"If Bloomberg becomes the candidate, I will hold my nose and vote for him ..."
A vote counts the same whether or not you hold your nose. Not voting isn't quite the same as voting for the other party's candidate, but it helps him just the same.
Today, Democratic Party voters have the "luxury" of choosing among primary candidates. But that won't be true in the general election. The only question then will be: "Can the Democrat beat Trump?"
Do you think Sanders can beat Trump? Frankly, I doubt any Democrat can beat Trump, but I sure wouldn't pick Sanders as the one to try. Several Democratic candidates, Bloomberg among them, have a better chance.
1
Fact: CA and NV among other states, were very hard hit by the 2008 financial crash. Countrywide’s lending practices among others, were predatory. Greed and corruption brought our country to a halt. Think what you will about what Bloomberg said, but these vile home loans were peddled to those who could not afford them. In New York, the folks happened to be Black. In CA and NV they were mostly white but the loans were nonetheless predatory, bundled, and sold to greedy second and third party holders. Entire cities were hit hard: Las Vegas, Victorville, San Bernardino, and many areas of Los Angeles and Orange County. Bloomberg’s verbiage may have upset people, but he was correct.
1
The general election won't be between Democratic candidates. It will be between the Republican candidate (Trump) and the Democratic candidate. The only question will be: "Which of them do I like better?" If the Democratic candidate loses, Trump wins.
"[Bloomberg's] entire career and enormous wealth make him unsuitable as a Democratic candidate."
I see a schism here: Some readers say Bloomberg is just "Trump lite" and so they wouldn't vote for him. Other readers say "I'll vote for anyone who can beat Trump, even if I don't like Trump's opponent."
If the Democratic Party wants to win, it should pick a nominee who can win. That may or may not be Bloomberg, but it sure ain't Bernie Sanders.
If this comment makes no sense to you, substitute "Biden" for "Bloomberg" at the first occurrence of "Bloomberg" and it will make sense:
"[Today's new poll from] Marist [rated A+ by Nate Silver]... shows all [top-tier] Democratic candidates beating Trump by margins ranging from 50-44 (Bloomberg) to 47-46 (Warren). Bloomberg is 48-44 ..."
As another commenter points out, though, no "national" poll (so far) predicts which Party will win the Electoral College vote (which can, and sometimes does, differ from the overall national vote). The polls should.
As a white woman who is quite a lefty, I have recently warmed up to Mr. Bloomberg.
I don't think that Bernie, a self declared Democratic socialist "independent" who runs as a Democrat yet never joined the party, will be able to beat the crooked vulgarian Apprentice President sitting in the White House.
Sanders was, at least in my opinion, also partially responsible for Hillary's loss the last time around. It took him too long to concede the primary, nor did he tell his fairly young base to definitely vote for her in the general, not for a third party candidate nor sitting on their hands.
It seems that many black voters are far more pragmatic than others and rather prefer a flawed self-made billionaire who has fought the NRA for a long time, has supported tons of charities with his own money, over a racist and fascist wannabe autocrat.
143
@Sarah
You're complaining that Bernie is an "independent"? Did you know that Bloomberg used to be a Republican (and still is a Republican, in terms of policy)?
Also, Bernie did endorse Hillary and went all around the country campaigning for her. You say "it took him too long to concede," but in 2008 Hillary fought against Obama almost up until the convention, no?
18
@Robert Jenkins 116,000 Sanders voters switched to Trump in just Pennsylvania. Sanders did nothing to prevent this from happening. He was dead silent after sorely losing the nomination fair and square. He has not joined the Democratic Party, like Bloomberg.
4
@Mack Sanders made 40 stump speeches speeches for Hilary in states she didn't even go to - that isn't "did nothing" stop the lies
7
The issue isn't "remarks" as in a momentary gaffe. The issue is the judgment behind a longtime policy vigorously implemented and then defended. Perhaps the New York Times could do a long piece describing the facts of the New York City stop and frisk program. Was it based on evidence? Was it effective at its stated goals? Was it in fact racist? Please inform the electorate.
1
Since 2000 Bloomberg has unscrupulously shifted political parties 5 times! Bloomberg is a filthy-rich & shifty political-operator who can’t be trusted.
2000 Bloomberg the Democrat
2001 Bloomberg the Republican
2007 Bloomberg the Democrat
2009 Bloomberg the Independent
2020 Bloomberg the Democrat
2
No mention in this article of his insults to farmers?
1
Why are so many prognosticating that Bloomberg is our only hope? I don't get it.
It's true that Bloomberg is older than Trump, richer than Trump, potty mouth like Trump....is that what it takes?
2
It's crazy that policy stands taken years ago should impact today's election. It's one thing if a person was a KKK member, but quite another when a policy was favored by constituents who have since moved on. Obama wanted to close the borders when he spoke in the Senate as a freshman, then he basically opened them up. Clinton wanted to cut legal immigration numbers in the 90s; he was right, for the right reasons.
There isn't a person alive that could meet the criteria the NYTimes and readers seem to want in play; someone who from childhood espoused the far left progressives favored policies and identity politics of 2020.
1
Why no coverage of the candidate with the most pledged delegates, Pete Buttigieg?
Since it presumably would be "racist" to suggest that NV and SC voters are "stupid" because they have "fallen for" Tom Steyer's reported "blanket ads" in those 2 states, why should voters not be swayed instead by another candidate's ads -- Bloomberg's, for example?
The condemnation of Bloomberg's support of 'Stop and Frisk' l years ago is using today's yardstick to judge actions/views 20 years ago. It was a policy that did adversely impact people of color but was not specifically enacted to intimidate minorities. We all make mistakes and all are smarter after having made errors of judgment. Not excusing Bloomberg or anyone else but we all have done things where we would say: "If I knew then what I know now, I would not have done or said whatever". We all evolve and learn/grow from our experiences including our many mistakes. Let's look at what Bloomberg has done since then and we see he's donated huge sums to improve life for women and minorities. Whatever faults Bloomberg has they are minor to Trump, who is an existential threat to America and the planet.
1
The condemnation of Bloomberg's support of 'Stop and Frisk' l years ago is using today's yardstick to judge actions/views 20 years ago. It was a policy that did adversely impact people of color but was not specifically enacted to intimidate minorities. We all make mistakes and all are smarter after having made errors of judgment. Not excusing Bloomberg or anyone else but we all have done things where we would say: "If I knew then what I know now, I would not have done or said whatever". We all evolve and learn/grow from our experiences including our many mistakes. Let's look at what Bloomberg has done since then and we see he's donated huge sums to improve life for women and minorities. Whatever faults Bloomberg has they are minor to Trump, who is an existential threat to America and the planet.
The condemnation of Bloomberg's support of 'Stop and Frisk' l years ago is using today's yardstick to judge actions/views 20 years ago. It was a policy that did adversely impact people of color but was not specifically enacted to intimidate minorities. We all make mistakes and all are smarter after having made errors of judgment. Not excusing Bloomberg or anyone else but we all have done things where we would say: "If I knew then what I know now, I would not have done or said whatever". We all evolve and learn/grow from our experiences including our many mistakes. Let's look at what Bloomberg has done since then and we see he's donated huge sums to improve life for women and minorities. Whatever faults Bloomberg has they are minor to Trump, who is an existential threat to America and the planet.
We are a capitalist country. The idea is to make as much cash as possible.
Bloomberg has, with intelligence, hard work and imagination, built up his worth and as he did that he did really useful things for the people of New York. He is open to change and wants to help.
So, he is as confused and wary of 'the other' as we all are.
What would we reveal about ourselves if we had money, publicity, and the world was hearing everything we said and poking into our private lives as well??
Trump has shown us all who HE is and what HE thinks of the other.
Bloomberg is nice guy in comparison.
2
Bloomberg's opponents have accused him of trying to buy the election. How does that work? Is there a branch of our Government that sells to the highest bidder? If all the other candidates are getting campaign contributions are their donors trying to buy the election? Is Bloomberg's money somehow different from others? Enquiring minds would really like an answer to this.
Mr Trump makes more mistakes in a month than Mr Bloomberg has made in a lifetime. If the Democratic Party voters give serious thought on who to nominate for President the conclusion should be forgone. The only question ought to be who will be Mr Bloomberg’s running mate.
It scares me a bit when people say the Candidate is spending his or her money. If elected it becomes our money ( which it of course doesn't) or it becomes a another way to surplus their assetts.
If Bloomberg becomes the candidate, I will hold my nose and vote for him, but his entire career and enormous wealth make him unsuitable as a Democratic candidate. My reasons for opposing him certainly include the unconstitutional stop and frisk, the outrageous insensitivity to women and ethnic minorities, what Paul Krugman calls his endorsement of zombie explanations for the financial crisis, and the rezoning of NYC to allow development that further distorts the city's economic divide. But more than this, his use of his wealth to buy political support distorts our democratic institutions in ways that will haunt us for years to come. It doesn't matter to me that Bloomberg supports causes I support such as gun control and environmental protection. I don't want billionaires determining the causes the public should endorse, and I don't want money determining the outcome of political races. Finally, I don't trust Bloomberg, who is trying to align himself with progressives when he has never done so before. His authoritarian tendencies may not match Trump's, but they come pretty close.
1
Well, one can say this about Mr. Bloomberg: he won’t be the first Democrat running for President that advocates one policy during the election and another if elected. He ran as a Republican for NYC Mayor, now a Democrat.....these party IDs don’t seem to mean much anymore, particularly if he stand for the proposition that one merely needs to fork over money for loyalty and media presence and not work one’s way through local and State government, learning the ropes of political leadership and compromise.
So many saying: He's buying the election. Yes but. Trump is flying around in Air Force One almost on a weekly basis using our tax dollars to rev up his base at rallies. How much is he spending? Let's call it millions. To defeat Trump we need to fight fire with fire. If Bloomberg's only qualification was that he has the money to go toe to toe with Trump, that would be enough for me. The fact that he seems to be a savvy political operator and that he has funded worthy causes, is almost icing on the cake.
A commenter asks:
"Do you really expect Bernies followers to vote for Bloomberg if he gets the nomination?"
A vote for Trump is a vote for Trump. Staying home is also a vote for Trump. Think about it.
Impolitic and insensitive? That's what we are calling it now? I'd say outrageous and abusive -- not to mention illegal to pressure female employees who are pregnant, not to even think about getting in the family way. I am so sick of these uber rich to get a pass just because some other uber rich or mighty want him to run for office. I am uber sick of hearing, "he's the only one who can beat Trump" as if that were the only litmus test. We don't need another Trump, and Bloomberg is smarter and will be a lot more dangerous.
3
Yes, but ... Does that mean you'll vote for Trump? Staying home, or voting only in down-ballot races, is not the same thing as voting for Trump, but it's close.
"Bloomberg supported George W. Bush. No thanks."
Amazing! Don't Bernie Sanders supporters understand that a non-vote for the Democratic candidate is almost as bad as a vote for Trump?
