supposed to be the American way. I think that feeling of countless individuals joining together to command change is some of the potency of Bernie's message and the proof is in the pudding.

It’s over. Bernie Sanders is dominant and is going to be our nominee. Time to unify!

Three Things: 1 call all u want for political finance reform,but won't stop the activity of private interests and cloaked campaigns 2 put strict restrictions on the amount of airtime and social media a campaign can pyrchase--that begins to level the playing field 3 If Tulsi Gabbard is raising/spending that much money we should be allowed to HEAR what she has to say

Mr. Bloomberg is engaged in a hostile takeover of the Democratic Party much as he has in his business world. Money eventually wins. That is what he knows and believes will work now. He probably believes that the party convention will be brokered and that he will be the only person the super-delegates will turn to because he has the money to make a hostile take over of the United States of America. Who would have ever thought that this could ever happen in the Democratic Party. This would be the end of democracy as we know it if he prevails.

Who would benefit most in Bernie is nominated? Not the dems...no way. He can't win in a general election. If extreme is what the people want, extreme is already a resident in the white house and we see how that is working. If those who don't want Trump feel forced to vote for Bernie, they will split the ticket, and we will wind up with a republican congress, and nothing Bernie advocates will ever succeed. What could be worse? Its obvious....Trump would be elected again.

Bloomberg makes Democrat Candidates better. Warren upped her game because of him. Now Bloomberg should fight back on stop and frisk grillling he's getting. Biden and Sanders need to held accountable for 1994 Crime Bill that incubated Stop and Frisk according to AR Bernard pastor of christian cultural center in NYC. Biden was part architect of this bill that according to FactCheck: It may go too far to blame the 1994 crime bill for mass incarceration, it did, however, create incentives for states to build prisons and increase sentences, and thereby contributed to increased incarceration.

So he has outspent Sanders 4/1, despite being in the race for a shorter period, and still can’t break 20% support anywhere. The myth that Bloomberg is somehow more electable than Sanders, or will draw in more “centrist@ voters is an absolute myth. But, perhaps if Bloomberg spends all $64 Billion on buying air time, he may finally get enough popular support to finish third in the Democratic primary.

Do the math, under progressive tax policies, Bloomberg would literally pay billions more in taxes per year. This guy can literally fund his campaign with billions and as long as he wins, he will come out ahead financially. It's a joke. If you want voter turnout, nominate Bernie. If you want to lose the election by trying to woo "centrists" (who would be far right in any other country on earth), and abandon the progressive base, go ahead, nominate Bloomberg so the rest of America can hear how he's so relatable and how he's going to fight for them. Go ahead, nominate a guy who spends more on his campaign per minute than many people make per month.

That makes Sanders the candidate of the people. Bootiegieg and and the other so called centrists all rely and big corporate donors. The notion of them representing the majority is a total fabrication, because they are only there with help of undemocratic big money, it has much less to do with Bernie‘s message being too extreme.

Obviously money talks. But that is not the whole story. Bloomberg, despite his Billions, did not perform well in the last debate. And the fact he thinks he is above retail politics will not help him. Money is a necessary evil when running for Office. However if the election cycle wasn’t as long, less money would be needed. It would help if Citizens United was found Unconstitutional

Bernie is my choice. The Warren/Bloomberg clash was disappointing. Bloomberg should have apologized for his earlier transgressions. Warren's response - the legal form - was reminiscent of a child at show and tell. If the dems lose - it could be 8 more years of Trump jr to follow 4 more years of trump.

there are pro's and con's to Michael Bloomberg, but whether you like him or not - and I really don't because he treated entrepreneurs and small business people quite poorly while he was Mayor - and he is very unconcerned to the point of abject negligence about environmental issues including serious ones in the here and now, such as toxic buildings in NYC which he let slide ---- but like him or not, Bloomberg was a reasonably successful Mayor of a very, very big city. He has no experience in Washington D.C. which is not good, but he does have serious experience in "big government" that is for sure. He has done a few dumb things - they all have. And there is a big difference between Bloomberg and Trump in their business histories, big differences actually. Trump was a mobbed up casino and cement construction guy. Bloomberg was, and still is, one of the most important people in the whole world of technology. Bloomberg's business success was from a line of business, and from business activity - that REALLY benefited America, and benefited global business for that matter. You can not begrudge Bloomberg his success in business, it was legitimate. He is up there in the stratosphere of important people in the tech sector like Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Paul Allen, Larry Ellison, Jeff Bezos, and so on. Railing against Bloomberg for his business success is like railing against Bill Gates - these are people who made America #1 in computers.

Since Bloomberg spent the most, isn't it pretty obvious that he is not what the public wants no matter how much he spends? Sanders leads in everything. The DNC will be watched to see if it respects the popular votes of its constituents...if it respects its voter! and doesn't do a backroom deal to oust Sanders. If the DNC doesn't do what the voters want, the Democrat Party is in deep trouble I think.

Raising individual contributions as Bernie Sanders is doing also involves larger popular involvement and support in the campaign which is qualitatively superior and also transparent way of mobilisation. Thus Sanders again proves he is a man of the people.

Sadly, Bloomberg's cash may be what is needed to defeat Trump in the current environment. But this article makes clear that we will never get true democracy until we implement complete and meaningful campaign finance reform.

Bloomberg's wealth is massive as is his spending. But truly impressive is Bernie's fundraising and recent polls. It's pretty obvious right now who is energizing the base. And it's not hard for him.

This is fascinating: it should end ALL talk about Bernie not being electable. He has shown, again, that he has the most support from a wider range of people across the country than anyone else, and that it is continuing. And it shows Bloomberg is doing just what Bernie is saying; he's trying to buy the election. Bernie Sanders has one thing going for him that none of the other candidates have: integrity. And the American public is seeing it. Like him or not, you've got to admit that he's been consistent over his career, and that he's been fighting for ordinary Americans throughout his time in the various offices he's held. Plus, he's bringing people together, and recognizes that for him to succeed, he's got to build widespread support among the population and in the House and Senate; no one man show by Bernie. He understands the old saying, "You can't fight City Hall," and has changed the game by adding one word: "You can't fight City Hall ALONE!" And by the way, Bloomberg's kick at him for owning three houses is a hoot! (I understand he's got a mortgage on two or three of them.) Also, yes, Sanders now being a millionaire is also more sand in the eyes: he wasn't a millionaire before running for president, but he's written two or three books that have been very successful: people want to hear what Bernie has to say! I think Bernie's going to win the Democratic nomination if the DNC plays fair.

I did the math. I added up the cycle totals for all the candidates listed and the grand total amounted to $1,052.8 million dollars, that's over a billion dollars spent in just the primary race. The Trump team will probably spend at least that much in the general election. Maybe I'm naive, but I do not think that this is what the Founders & Framers had in mind.

Repeat after me: Campaign Finance Reform