Bernie Sanders supporters naturally would prefer that Bernie be the nominee. But Bernie (if he doesn't have another heart attack) would lose to Trump, who would shout "Socialist, socialist, socialist!" at every opportunity, and would beat Bernie easily. Bloomberg may not be to Bernie supporters' liking, but that won't be the question. The question will be: "Is he better than Trump?"
I'm amazed to read that many Bernie supporters would not vote for another Democratic candidate (Bloomberg, for example).
Do Bernie supporter not recognize that SOMEONE will win the 2020 election? If it's not the Democratic candidate, the Republican candidate (Trump) will win.
I'm amazed to read that many Bernie supporters would not vote for another Democratic candidate (Bloomberg, for example).
Do Bernie supporter not recognize that SOMEONE will win the 2020 election? If it's not the Democratic candidate, the Republican candidate (Trump) will win.
Regardless of which Democrat gets the nomination, turnout will determine the election outcome:
"Bloomberg may not be that special someone that you have waited for, but he is a savvy and experienced politician who [can beat Trump]."
But if a voter stays home, that's a vote for Trump too.
In other words, you may not like Bloomberg, but if the alternative is Trump, shouldn't you vote for Bloomberg?
I like Bloomberg's (and other candidates') "go slow" approach to national health care. It will come to the US some day, but not until government-run health care is really shown to work. So far, it hasn't been.
I give Bernie Sanders credit for frankly acknowledging that most people's taxes would increase under his plan. He argues only that taxpayers would end up paying less overall because they'd save money on insurance premiums. In sharp contrast, Warren insists, unrealistically, that universal health care would not increase taxes (except on the wealthy). Of course it would, but so what? If someone pays less, overall, does it really matter, to most Americans, if tax increases are more than offset by eliminating health insurance premiums?
But most Americans still will balk if government-run health care hasn't really been shown to work (example: the Nevada culinary union's reported opposition to "Medicare for all"). I've read considerable criticism lately of the much-vaunted government-run health-care plans of Canada and European countries.
What America needs is a "go slow" approach that doesn't end up with NOBODY getting decent health care. That's where OPTIONAL coverage comes in. In other words, let the government get its own house in order before it insists that Americans move out of theirs.
Marist has a new poll out today (Marist is an A+ in Nate Silver's ranking system for those aware of that system) It shows all of the Democratic candidates beating Trump by margins ranging from 50-44 (Bloomberg) to 47 -46 (Warren). Bloomberg is 48 -44, Sanders 48-45. I realize that the polls are only somewhat predictive - even right before the election, let alone 8 months before, and that the swing states matter more. But polls are all the actual data we have at this time and that data does not support the idea that Bloomberg would run better against Trump than any other Dem. So why all the sudden hoopla over Bloomberg? Couldn't be related to Bloomberg's huge media buys could it?
2
Bloomberg supported George W. Bush. No thanks.
5
“You judge them by their ability to fess up.” “Fessing up” isn’t enough for those who have been harmed. An apology may make Bloomberg and others feel good and sound good in ads. That does no good for anyone thrown up against the wall for a frisk or arrested for a minor marijuana possession based on no allegation or pretense more than a city’s policy to “stop and frisk.”
Bloomberg is the obverse of Trump. His civil manner and loads of money don’t change his core beliefs, like those of Trump, that he knows better and best for everyone else.
His money can buy lots of supporters and there is no doubt on certain issues he has been a positive force. But it doesn’t change his core beliefs or attitudes about himself. We don’t need an alleged soft-core Trump!
2
Do you really expect Bernies followers to vote for Bloomberg if he gets the nomination?
2
If Democrats decide to bypass the only candidate able to defeat Trump, this country will no longer be a democracy by 2024. It's that simple and that complex. Forgiving while never forgetting past indiscretions may cause many of us to hold our noses when voting (which many swing voters apparently did in 2016), yet now stakes are even higher as what's left of our democracy is being efficiently and effectively dismantled, thereby dividing, destroying and changing us into an autocracy. Less than perfect versus totally unfit is the choice we all now face.
1
It would be wise for the Democrats to abandon their circular firing squad and focus on the task of defeating Trump.
3
I have pondered this. Jockeying for a nomination has always been hardball in smoke filled rooms and on the streets. However, the advent in the latter half of the twentieth century of state primaries for the registered voters rather than the state party and national party determining who shall be the party’s candidate is by definition a internecine ( circular firing squad ) system.
Bloomberg is a little crazy .. just read his entire remarks ie redlining. Why would you talk that way as a New York executive who surely understands the banking crisis in detail and as a mayor who surely understands the racial sensitivity of the term redlining? It’s like he’s totally completely tone deaf or walking some line on purpose. Yes he’s right that predatory lending had a lot to do w the crisis. But banks are to blame for profiting off these subprime mortgages perniciously. It’s just terrible optics as a politician to even bring up the term redlining in that context .. he should know that.
2
Well, one shouldn’t make the mistake of thinking that just because someone has made a bunch of money doing one thing he or she suddenly becomes an expert with sage observations about other things. My experience is that such is very seldom the case.
1
Bloomberg types are simply detached, disconnected and awkward. How this affects his candidacy will be up to voters and his ability to correct himself without sounding all apologetic. But when Warren exploits Bloomberg’s explanation that government (democratic led) pushed banks to allow less credit-worthy consumers into the housing market—and calls it racist—she’s being cheap...and she KNOWS it. The narrative that it was just greedy banks and billionaires that caused the crash suits her campaign, and that Clinton, Barney Frank and others didn’t endanger the economy by loosening the credit market is part of what makes Warren disingenuous and disconnected and, frankly, untrustworthy.
3
Bloomberg appears to be the Democratic Party's best chance for defeating Bernie Sanders.
1
A Bloomberg nomination will lead to a decisive victory for Donald Trump. Suburban white voters, especially women, will come out and vote for anyone whose name isn't Trump, Sanders included.
The issue we run into is galvanizing voters who aren't always inspired to vote. Whether it is a matter of having to work or care for children, many people have to make sacrifices to vote and unless the Democratic nominee inspires them, they simply will not come out to vote.
The Trump voters are fired up about impeachment, so there is no doubt that they will come out and vote for him, but this is not the case for Democrats. A candidacy of Bernie Sanders or even Amy Klobuchar would excite the democratic base and make them come out, beating Trump. Unfortunately, A Buttigieg, Biden, or Bloomberg candidacy would not.
To beat President Trump, we need to expand the party. The "vote blue no matter who" mentality will apply to Sanders just as much as Bloomberg, only Bernie will bring out people that Bloomberg will not. At this point in the race, Bloomberg has started to attack Sanders and I think that Sanders needs to hit back with whatever he's got. Dig up that dirt, put it in ads, and blast it on the airways in Super Tuesday states. Though Democrats are afraid of getting their hands dirty for fear they will look like Trump, now is the time. This primary is a dog fight and it's time the candidates start acting like it and start seriously standing up to Bloomberg and his billionaires.
5
So many people are so sure that Bloomberg can beat Trump. To beat Trump, he has to actually face Trump yet Bloomberg has been doing his best to avoid even taking part in Dem debates because he can't deal with any of the confrontation with other candidates. He can't even look people in the eye when he's being interviewed, so how can he face Trump or any foreign adversary he'd have to negotiate with as president?
3
I am happy to see that most of my fellow Times readers are not buying this latest media effort to smear and eliminate yet another effective challenger to Bernie.
It is past time to get real. Bernie and his Bros have already played the spoiler card in one election and thereby given us Trump. I continue to be bewildered that young people have bought into Bernie’s “chicken in every pot” political mantra. But instead of allowing Bernie and crew—with the help of the Media—to have their way, let’s expend some effort in educating our young people about political reality before they destroy us permanently.
Bloomberg may not be that special someone that you have waited for, but he is a savvy and experienced politician who is willing to lay his own money on the line to begin the process of saving us from ourselves. African-Americans will very likely see the situation for what it is and will vote for him because he is a likely winner, if for no other reason.
2
But he is sorry for the remarks made way back five years ago.
LOL
4
Politics has no empty closets. There's a skeleton inside every one.
Anyone who opens the door to an opponent's has to know that any contents of their own will be revealed. The differences exist in whether what's discovered is acknowledged and atoned for and then sent to its grave; or defended though the ethics of society evolved.
The former can press on. The latter will turn quickly to dust.
2
There's a constant refrain:
"Why, oh why, didn't Hillary Clinton go to Wisconsin?"
If she HAD gone, is it a sure thing that she'd have got more votes? Frankly, I doubt that: If Wisconsin voters had understood Hillary Clinton better, I think fewer of them, not more of them, would have voted for her. She was wise to stay away.
2
In two weeks it will be a three man race among three former mayors with Amy on the stage still talking sense and building a case for VP because she can help win Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania. ( mark these words ).
3
Over and over I read it doesn't matter how bad Bloomberg is, he's the one that can beat Trump. When Trump is used as the baseline, just about anyone looks good. Joe the Plumber looks far better than Trump.
But Americans can do far better than Joe the Plumber and Michael Bloomberg.
4
Stop and Frisk is a legitimate criticism of Bloomberg’s past, not his present. The ugly irony is- both the Left and the Right will use it against him while the Left needs him and the Right would endorse Stop, Frisk, Arrest, Try, Incarcerate and Disenfranchise upon release the same kids on the block the NYPD harassed.
It’s ridiculous that we require perfection in candidates and don’t accept explanations or apologies. This when we have a man in the White House who neither explains or apologizes and declares himself a king. He doesn’t understand anything either. Bloomberg would be a fine president.
9
How about if all of the individuals who want to be leader of the country tell us what are their leadership and legislative accomplishments in whatever positions they have been in. Some are mayors, some senators and or congress persons, some as ??? Before we trust you to accomplish great things let us see what you really can/have done.
Specifically, show me what you have accomplished rather than waving your arms and telling us what you want and how great your ideas are;look on this as a job interview and you want us to hire you, i.e. put up or shut up.
3
I would like to see Bloomberg spend a few dollars backing some of the best Dems to flip the senate? That would be good for all of us
That would be better than trashing other Dem candidates in adds. By the sounds of some comments Bloomberg is a shoe in for president anyway. I don't believe that myself but of course $$$ talks.
If Trump, with his foul mouth, his endless lies and his racist, misogynistic, xenophobic remarks can get elected President, then Bloomberg, with the few peccadillos of which he is accused, ought to be a shoo-in.
3
Bloomberg presents an interesting problem for the democrats and the nation. He has said things and approved of policies that, in more enlightened times, he wishes he hadn't. Additionally, he is spectacularly wealthy and able to fund a powerful campaign with no outside help, otherwise known as buying the election.
None of the above would be a problem if it weren't for the fact that, based on his record as three-time mayor of the most diverse city in the US and probably the world, he is likely to be a great president. My inclination is to forget the first part and focus on the latter.
140
@Nerraw Funding a campaign is not known as "buying an election". What's the difference between using one's own money and using the money of others? Until we have publically-funded campaigns, whose money you use makes no difference unless it's from illegal sources.
7
@Nerraw
.........AND the reason he is a THREE time mayor is because he BOUGHT himself another term, overturning the inconvenient "two term limit". So what's to say he wouldn't try that as President??? Why not President for Life if he could get away with it?? Three terms would put him at age 89 at the end. It isn't as though NYC is a five person town. NYC got him for THREE terms.
6
@Mack
I would rank Bernie's way of raising money #1, as little people's money makes him beholden to his own voters.
Bloomberg's way #2, but of course he's spending his own money to get something out of it. Hopefully it's only for the prestige and power of being POTUS and not to enrich his class. He's not harmless like Buffett or Gates.
Everyone else #3. Every big donation to Biden, Buttigieg et al comes with an expectation of reciprocity at our expense.
4
When Bloomberg tweeted to Trump that he was a "carnival barking clown', he had my vote!
7
Bloomberg has come far, thanks to his billions that help him buy political advantage. It is unfair and wrong, but the 2020 election is being fought at a time of crisis for American democracy - to prevent Trump from getting his second term.
Bloomberg's governing experience and his calm competence make him best equipped to defeat Trump, who seems rattled by the prospect of facing a challenger who is far wealthier than he is.
Not only does Trump envy Bloomberg’s wealth, he may feel uncomfortable debating next to him.
“I’m a New Yorker and I know a con when I see one,” claimed Bloomberg in his DNC speech in July 2016.
The spineless Republicans in Congress aren’t any better than Bloomberg, not to mention Trump, who is such an alarming and despicable figure that many voters may be willing to overlook what they would never forgive otherwise.
5
Someone said “Democrats fall in love: Republicans fall in line.”
Folks, I hope we can all agree to fall in love with the same candidate, but the way things are shaping up it does not look likely. I will vote for the candidate; I didn’t love Hilary but I knew the alternative was unthinkable. So I voted for her even though she didn’t use any of my sizeable contribution to go to, oh, say, WISCONSIN.
1
I, for one, can't abide any Democratic presidential candidate who is even 1% flawed. If there's one thing we've learned, it's that being righteous (along with ideological purity) is far more important than winning any single election. Compromising our values is the road to perdition. Incidental perdition that might result is just the price we pay for being awesome.
8
@Michael Tyndall
So who’s the flawless candidate?
1
Bloomberg is the only candidate thus far to have earnestly apologized for anything. In the Trump era this alone makes him worthy of consideration.
12
It's quite amusing reading many of these comments . If anyone other than Bloomberg had made these comments, for example a junior sociology professor at a liberal arts college, he would be erased permanently from public life by those very same people on here who want Bloomberg to stop Sanders, (oh sorry, Trump), from winning in the fall, at any cost.
13
If Bloomberg can't persuade minority voters, he can certainly buy their votes. He should offer a certain sum (say $2000 per vote) then bus the sellers to the polls. It worked for decades in Mexico and it should work for Mike in the swing states. Will whites in Wisconsin and Michigan also demand money for votes? Quite possible. It's not just about spending money (Hillary outspent Trump 3-1), but how you spend it. Mike will figure this out. Why not? He's one of the smartest oligarchs -- what he lacks in charisma, he more than makes up in dollars.
3
@Mark Rabine
Won't work. It's not enough. The other major Dem candidates (Sanders, Warren) are offering far bigger bribes (free college, student loan forgiveness, free healthcare, reparations) for votes.
9
Very true. But Bloomberg can deliver. Can the others?
2
@GMooG
You're absolutely correct. And then Bloomberg would have to buy himself a personality on top of it all to pull it off. IDK, could Bezos sell him one and get it to him in two hours?? (Asking for a friend) :-)
4
If you’re not yet convinced the mainstream media are currently working overtime to tear down each of the Democratic candidates, count how many times you have recently had to hear about Bloomberg’s past comments on stop-and-frisk (for which he has apologized profusely) versus how few times you have seen the fairly recent Trump video in which our commander-in-chief wholeheartedly endorses the practice.
6
When you think deeply about the Electoral College, you realize that only the one vote that puts the winning candidate over the state line counts.
@Steve Bolger
Umm, no. That's like saying that in the World Series, the only run that counts is the last one scored. Nonsense.
2
I will fight Bloomberg until he wins the nomination. Then I will support him. Until then I want Sanders. Let’s duke it out and not worry about it.
10
When people bring up distasteful comments from 1990, his answer should be:
"Haven't YOU learned anything in 30 years? I sure have."
Bloomberg learns from his mistakes (like Stop-and-Frisk). That is a KEY qualification for being president.
If you want someone who has never done anything they are less than proud of, you'd better vote for yourself. If you are not running, you need to vote for someone else.
Bloomberg/Klobuchar is a dream ticket.
11
30 years ago? Try five. Recognizing your mistakes is one thing, but flopping on an issue immediately before running for office is little more than a transparent ruse.
1
I don't think he will be the Presidential nominee, but Mike Bloomberg will absolutely reveal Trump for the fraud that he is at every microphone and in the media and eventually in support of the Democratic candidate who actually does win the nomination.
Trump MUST be defeated. The enemy of my enemy is my friend. Thank you Mr. Bloomberg.
8
Bloomberg has already DONE more to fight climate change than any of the other candidates have even talked about.
Environmental degradation and catastrophe will hit minority and low-income communities inordinately hard, in the U.S. and around the world.
Trump has done everything possible to promote fossil fuel use and deregulate those industries for the continued benefit of his group of sycophantic oil-garchs and their purchased congressmen. Those supporters in turn put up with and DEFEND heretofore unbelievably corrupt and truly evil behavior, including unchecked racism, misogyny, and outright criminality.
Bloomberg may have made some bad choices and said some callous things, about people of color in the past but he has come some distance to make up for it, and should continue to work hard to do so.
When compared to the alternative of Trump, it's clear that Bloomberg is the only way to protect all of the people of this country.
10
I don’t care about what the candidate said ten years ago. Everyone evolves.
What is their platform now?
Hillary Clinton was damaged more by mainstream media’s constant barrage about her emails than by Russian interference or Trump.
12
The good news is Bloomberg has a broad history beyond starting a company and becoming a billionaire. He was mayor of the largest city in the USA and that makes him prepared to face the diverse problems that are now threatening to crush this country as a democracy because of Trump's lack of any political knowledge or any experience leading a diverse corporation or country where everyone isn't prepared to bow to his wishes. So Bloomberg has to know he has a target on his back. Better that than Sanders sole claim to fame: "I didn't vote for the Iraq war." I'll take Bloomberg with all his baggage over Sanders with a one-page resume that goes from mayor of Burlington to Congress and probably will leave a lot of white space on the page. Sanders is all protest and does not have an enviable record of political or charitable accomplishments. And his cult followers, like Trump's, do not care because they "feel the Bern." Well, "I feel the disaster" if Sanders is the candidate for the Democrats. And Bernie's Bros have already made it clear they are thugs like Trump's supporters. So the Bloomberg option is one that cannot be resisted by Sander's whining about a rich man with good ideas daring to stop his "revolution." Bloomberg 2020.
9
Enough with the purity tests. I’m sure Mike Bloomberg has sad a lot of nasty things in his 78 years. His worst comments pale in comparison to Trump’s actions toward the Central Park Five.
It’s time to stop whining and start figuring out how to beat our disastrous president. The Republicans are playing hardball—and they’ll be spending billions of dollars. They’re playing to win. The Democrats need to be just as tough and just as mean.
This election is for keeps. Better play to win.
6
The Democrats are all complaining that Bloomberg is using his billions to buy the election. But isn't that what they are all doing: telling their constituents that if they vote for him or her, he or she will take billions from Bloomberg and give it to them in some form or another. What's worse using one own money to buy an election or using other peoples' money to buy an election? And what is worse for the country, using one's own money to create jobs in one's campaign or using other peoples' money to create dependency?
3
Past Remarks Are Challenging for Bloomberg, and Fair Game for Rivals.
Politics; the only sport where you have to kill your friends before you're allowed to kill your enemies.
4
There Is not a candidate left in the race who can pass the purity test on race, several have issues of misogyny and gender inequality , and if you ask Bernie, who was an Independent why he ran as a Democrat he will tell you it was to get access to the resources of the DNC, whose funding to provide those resources comes from........you guessed it........major Corp. run by millionaires and billionaires. The Democrats are doing Donald’s oppo research for him. This circular firing squad is not sustainable for the party. Geez, get smart.
5
Fessing up because one is caught is hardly fessing up. His apologies reek of political expediency. Democrats can do so much better, I don’t get the hype. At all.
5
@LFK
No and I doubt any other Trumpista supports anyone but Trump.
3
Bloomberg's comment in the video was fact based. People with insufficient income were approved for loans by shady bankers that resold the mortgages as investments. The borrowers may have been in areas shady bankers previously avoided, but is not racist to point out these facts.
9
Totally agree that the video depicted Bloomberg defining what is Redlining, not endorsing it for himself, but explaining why it was a sort of negative feedback loop and an economic, NOT racial argument and phenomenon. But most people are not capable of such discernment. And the Republicans will exploit the ignorance of Democrats just as they exploit the ignorance of their own base.
6
So, here's the thing. If Bloomberg is able to win the nomination, his key to victory is the same thing as it was for Clinton. He needs to get the Democratic party majority in the battleground states to go to the polls. Any Dem is going to win NY, California, etc.. We just don't matter.
I've seen nothing that Mike did in running for a third mayoral term that would lead me to conclude that his view of the constitution mimics that of DJT. What he did was use the LAW, the fact that the city council had the final say on the matter. He didn't bribe the council and he was endorsed, at the time by the NYT.
Frankly, "following the rules" is exactly what Hillary Clinton did and we've seen how that played out. I don't know if Mike can win Pennsylvania or Florida or Michigan. What I do know is that he's not a Trumpist and he's not a Republican given the dramatic shift in the Republican party over the last 20 years.
3
I began my New Yorker status during Mike's last mayoral term. I'm an independent, never voted Republican, voted for DiBlasio—and wish Mike was mayor again. The city felt intact while he was in office.
I feel Mike is our best hope. The Dems really need to focus on the end game, and forget about the litmus purity tests. Every political candidate has done or said something regrettable. While, yes, some more that others. This election is not the right time for far left politics. We will lose.
Mike has the might and resources, true business success, and political experience. His ideas and policies satisfy the left, the independents, and dismayed republicans. He can win in the swing midwest states. Not Bernie. Maybe only Biden. We will lose if Bernie gets the bid. And, I'm sorry to say that those swing states will not accept a gay president. It was fantastic feat when Obama won, but none of these candidates have Obama's appeal and fire power.
Mike is the New York billionaire Trump dreams he was. And Mike winning office would humiliate Trump. He is Trump's worst nightmare.
I would look forward to Mike addressing the citizens in terrible Spanish. I miss the storm updates.
8
An apology coming so long after the fact and so close to his political need for the apology doesn’t strike me as genuine. But insincere is better than no apology.
4
This political race is finally getting interesting. Who would have thought such a dull man (Bloomberg) could bring some excitement to this Democratic political party. It will only get more interesting as more attacks are hurled at Mike Bloomberg. Stay tuned.
2
Digging up the past dirt is a new obsession of the media now.
Do Americans really concern about every single remark the candidates made in the distant past?
See a picture. Don't look at the trees and not at the forest.
2
I guess it's Bloomberg's turn in the barrel with the swelling of criticism surrounding him in recent days.
I am deeply disappointed in Biden's remark of “Sixty billion dollars can buy you a lot of advertising, but it can’t erase your record.” Talk about the kettle calling the pot black. Biden probably has more baggage and older baggage than all of the other candidates combined.
I've always believed that a strong candidate will speak about what he or she plans to do if elected rather than sinking to the bottom by attacking one's opponent.
The more Biden talks, the more inclined I am to vote for Bloomberg - if it all comes down to those two guys.
Shame on Biden for getting down in the gutter with his verbal attacks.
4
If Trump is not going to suffer from the same "foot-in-mouth" quotes, why is it that Democrats, Socialists or moderates, like Biden, get roasted for even the most antique of statements made when everyone in US Politics spoke the same way?
What is it that immunizesl Republicans from any effects stemming from their records, but all Democrats or opponents of the GOP must be, like "Ceasars Wife", -where even the sound of the echo of a whisper of a suspicionis enough for their best friends to abandon and condemn them for imagined or alleged racist or sexist tendencies?
Do no pople today remember that the man who passed the Voting Rights Act against much of the desire of the senate in the South, LBJ, was once considered a fixed star in the firmamament of American ultra conservative politics?
If LBJ could become such a game changer in US politics, despite his often ugly past, surely Democrats today should be allowed a similar pass-especially considering the untouchable men they must run against.
Sometimes-most of the time-I suspect it is the media's propensity to play with mud and dirt that outweighs it's better political judgment.
2
This is nothing compared to his educational policy! He would destroy public education as it is known now! I think he should never be nominated, let alone elected! Thankfully, he would never be elected. Just his self funding is enough to worry enough voters not to vote for him!! Bloomberg should lose simply to show that nobody should be able to buy an election for themselves! Just that reason alone!!
3
Once again, Democrats look poised to make a fatal mistake: pushing forward a candidate whose actual record (and persona) are deeply offensive to large portions of the Democratic base.
How on earth will Democrats get the massive turnout they will need to defeat Trump?
Hillary's record -- from mass incarceration to Wall Street coziness, from warmongering to "the economy's great" campaigning when the economy stank for too many Americans -- was a turnout killer, and that sank her candidacy more than any other factor.
"Purity Test?" -- let's not be silly:
Bloomberg vastly expanded a program of massive racial profiling (being Black alone was "probable cause"), and was caught on video admitting that racial profiling (being Black was "probable cause" in itself) and "throw them against the wall" police brutality was the actual intent. This lays waste to Bloomberg's apology just weeks ago.
Bloomberg actually blamed poor people for the financial crisis (voters know that bank irresponsibility was the main culprit).
Bloomberg's CEO record: scores of credible allegations that put Bloomberg dead center of a hostile workplace rife with misogyny and appalling disrespect of female employees.
Sure, Bloomberg can buy loyalty from Democrat insiders and snag the nomination. But his record will be a turnout killer. Republicans will have a field day, and down-ticket Dems (like, the Senate and state legislators) will be annihilated.
9
Fast forward and say Bloomberg won the democrat primary. Jump ahead again. Here you are in a poll booth. Who do you vote for? Dictator gone wild or Man with the ability to get this country back on track and restore our democracy.? Who gets your vote
M.B. equals democracy although on could argue the point that the current position Trump has this country in, M.B equals freedom. D.T. more mayhem and lost of more freedoms and more gov revenues going into Trump's bank account where ever in this world that might be.
1
Neither gets my vote. As a minority their policies towards minorities are the same. A phoney apology won't get it done.
1
I hope this election is not heading toward a Trump vs Trump-lite matchup
4
Fessing up to mistakes doesn't work if it's only because you want something or got caught -- unless I suppose you are the current President and you overlord the GOP or you're another billionaire buying slick ads to gloss over your mistakes.
Essentially, Bloomberg only apologized for his racist Stop and Frisk policies he spearheaded ONE DAY before announcing his presidential campaign.
That simply does not ring genuine and I hope enough people have learned their lesson from Trump's example and don't give Bloomberg any credence or let him ruin Biden's real chance to beat Trump!
And I still have yet to hear any apologies for his decades of outright and outrageous sexist comments and behavior! At his age, it's unlikely he will change, despite his idle words!!
5
Any similar scrutiny for Mr. Sanders being planned? After all, he voted against gun control, and last election was tagged as not understanding race because he comes from a nearly all white state.
Just sayin'. If you aren't going to print that Benjamin Dixon is a long time Sanders supporter who did similar things specializing in going after Hillary Clinton, before and after she was the nominee last time, your credibility on the Sanders supporters is nil to negligent.
1
@ondelette
to be precise...
Vermont Demographics
White: 94.33%
Asian: 1.69%
Black 1.29%
@ondelette Bernie is the only one who can win in the Midwest. You may not like it but Trump is heavy favorite unless we change the game on him with a non-establishment candidate.
How anyone thinks Bloomberg can win in the swing states around here is beyond me. It's typical city thinking, no clue how the other half lives.
1
@Anne, I voted for Bernie last time. What happened is that he didn't go with the team. He will tell you he did, and disclaim what his supporters did. But that's what he's doing now with the trolling in Las Vegas. And what he always will do.
Bernie is not a Democrat, and his supporters are using the party like an empty shell. The last time that happened we are still living through in the White House. If Bernie does not figure out how to, or develop the backbone to, tell his supporters how a truly presidential presidential candidate's followers should act, then he should not get the nomination. End of story.
Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is being criticized for this statement: “We put all the cops in minority neighborhoods. Yes. That’s true. Why do we do it? Because that’s where all the crime is.”
People are up in arms calling this a racist statement. Hardly.
This statement reflects the CompStat protocol that William Bratton put into effect when he was police commissioner in New York under Mayor Rudy Giuliani during a time of high crime and a high murder rate.
The CompState philosophy, adapted by police departments across the United States and internationally is relatively simple: Put the cops on the dots, the "dots" being the red circle dots on a map of the City's five boroughs that note a preponderance of Part 1 crimes like armed robbery, murder, arson, burglary, rape. The larger the dots, the more occurrences of those crimes in that particular community.
What Mr. Bratton did was re-deploy and concentrate police patrols in those high crime areas. As a result, crime fell dramatically. The philosophy was simple: why concentrate police resources in neighborhoods where there is little or no crime? Better to put those resources where they are most needed.
While the City's Stop and Frisk policy went to the extreme and needed to end, Mike Bloomberg has nothing to apologize for regarding the actions he took as mayor to continue the CompStat protocol.
5
@Len: I suspect that Bloomberg's tough-on-crime approach will resonate with far more black and minority voters than the pundits think. These voters appreciated this kind of policing and their lives improved under it. Don't be surprised if Bloomberg pulls black support from Biden.
Trump has made this election into a reality show, which is how we get Bloomberg with his enormous wealth and even bigger ego suddenly a serious candidate for POTUS ?!? Cmon now
The Dems are doing everything they can to destroy their chances. Nothing new about that. But Mike is right that we need to get together to win it, not snipe, throw rocks and backbite each other. The sad fact is that all the other candidates are a very long shot, and most are simply not really in the game. Bernie talks about generating "excitement," but what we need to do is generate votes.
3
How did the US has hold together this long with the arbitrary allocation of federal voting power tied directly to slavery?
1
@Steve Bolger: Please disregard the "has" in the above sentence. Equality of voting power purports to be the feature of democracy that unites people in consent to be governed under it.
How come nobody is bringing up the comments Bloomberg made regarding China? Less than three months ago, Bloomberg declared that China was not a dictatorship and the leadership of China "listens to the public."
How is this any different from Trump's view of China?
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/firing-line/video/michael-bloomberg-sstj1o/?fbclid=IwAR034L3QGmKr7Rg-FFw5DaSp8GSLJCjiEeT5u44TJJm5xA5Bee3mvSPuT9A#.XkrcR6Nxrgo.facebook
3
Why always frame things only in terms of a political horse race? Instead, talk about what Bloomberg said, how he said it, and his actual policies.
If you do, you'll find out he's a conservative Republican on most issues. And he's also expressed support for sexual predators, wealthy elites such as himself, buying elections, illegal police tactics, racial and religious profiling, and workplace sexual harassment.
You'll also find out that he's been bribing politicians and advocacy groups on both sides of the political spectrum for years.
Bloomberg is NOT an authentic Democrat. He's certainly no progressive. He's not as personally disgusting as Trump, and doesn't have a cult following, but otherwise, he's just another rich guy trying to buy a kingly throne.
7
I've heard much about the negatives of Bloomberg, and little about all he has done to help minorities. Let me remind the readers here that people change for the better at times. When Lyndon B. Johnson was the Majority Leader of the Senate in the 1950's he was no great friend of the Civil Rights Movement. https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/generic/People_Leaders_Johnson.htm.
When fate made LBJ president he helped create The Great Society and that included the Civil Rights Acts of 1964 and 1965. This from a man who was a southerner and had watered down every prior civil rights act. It should also be remembered that that southerner appointed the first Black man to the United States Supreme Court.
3
Won't it just drive Trump mad if a far richer dude gets elected president? And won't it just trap all conservatives, Republicans, Trump supporters, et al in a vice of hypocrisy when they inevitably begin to criticize Bloomberg? These things alone are enough to back this guy. We are, unfortunately, in an ugly and desperate place where looking for the best candidate just doesn't matter right now.
1
Republicans apologize for nothing and win elections, Democrats apologize for everything and lose proudly but alone. You have a sitting President who obstructed Congress, has interfered in the military and judicial system and enriched himself and his family while in office. That he was not removed from office was only because of a corrupt Congressionla majority.
That Democrats are obsessed with Stop and Frisk shows only how fixated on "purity" instead of practicality. All Bloomberg can do is apologize and if people of color can't forgive then its their problem at some point. Go ahead sit out the election nothing like cutting off your nose to spite your face.
"He who is without sin is not running"
7
People of color and women are the backbone of the democratic party.
According to a GQ article, there are 40 cases of sexual harassment and discrimination against Bloomberg and Bloomberg LP. All the mainstream media shoving Biden, and now Bloomberg, down our throats conveniently ignores this.
He left the Republican party to cheat and get a third term as an Independent. Now, he switches to Democrat just to be in an ego swinging contest with Trump.
I will not trade one racist, sexist, opportunist, who exploits whatever party and platform will give him the advantage, for another.
If Bloomberg was in it for the right reasons, he would use his money to back the democrat in the general, and stop cheating his way in! I will not vote for for Bloomberg in the Primary or the General. I will vote for ANY of the other democratic nominees.
This pathetic country that ranks *75th* in female leadership needs to stop overlooking Amy Klobuchar. She brings in moderate democrats, moderate republicans and independents, has no baggage, earned her way up, has the experience and great relationships in the senate on both sides, and is the answer to beating Trump and flipping the senate. Wake up.
5
Donald Trump disguised as a a Democratic candidate (Bloomberg) vs the Real Donald Trump. Donald Trump wins.
3
“Mayor Sylvester Turner of Houston, whose endorsement Mr. Bloomberg had pursued for weeks, delivered an impassioned speech, as did the mayors of Columbia, S.C., and Washington, both of whom are also helping Mr. Bloomberg with his African-American outreach.”
“You don’t judge people by the mistakes they have made,” Mr. Turner declared. “You judge them by their ability to fess up.”
Mr. Turner, you have it backward. “It is not what say, it is your actions that count”. Ever hear this before?
3
The NYT should criticize Trump, not Democrats.
6
The Bloomberg campaign is turning into a real life Blazing Saddles with Mike Bloomberg playing the Mel Brooks character... Gov LoPetomine
2
Really scratching my head over how many self identified moderates or liberals think that letting an old billionaire with a history of racist views buy the presidency from another old billionaire with a history of racist views is a good idea
14
1) what makes a billionaire less qualified , please tell me
2) what history of abject racism has Bloomberg shown?
3) you are at least right in one item, I do “self identify “ as a moderate and more importantly as a forgiving paragmatist
2
@Mike 1) i would contend that being a billionaire on its face would make someone less qualified but don't feel the need to argue that here; what i'm saying is that it's obviously undemocratic and I think against "moderate" and "pragmatist" belief systems to back someone who is quite openly trying to buy the election. Even if you think Bloomberg has the best chance of beating Trump, the precedent of successfully spending one's personal fortune to become president is quite obviously worrying.
2) If you're able to listen to or read through his recently surfaced comments on his stop and frisk policy and not consider him racist, I don't really have anything to say to you about race
1
Frank
1) personal wealth precluding someone from running and winning public office is as you acknowledged, just your opinion without any empirical support . Also I don’t see how democracy doesn’t still prevail since the voters( or the electoral college) will decide whether BB wins , nothing being bought at all unless you presume your fellow Americans to be easily duped by misinformation or BB is using his wealth to perpetrate election fraud. It is not clear all of the candidates are guilty of the same misinformation campaigns, with or without using their personal wealth, to get out a message.
2) comments about credit redlining are taken way out of context and from what I saw, the most recent comments about stop and frisk clearly walked back that philosophy and hardly had EXPLICIT RACIST intent in the first place. Apparently you have never made an error of judgment and corrected course. In which case you are a rare bird and my hero!
1
Bernie will get Trump re-elected
I will vote for ANYONE over #CrookedTrump but I hope the far-leftists will do the same...
5
Racist and sexist remarks didn't hurt Trump in 2016, and may even have helped him. Maybe Bloomberg's history may turn some Trump voters his way. What a sad thought.
2
Bloomberg/Klobuchar 2020
7
The African American mayors of Houston, DC, and Columbia endorsed the mayor. Could it be because as part of his plan to run for president and get endorsements, he donated millions of dollars to their pet projects. This many is truly trying to buy the election.
123
@Erik Unfortunately, buying favors is the name of the game in our current democracy. Until we get money out of it, nothing will change.
9
@Erik Sure but the middle class and up black demographic is who supports him anyway. I have plenty of people in my own black family with some money and they are mostly Bloomberg supporters. I'm not, but I definitely see a pattern. Then again I don't have a decent amount of money either lol.
6
@Erik yes and hopefully it works!! How does trump get his support, or any political candidate.
However, Bloomberg really does have a history of helping minorities. As stated in this article, he supported Obama's policies!
Your attempt to dissuade voters is not working.
9
‘Impolitic’ ad ‘insensitive’ remarks apparently don’t matter. Trump has been spewing vile comments about women, minorities, enemies, the media, Democrats, anyone who crosses his path, for years, and it catapulted him into the White House. Sure, Mr. Bloomberg’s past comments are germane to the larger conversation, but don’t give Trump a free pass on the horrendous and disgusting things he’s said and done throughout his career, as a candidate, and as ‘president.’
75
@H. Clark
Exactly.
I can only hope this nitpicking is because we're 8 months away from the election.
Let's all try not to throw the baby out with the bathwater. Bloomberg is not perfect. So what? He's billions better than what we have now.
Let's keep our eyes on the prize and vote for whomever can beat Trumpelstilskin.
That means Bloomberg.
1
Isn't it stop, QUESTION, and frisk? How much questioning was done is itself a question, but perhaps random searches were not entirely random.
1
I’m so tired of the media trashing Bloomberg. He’s our only hope to beat Trump. No one else can beat Trump, not Sanders, not Biden, not Mayor Pete. Only Bloomberg has the money and the mouth to meet Trump toe-to-toe. He’s already gotten under Trump’s skin and he’s not even been in a primary yet. Enough already.
345
@KG Looking at this from abroad, could not agree more with your comment. M. Bloomberg has after all previously had the experience of being elected as Mayor of New York city as well as knowing Trump well.
He knows what it takes to beat Trump. Sanders is too left wing for mainstream America, he would even struggle getting elected in Europe today as a majority of voters here have deserted traditional "social-democratic" parties, too much of a tax and spend mentality that over many years led many European countries facing large problems. Biden seems already to be struggling. Mayor Pete seems lika nice and intelligent man but what experience does he really have to lead a large country such as the U.S. at this stage of his life? Please do nominate Bloomberg so there is at least a 50/50 chance in the upcoming election. If the US economy holds steady until November, Trump will get re-elected unless drastic action is taken by the DEMS.
49
@KG
Bloomberg is untested... nobody knows how he's going to hold up under Trump's attacks... Biden on the other hand has been in the line of fire for more than a year, yet he still beats Trump in head-to-head polling.
11
@Richard Ralph
Expecting Joe Biden to win the election is like expecting that the Washington Generals will finally break through to defeat the Globetrotters.
This is Biden’s third attempt and he has yet to win a single state. He’s a fine man, but a poor candidate. Not going to happen for him unless he suddenly transforms into someone who generates excitement among the voters.
40
We have a guy saying he can shoot someone and get away with it as President.
Bloomberg’s past remarks? Seriously?
465
Do we have to choose between two guys who can do what they want and get a pass, because of their money?
26
@yulia You just can't equate Bloomberg with the ting that Trump is.
6
@Jane
So you think that Democrats win in an election between two lying, manipulative, billionaire Republicans?
Really?
25
Bring back De Blasio. He is more of a liberal than Bloomberg and never supported stop and frisk. But of course, he was unelectable and unqualified to be president because he takes a chauffered limousine to a health club in Brooklyn.
3
@Alan J. Shaw Whereas DJT takes Amtrak to Mar a Lago.
@Coastal Elite Sorry ,chauffeured.
An Amtrak sleeper car?
Larry D of Brooklyn,
I was quoting Al Gore who misquoted. I apologize. Correction: A zebra does not change its STRIPES.
I am a city girl and am not too familiar with many zoo animals. My mistake.
I still stand by my comment about Mike Bloomberg. A zebra does not change its stripes. This is very fitting towards Mike Bloomberg.
2
If Bloomberg becomes the nominee, I will hold my nose and vote for him against Trump. But the notion that only Bloomberg can beat Trump, as so many comments say, is ignoring certain realities. First, almost every Democratic candidate is ahead of Trump in the polls. Second, all the energy of the Progressive movement will be drained from the presidential election, and many of those people (unfortunately) will not come to the polls, or will vote for a third party. Third, in the battleground states in the Midwest- Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio, etc., which might determine the election, Bloomberg vs. Trump will be seen as one plutocrat vs. another, especially to the working class voters who voted for Obama and Trump. Bloomberg comes across as smug and autocratic.
Finally, people might get tired of seeing the endless ads, and turn against the guy trying to buy the election.
Then again, with so many moving parts, I could be wrong...
6
The frustrating thing regarding electability is that we have two fronts we are fighting when we think of the electability issue.
We have the Trump front and those potential attack ads -
Then we have the Bernie Sanders front and those attacks against moderates and the wealthy and we have to worry about some of his unyielding base of voters staying home
So, all issues need to come out in advance and be vetted
So, far - the only candidate not being attacked by either front is Klobuchar - she is a moderate who has had a good working relationship with Bernie and Trump seems to not have noticed her yet
One thing we know for sure regarding African American and minority voters is that many are willing to turn out for whoever they think can beat Trump (as is pointed out in this article)
Perhaps this explains Bloomberg's apparent teflon rise in this voter demographic - but could this also translate to Klobuchar?
Bernie is pretty much trashing Bloomberg and Mayor Pete's (wine cave) potential support among 'some' of his base who call them Wall St Dems- though these two might pick up a lot of moderates
I think Klobuchar has the most potential to win big - but is it too late to gain the support needed among minority voters?
We have had forums like the ones for LGBTQ where Klobuchar did well
Did I miss the forums concerning issues of other minority groups?
I feel we need a town hall/forum on this ASAP. It gives candidates more time to state their positions and to be very clear
1
Michael Bloomberg is today's Ross Perot in reverse. Perot drew just enough Republican votes to weaken G.H.W. Bush so he lost to Clinton whose give-away policies proved to be the real source of the Great Recession. Bloomberg says, if he does not win the Democratic nomination, he will support the candidate he believes in. Who is that? Certainly not Sanders or Warren. Probably not Buttigieg or Klobuchar. And his primary run will probably eliminate Biden before the convention. Who is left to support?
6
I’m still undecided but have to make a choice in a few weeks and am leading towards Mr. Bloomberg. I know he has a strategy but I wish he’d appear on the Sunday morning news shows and give interviews. Being from California the only thing I know about him is what I’ve read. And his multiple TV ads. I’m a huge fan of Amy and Pete but bottom line for me is who has the best chance of getting trump and the grifters out of the WH and I think it’s him.
4
The guy spoke his mind, did things, and seems able to admit fault and change his mind, and do something about it. These are positive attributes folks; the stuff of a mature mind, humility, compassion and intelligence. For gosh sakes, I’ll take it.
8
I shared the frustration of the last primary where it seemed Sen. Sanders’ voice was squelched by the Democrat establishment, but this is not same election. I voted for Sanders in the Indiana primary just to land a point to the Clinton machine and the DNC. I then voted for Clinton in the general election without any reservation. This time, the only worse candidate than someone who was vilified by Fox news and talk Radio for 30 years is a “socialist”, the nuances of political philosophy will be lost on any would be Trump voter. I agree with some of Sanders’ aspirations, but if we put him up against any Republican (and watch for the 11th hour switch folks!) we will lose!
4
Give it a rest! Democrats will do themselves in with tests of purity which NO ONE can match! Bloomberg made a lot of money but was a public servant for 12 years. Other candidates are simply using other people’s money. Fine from him to spend his own. Then Citizens United must be thrown out. But let’s get there first please. Bloomberg has the resilience and readiness and ability to go the distance and beat Trump. Bloomberg/Klobuchar would be my choice. Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good. These are surely exceptional times.
7
@Bobbinx
Identifying Crypto Racism isn't a purity test.
Yes Virginia , thus ever unto tyrants.
1
For all the lambasting directed against Mr. Bloomberg's wealth, I begin to wonder since when Americans started to hate wealth?
All the time, they say America is a place where great wealth is created. It is supposed to be that shiny place on a hill where anyone can be anything he wants to be.
Mr. Bloomnerg did not inherit his wealth. He did not hit the lottery either. He was a middle-income kid who worked his way through college working as a parking lot attendant. Now, he is a multi-billionaire, and people lambast him for it. Now, he cannot run for preseident because he is too rich. What's the matter with you people? Unless there is a law prohibiting a candidate from spending too much money advertising his message, he is within his right to do so.
Mr. Bloomberg, having started from nothing is the extreme personification of the so-called American dream. One can also say he is a product of American model of Capitalism. Is that necessarilly a good thing? I'm not sure. But please don't blame the man, blame the system.
The good thing is, he has shared his billions to support progressive causes and promised to do something about this huge income gap when he becomes president.
At this point in his life when he is 78 and has everthing, it is not unreasoble to believe that he probabaly really wants to serve his country. For when he goes to his grave, he knows he cannot bring his money but a truly
meaningful legacy will make him live forever.
5
Amassing great wealth for oneself in business does not qualify one for leading a nation. In fact, it disqualifies one from leading our representative democracy. Please acquaint yourselves with Anand Giridharadas. Those who have conquered and contributed to rigging our current system of toxic capitalism which allows for Mike to pay lower taxes than his secretary are not who we need to right the ship of state to include the well-being of the ninety-nine percent, who they have been actively thwarting their entire lives.
5
There is no Democratic candidate that doesn’t carry some baggage, that won’t have past actions or remarks to answer for. Instead of focussing there and taking pot shots at one or another, I suggest we look for two things: would they make a good President, and can they beat Trump? Then rally unstintingly around that person, even if they were not your first choice.
Michael Bloomberg has been mistakes, has addressed those mistakes and has apologized for those mistakes.
He may be a lot of things, but Michael Bloomberg is no Donald Trump.
Thank goodness and what a relief for that!
5
Bloomberg is far worse than Trump. Trump is what you see is what you get. Bloomberg says one thing publicly but when he thinks the microphone is off he says something that is outright demeaning and racist.
2
@Schlomo Sheinbein
specifics please...
1
When looking at candidates, try not to use today's standards on yesterday's remarks. Look at results! Don't nitpick and look at out of context statements. The key issue is getting rid of Trump and as many of his supporters in congress as possible. Skip the purity tests and keep your eye on the ball, which is President "bone spurs - 13,000 lies".
5
First, Bloomberg is a Republican. He's masquerading as a Democrat, but his views and political affiliation, until recently, are solidly Republican.
Secondly, Bloomberg's repeated comments and policies with regard to race are a non-starter. As are his repeated misogynistic comments. We in the Democratic party are a big, diverse tent which draws great strength and talent from our diversity. We don't need our nominee to embody a paternalistic and bigoted worldview. That would depress turnout across the board.
Thirdly, and possibly most damaging, allowing an oligarch like Bloomberg to buy his way to the nomination would permanently cement our nation's status as an oligarchy. Bloomberg might defeat Trump but this world defeat democracy itself. Faith in our institutions is hanging by a thread. This would be the coup de grace.
10
@Dominic
with Bloomberg we know where the money is coming from and his past spending on progressive causes are a matter of public record.
I'm starting to think that if Jesus Christ would come back and run in the Democratic Primary, he'd be condemned for destruction when he threw the money changers out of the temple.
Look, I don't like what Mike Bloomberg supposedly said and how offensive it may have been. I am not excusing it. However, I am looking at his record of philanthropy, his personal life and record as a leader. i see a record so far above Trump's that it is in the stratosphere in comparison.
Bring up the age issue with Sanders, Bloomberg, Biden and Warren and I will hear you out. Please don't give the Trump led mondern totalitarian GOP ammunition on the Democrat's potential nominee. This is insanity.
5
Before Bloomberg was even thought of as a nominee and the race seemed to be between Sanders and Warren, i pent months defending either of them as candidates to my ny centerist friends who feared they would turn the USA into a socialist or something country. I did particularly like Sanders , yet I advocated that these people MUST vote. That if either of them become the nominee, it will be a binary choice, trump vs ? . They need to choose, since no vote is a vote for trump.
Now it’s become possible that Bloomberg can be the nominee, and my friends on the far left are saying similar things.
I lived through the “ Gore is the same Bush” nonsense, and saw how that worked out.
Look folks , advocate for your candidate, but in the end I implore you to vote for the person that’s not trump, be it Sanders or Bloomberg or?
Courts are at stake , democracy is at stake.
Neither of those two are as evil as trump, nor will wreck the havoc that the second trump term will reign upon us.
3
Come on now....let’s compare Bloomberg to our current president rather than slice and dice him up.
He’s the only candidate with the financial resources to take on Trump. Let him do it.
5
Moral choices are difficult by definition.
The quandary: Mr. Bloomberg clearly presents one when choosing between candidates for the Democratic nomination. But he probably doesn't in a Trump v. Bloomberg general election.
So the real moral dilemma whether it can be a principled stand to say no to Mr. Bloomberg now, but yes in November (adding "reluctantly" makes no difference).
We all make remarks that we later regret or we may change our views if we learn from our mistakes. Mike Bloomberg is no exception, and running a city of 8 million means that there is no one solution to a problem and never is everyone happy. Life, needs and options change, as they should.
In comparison to this Federal abomination (that is "administration" in the Trump era) where everything is done without planning and with the WORST conceptualization and advise, in a Twitterverse of impulse, Bloomberg is an absolute genius and what this country needs as its President. HIS businesses are REAL (unlike Trump's scams, failures and massive bankruptcies) and his experience is perhaps more extensive than that of a President already. He's a 9 on a scale of 1-10 while Trump doesn't even qualify for a rating.
I believe Bloomberg; I have ZERO confidence in anyone in the Trump abomination our any Republicans except Romney.
7
I'm a supporter of Bloomberg's and not happy with his comments. I don't think they disqualify him from being President. Joe Biden has made a number of crazy comments..last one I remember when asked to say something nice about his then opponent Sen. Obama Biden said Obama was "clean".
3
Bloomberg has plenty of words, attitudes, and deeds as NYC mayor, and before/since, that will come back to haunt him under the intense scrutiny of a presidential campaign. Also once foes start tying to dig up dirt.
Bloomberg (illegal) third term as mayor, for one, deserves a lot of scrutiny in terms of his attitude towards democracy.
9
Is it the billions, or is it that he's heterosexual? There is a brilliant, visionary, inspiring, forward-thinking two-term former mayor and war veteran from a city that looks a lot more like most of America than NYC in the race who has been gamely debating and campaigning for over a year who has risen from obscurity to winning Iowa and coming within a percentage point of winning New Hampshire. That is no small accomplishment in and of itself, yet despite being a moderate what is plausible and truly exciting about his candidacy are his ideas for how our politics need to evolve in order to escape the redundant revenge oriented back-and-forth rut so the country can tackle a daunting future successfully. Is Buttigieg without flaws? No. But does he present a far more compelling, positive, ambitious game plan to help unite and move America forward rather than sticking with the safe and same-old? Absolutely. The prospect of seeing two beyond wealthy New Yorkers trying to insult one-up each other on which wins the more racist, misogynist contest is wearying and dispiriting. The choice between the only two former mayors in the race, neither of whom have held elected federal office, is clear. We can do better than handing the WH to the highest bidder, it isn't an auction.
2
More unnecessary Democratic hand wringing. Who cares at this point? Bloomberg is competing against a crook who pays off hookers with campaign hush money and is a proven pathological liar.
7
Bernie is a purist and principles matter. Vote Bernie!!!!
2
Proof that billionaires are mistake prone.
My or my. What to do. Billionaire to the left , billionaire to the right with me stuck in the middle. Vote Bernie?
3
I am mistake prone, too, but I am not even a millionaire.
Drip. Drip. Drip. As the campaign progresses, more damaging news will be revealed about Michael Bloomberg. His own Democratic Party will bring on the attacks first followed by President Trump. His ratings are sure to plummet. Money will only take you so far.
3
He stood up for the mosque in New York.
That took guts.
He will do.
6
If the democrats destroy Bloomberg then they will deserve to loose. Always refusing to compromise the ideological purity members of any party will wander in the wilderness of their own self destruction and always blame “others”.
8
@fred Not becoming the nominee is not the same as "destroying".
Bloomberg is not a bad guy but he's not a Democrat.
If America's politics are to return back to normal, the GOP needs to get back to the moderate Republican position, but Democrats need to get out of there first.
I’m all in for Bloomberg! It will take his money and his machine to beat Trump. The goal is to elect anyone but Trump. Let’s keep our eye on the ball. All this liberal Sanders and Warren stuff reminds me of when the Democrats nominated McGovern. What a fiasco that was and that’s how we got Nixon... the other Republican crook.
12
Restoration or Revolution, that is the question?
1
Bloomberg is a very old, very, very rich white man.
He has the same racial prejudices ad Donald Trump.
He's just been better at hiding them.
But stop-and-frisk, support of Redlining, and then claiming the 2008 financial crisis was caused by giving bank loans to black families is just the beginning. The misogynistic culture of his company is just coming into focus as we find out he made employees sign NDAs about working there.
The people who are currently supporting Bloomberg, like older black voters, need to be informed of his history and as quickly as possible.
5
@Joe I’m looking forward to celebrating trump’s reelection with you.
1
So basically the argument is that I dont agree with the racist and sexist stuff Bloomberg said, but I'm voting for him anyway for the greater good? But that's what rank and file republicans have said about trump's language. So the democrats are no better.
9
Bloomberg is the worst of both worlds for the Democrats.
He's a good old boy sexist and racist.
He's also an Oligarch that will further economic inequality.
I don't see what problem he solves except maybe to Democrats that are really Republicans.
12
Heaven forbid a racist is elected President.
3
I’m tired of white people arguing amongst themselves if Bloomberg is racist or not. Non-white people — what do you think? What are your thoughts?
3
@Visible I’m black and I support him. The totality of a human being counts more than their errors. He has apologized and
Moved on to introduce ways to never let that happen again. That matters to me.
6
Yep. Let's trade one racist NYC plutocrat for another one. Yes, certainly. That's exactly what we need.
9
It’s laughable that Bloomberg is being labeled as a racist and a sexist while the current occupant of the White House, who remains terrifyingly popular, defended neo-nazis on live television and spearheaded the birtherism movement, which made the first black president produce his birth certificate. All the while he received dozens of credible allegations of sexual assault, including rape. And somehow we should steer clear of Bloomberg?
Also, thank you finally for all the anti-Trump ads you are running in my area. God knows no one else was doing it.
14
1) Bloomberg and Hillary as VP is winning ticket or
2) Bernie and Klobuchur as VP is winning ticket or
3) Biden and Warren as VP is winning ticket also and finally
4) Biden and Adam Schiff will make Trump and GOP's life in hell.
Well at least Nancy is being even-handed (haha).
I've seen her give two interviews in the last three days in which she starts by saying she must remain strictly neutral, and ends by emphasizing that the DNC candidate, her friend Joe, is doing just fine.
I'm a crazy European progressive who believes in most of what Bernie stands for, but in your political system he hasn't got a hope in hell in getting what we in Europe call centre-left policies through Congress.
Nancy's friend Joe gets muddled by simple questions and would be hopeless in debates against Trump, with his USP of 'I was the token old white conservative on Obama's ticket, who was born in Scranton before moving to the Delaware tax-haven.'
Bloomberg, like Harris, Buttigieg, Klobuchar and others, might have done more to challenge the terrible institutional racism of American policing.
But he's no worse than them in that regard - he's a social liberal and centrist pragmatist with an impressive record in business and political administration, and a strong moral compass evident in his philanthropy, not to mention his long-held positions on Climate and Guns.
You and the world cannot afford the luxury of myopic purist cynicism at this crucial juncture.
Imaginary perfection is the enemy of the best choice.
Politics is 'The Art of the Possible', and right now Mayor Mike seems from here the best possible option.
Hold your noses if you like, but please make the right choice.
8
@Martin
I can support Mike for the reasons you suggest. You were talking about American political parties and the choices they make, I believe?
I lived in Holland in the early 1970s.
I happened to be at the parliament building on a day the Dolle Minas were protesting for feminism in the 1970s. When I asked my Dutch colleagues about that, they were dismissive.
At that time, in a country of about 14 million, there were 73 political parties. I asked my Dutch colleagues how they kept that many parties figured out. They said that they only paid attention to the three or four biggest parties. A contemporary joke was that 3 Dutchmen standing on a street corner constituted a political party.
I was told that back then, TV air time on the one national channel was doled out in proportion to the number of votes a party got in the last election. One fringe party got the last 15 minutes of broadcast time late on Sunday nights. One Sunday, they had a young lady sit on a bar stool and read the newspaper. It was obvious that the newspaper was the only thing between her body and the camera. They got lots of irate letters. The next Sunday, the announcer said that in response to the complaints, they would never again have a young lady sit in a bar stool and read the news to the viewers in the nude. Then they cut to the young lady who was sitting on the bar stool without her clothing, and without the newspaper.
1
I build my approval based on how they handle mistakes. We have yet to hear one single apology from the current occupant of the White House. In his own somewhat distorted reality, he has done a "perfect" job. He has a capacity for cruelty towards others that I find to be offensive and even dangerous.
So, candidates who are willing to say, "Sorry, I screwed up" get my attention.
This country has screwed up...Big time. We need to recognize that and do our own walk of shame.. We don't have any high horse that won't buck us off to the ground these days. Our country and it's legacy of truth, justice and dignity has been shredded by tweets, insults and lies. And 52 willing co-conspirators.
We all owe the world an apology and each and every candidate who made mistakes should cheerfully own them. We have great capacity to forgive errors. However, for Bloomberg and his, and several others, never expect us to forget. That is how the system got derailed.....Being watchful is how to stay clean.
3
@Margot LeRoy: But the legacy of slavery is alive and well. All reforms go to die in the US Senate. This is the heritage Mitch McConnell so zealously guards.
1
Do they have Mike on tape saying they let you grab their p---y? Because, you know, that appears to be the low water mark for the presidency (so far, unless you count the prostitute and porn star pay offs). If he's above those, then he's above the President. So let 'em at it.
10
I agree with the vast majority of these posts......who legitimately
put the emphasis of a candidate choice on who has the best
chance to beat Trump and as well may also have the best
'coat tail' effect for Senate wins......I am left leaning and would
like to see a furtherance of a lot of the policy choices of Warren
and Sanders, but look at what Bloomberg already not only
believes in and has thrown a lot of money at re: climate change,
gun control, Obamacare etc.....and has the money to further endorse and encourage, not to speak of his well cultivated
capacities to 'give as good as he gets' to the twitter in chief and
be able to effectively batter him during what will be, this year, an
epic battle for the saving of our democracy and the rule of law.
This is a Clint Eastwood moment.
15
I have reached the point that Bloomberg's past comments don't even matter.
Whatever it takes to get Trump and his adult children out of the White House.
I'm voting blue, no matter who.
560
@Melissa
"I have reached the point that Bloomberg's past comments don't even matter."
I guess your family has never been redlined or stopped and frisked.
In other words, you're willing to cast aside your morals to defeat Trump. How is that more moral?
42
@Melissa so, when they go low we go as low as necessary? I’m sorry, but no.
26
We will lose sadly in 2020 because our side has so many who feel insulted and aggrieved. we lose because of our willingness to lose.
It's sad no doubt. But our team is just not tough enough to beat MAGAs and Trump.
24
I sincerely believe Bloomberg is the best candidate to beat Trump. His record is tainted with racist comments and allegations of sexual harassment, all of which I condemn and yet, I support his candidacy. It’s a conundrum that I’ve had to personally reconcile because I don’t believe there’s another Democratic candidate better suited to go toe to toe with Trump and can beat him in the dogfight that is coming. Bloomberg’s past indiscretions should and can be forgiven because he can beat Trump at his own game and that’s the ultimate goal—to remove Trump from the Oval Office. And I have no problem with a candidate using his own money to fund his own campaign, in fact it gives me great comfort that Bloomberg is not taking campaign contributions which frees him from obligations to donors.
Bloomberg’s policies are progressive, he’s an advocate for Obamacare, gun control and climate change, but he’s also a pit bull who’s already proven he won’t be bullied by Trump the Terrible.
429
@Gina: He's not the only one who could handle Trump in a debate--Amy Klobuchar could too. She's proven that she's the best debater in the Democratic field. And those old stories about how she treated her staff? I actually hope they're true. A touch of the 'b-word' is essential in dealing with Trump.
28
@Gina
Bloomberg policies are progressive?
That is not only not true, but is an outright disinformation.
Bloomberg program is yet to be revealed, unless you do not work for him and in condition that he was George W Bush supporting Republican you cannot classify his policies as progressive by any means.
As for him standing up to Trump, if by standing
you mean Twitter exchange between him and Trump of who has more money, which in itself is obscene , then the criteria you use is highly personal.
Bloomberg will lose if nominated.
And his nomination will spell the death of the Democratic Party.
27
@Gina
Pit Bull? Or Copy Cat? Did he run in 2008? A Pit Bull would have. In 2016? A Pit Bull would have, and Did, but Bloomberg was an observer. He does WANT to be President. He never Will be.
5
Mr. Bloomberg clearly made statements that he wishes he hadn't made. As a resident of New York City, this was local news - we had to deal with it in real-time, not 10-20 years later.
Although, in retrospect (and in real-time), those remarks are racially insensitive, I don't believe there was anybody who accused Mr. Bloomberg of being a "racist."
Mike will get my vote because he has the one quality that I am looking for in the Democratic presidential candidate: The ability to beat Trump.
Although my personal philosophy is "far-left," I believe that somebody closer to the center is best positioned to beat Trump and restore more civil discourse in this country.
In my humble opinion, any far-left voter who stays away from this election may be handing this election to a person that will hurt their cause and destroy this country forever.
That's how important this election is.
720
@MS I understand this, but at the same time, Bloomberg was congratulating his troops, the NYPD, on how they handled themselves after situations where they truly acted in violent, racist ways. I'm really struggling with having to now "get over that" in order to do my duty for the common good, in voting anyone opposing Trump. I'm going to do it, if I have to, but I'm going to also be very aggravated that it's my only option.
41
@MS "I don't believe there was anybody who accused Mr. Bloomberg of being a "racist.""
Count me as somebody who did. At the time. Because of his support for racist policies in New York City, including but not limited to:
- Stop-and-frisk that specifically targeted black and brown men.
- The targeting of mosques for police scrutiny (and if you don't understand why that's a problem, imagine if cops were doing the same thing to synagogues or Catholic churches).
- Gentrification.
The NYPD, under Bloomberg's leadership, also repeatedly violated the constitutional rights of American citizens during the Occupy Wall Street protests. For example, one early tactic was putting a fence around protesters (and anyone else who happened to be there), ordering them to disperse (which they couldn't do because they were fenced in), and then pepper-spraying them for refusing to comply with their order.
If you want to know why the left-wing isn't excited about Bloomberg, ask yourself how excited you'd feel about a politician that had ordered the cops to beat you up even though you had committed no crime.
68
@MS Yes ...
How can you criticize any evangelical that votes for Trump if you would bully anti-racist, anti-sexist Democrats into voting for Bloomberg? Bloomberg has demonstrated no change of heart, just a convenient mea-culpa.
This is a critical election. It is so important that Bloomberg's supporters should refrain from nominating someone whose racist and sexist comments will make it impossible for many Democrats to support.
23
As I former long time Brooklynite, I question where the families who lived in the traditional tenements that lined Fourth Avenue moved when Bloomberg opened the way for the building of the replacement glass castles. For that and other well known reasons, he's by no means my favorite candidate. However, any student of the Senate, past and current, should conclude that even if Bernie were elected, it's unlkely he'd be able to even begin to implement his agenda. I say let Bloomie be Bernie, with Elizabeth Warren best placed as Majority Leader, and Chuck Schumer selling insurance door to door...
1
The past policies and Republican beliefs that gave rise to his "remarks" are the real problem. Policies and beliefs go a lot deeper than just "remarks" in an open mic, and are significantly more difficult to gloss over.
3
Another thing I'd like Bloomberg to "fess up" to is the dissolution of the renowned school-to-work student co-op program that had been in existence for decades, which occurred when he took over the Board of Education.
The co-op program facilitated juniors and seniors in inner-city high schools, often under-served students of color, who reached a certain GPA to spend alternate weeks at work at all types of organizations. My Fortune 500 company employed students under this program for decades, for so long that our head of human resources was a former co-op student! I hired, supervised, trained, and mentored such students for 18 years until my retirement.
This valuable program-- which also sponsored award ceremonies to which employers and parents were invited to witness students who excelled at their jobs receive modest scholarships, enough to pay for college textbooks or a campus food plan. The program provided students with opportunities they might not otherwise have experienced. I saw lives change. And then suddenly it was over. No more co-op program. It was heartbreaking and tragic.
As an economic expert, surely Bloomberg understood the value of opening doors for young New Yorkers to make the contacts to go on to higher ed and earn good livings so they could give back to the city as taxpayers and consumers for decades to come. Instead, he slammed those doors in their faces.
6
Here we go again. Haven’t we the Democrats learned anything from 2016? We pick our candidates apart with political correctness going over everything they might’ve said in the past and hold it over their heads while trump says and does whatever he wants and it doesn’t hurt him one bit. Time to keep the message simple and to the point ...at least for this one election.
10
Tiring to keep reading implications that only Bloomberg can beat Trump.
Check the polling. Sanders beats Trump by the widest margins in most polls, with greater margins than Bloomberg, per the RealClearPolitics website listing poll results.
The "electability" canard pushed by Establishment Dems and co-dependent media outlets has gotten old.
6
Very interesting to read the comments here. So many people seem so ready to welcome Bloomberg as a kind of savior, which really means just not having to seriously think through what the other candidates have to offer. “Let Bloomberg do all the work so I don’t have to.” I don’t understand why people are so quickly disregarding the political efforts that are needed from everyone—not just from those with billions.
4
We must get Trump out at all costs, say some. If necessary we must vote for one form of oligarchic, plutocratic rule ala Bloomberg, to overcome Trump's version of oligarchic, plutocratic leadership. These are the choices in our democracy?
In the midst of his efforts to free India from oppressive and violent British rule, Ghandi was told that no country had succeeded in gaining its independence without a corresponding violent resistance, and was urged to adopt that stance. If he did not, his popular movement could not succeed.
Ghandi considered, and answered, "Then let my country perish."
If our choice is between plutocrats, then our democracy has already perished.
6
Sharing my thoughts, as the Times requests:
1. If you want to vote for a candidate who agrees with you on 100% of the issues, the solution is simple: YOU HAVE TO VOTE FOR YOURSELF, because nobody who is running will fill the bill. Best of luck getting through the primaries, friend. (How many married couples that you know agree on 100% of the issues? How many parents and their kids agree?)
2. Every candidate has flaws and "history," especially Donald Trump. If any flaw kills a candidacy, there will be no candidates, and Trump would not be POTUS. I do not know how Mike Bloomberg will describe "stop and frisk" but if I were Mike, I would say at least the following: "When the courts decided that "stop and frisk" was unconstitutional, I came to understand that it had to cease. I have apologized sincerely for my error in understanding. I did not institute the policy, but I did continue it. I understand that being stopped and frisked is an affront to one's person and dignity. So are many other inspections that many of us consider demeaning and troublesome, but that we are subjected to for the purposes of the safety of the community. I cannot change the past, but I can promise that in the future, I will not countenance actions that single out groups, especially minority groups, for special scrutiny."
7
There is only one issue in this election: Is [fil in the name of a prospective Democratic candidate] better than Trump?
Regardless of who the nominee is, the answer is unquestionably yes.
4
@AP18
I think the question is: Is [fill in the name of ANY Democratic candidate] better than Trump?
Regardless of who the nominee is, the answer is unquestionably yes.
As a Canadian watching all this from a somewhat comfortable distance, I have to admit it’s a little heartbreaking to watch an apex plutocrat like Mike Bloomberg advancing in the polls by simply pouring a fraction of his enormous wealth into your electoral process. Democrats already have on offer at least one viable candidate who would most likely defeat Trump: Bernie Sanders. All of the head- to-head polls show Sanders clearly beating Trump on a national scale, yet “centrist” democrats and the mass media (NYT included) consistently downplay this reality and instead posit the need for a “saviour” to rescue the party. Rescue it from whom, exactly? From a front-running candidate who has built a massive movement consisting of ordinary people who will come out to vote for policies the majority of your citizens support, including universal health care, a living wage, real climate change action and student loan forgiveness, to name but a few?
From this vantage point north of our mutual border, it‘s obvious that nominating another “centrist” candidate to run against Trump is a recipe for disaster. That disaster would be all the more likely if Michael Bloomberg, a Republican plutocrat becomes the Democratic standard-bearer. Speaking for most Canadians (who collectively abhor Trump), I can only hope that the members of the Democratic establishment and the neoliberal punditry wake up in time to avert another defeat this November. The world can’t afford another 4 years of Trump.
7
Bloomberg will have a hard time explaining his remarks. They are locker room statement s or too nuanced. Bill Clinton and Trump understand them better. That's why you don't see Clinton anymore. Trump, his people don't care. But Mike, he can only ut will he be allowed to by Media who seem to want the Bernie show for the crowds and the ratings.
so we let the primaries play out and we have a three or four way tie: so much for Bernie uniting the country; the same for Warren; and others; like Mayor Pete. And their answer is I can win IF you all come over to my side. But if they have not convinced voters to support them then where are we? so we wait. Who is going to win California? and Pennsylvania? Currently with the first two contests all our leaders are doing is attacking each other. i am further left than any of these people. I really believe we should be using large parts of the defense budget to build a renewable sustainable economy and public education system. But it is hot air until we get rid of Trump. - and stop attacking each other.
2
If Mike Bloomberg wants to begin an attempt at redemption for the terrible stop-and-frisk, and for misunderstanding the term "red-lining" by spending $1 billion dollars on ads damaging tRump's candidacy, that's okay with me.
Of course he shouldn't be the Dem candidate, but there are other ways he can be useful in this foxhole.
5
For me as a voter, it's very crucial to judge a human being by actions as well as words. For years I'd always entertained an image of Bloomberg as a plutocratic misogynist that endorsed a racially insensitive policy. But out of curiosity just this week, I read his bio and I'm frankly staggered at the philanthropic causes - and results- Bloomberg has championed and achieved. Lowering greenhouse gases in NYC? Actually reducing the carbon footprint? Effecting the strictest gun control in the nation, and organizing a summit of mayors to get on board? Actually helping elect a liberal governor of VA to further help stem the flow of illegal firearms into the city? Also help flip state houses blue, as well, for added measure? And represent an international coalition of world leaders alongside the mayor of Paris to support the Paris climate accord? So should I instead, be more concerned with an insensitive policy he's apologized for and some nasty bathroom jokes? I'm sure the Democratic hopefuls left standing hope so. But Mr Bloomberg's concrete actions speak much louder than the promises, same old same old, and fairy tales they seem to now be offering.
6
Every candidate that remains in the race has some law and order skeleton in their political closet that could upset minority voters. That makes Bloomberg's stop and frisk policy a minor issue during the primaries. But what about the general election? Bloomberg has already apologized for stop and frisk. But Trump continues to embrace it on the campaign trail. In his 18 October 2018 speech in Orlando, Trump advocated widespread use of stop and frisk. That's the choice that black and Latino voters will have.
Being a ardent democrat I can guarantee Trump winning the second term. All the Democratic candidates really fell for the Republican ploy. Not a single candidate can beat Trump.
2
I do not want a Democratic candidate who reinforces the systematic changes the Democratic Party should be addressing. When someone says "I don't think we can beat Trump with this candidate or that candidate" what they are really saying is the system is so corrupt, that honest, hard-working senators who have dedicated their lives to change, don't have a chance. Is that what we want? I'd rather have Sanders/Warren, candidates who will talk about the need for systemic change than a candidate who proves we are broken.
2
I was deeply disappointed that Bloomberg was not on the Sunday shows. I believe he can beat Trump and will likely vote for him but he's got to come out from behind his ads.
3
No one seems to be talking about the vast increase in income inequality in New York during his tenure, thanks to his encouragement of banks and high end developers. Thanks to him New York now has hundreds of empty luxury apartments and a vast increase in homelessness. He may be good on gun control and climate issues, but he will do nothing about income inequality, which is at the root of most of our current social problems.
3
Compared to the person currently occupying the Oval Office, unless Bloomberg stands in the middle of 5th Avenue and offs somebody, I will vote for him in the primary! He is exactly what America needs after 4 years of chaotic insanity. Sanders is exactly what America doesn't need after Trump. He will also wreak havoc but in a different way. Attempting to implement socialism will not be easy. Michael Bloomberg will be a stabilizing force. Btw, Bloomberg was a lifelong Democrat until 2001 at the age of 59 when he registered as a Republican to run for Mayor. He was registered as a Republican for ONLY SIX years. Two years into his second term he became an Independent.
2
has his campaign been preparing for this? because all of his responses to questions about it can be summarized as "it was five years ago, i don't want to talk about it".
five years ago, he was 73 years old. hardly a spring chicken.
1
I'm hoping Bloomberg causes people to take another look at Elizabeth Warren. I think she would make the best president of any of them.
3
“Lord knows if African-Americans had absolute purity tests for people who had problematic issues in the past, we would never advance as people"
A lesson in pragmatism for the Democratic party, which is so obsessed with purity that we may never see another Democratic president. Trump even used "political correctness" as an effective weapon. Republicans put progress over perfection every time, which is by no means an endorsement but it got them control of the presidency and Congress (not to mention the Supreme Court).
Are the Democrats more concerned about having a candidate who is robotically woke or someone who may be able to run the country competently and execute some positive changes?
He's on the right side of the most important issues. That should be enough.
2
The Democratic establishment is looking for an alternative to Sanders who has strong grass roots support. Bloomberg plays wedge issue politics. He is a corporatist neo con. Many Democrats want a person who sees their problems with an economy that through growing income inequality marginalizes them economically. A billionaire candidate is not going to help his position by blaming the 2008 economic melt down on laws that required banks not to neglect those who normally would not qualify for loans. If bankers throw loans at people, not to help them but to take advantage of them, in order to securitize their debt for a handsome profit, which then throws the whole economy into a tail spin that's on the bankers. Where's the moral hazard for bad lending practices. This not a case of dead beat debtors. Well the banks are too big to fail, just bail them out.
1
There is zero chance America will vote for Bloomberg no matter how many billions he spends trying to buy the vote.
All Bloomberg will do is take more votes away from moderate democrats and hand it to Sanders.
I like Sanders though I am a moderate.
I could see Sanders beating Trump before I could see Bloomberg doing so.
3
I saw Hillary Clinton beating Trump, as did most people, including Trump. There are a lot of prophets in these comments and all very sure of their predictions—most of which necessarily will turn out to be wrong.
Dwight Smith, who works with the N.A.A.C.P. in Chattanooga and attended Mr. Bloomberg’s rally there, said he believed many black voters were focused more on the bigger-picture goal of beating President Trump..."
it would be nice if Bernie Sisters and Bros. were focused more on the bigger-picture goal of beating President Trump as well.
3
"Insensitive remarks" and so much worse, did not prevent the election of Mr. Trump.
Bloomberg has apologized for remarks made in the past. Something Mr. Trump is incapable of doing.
Importantly, and in contrast to Mr. Trump, Bloomberg is intelligent and has committed time and resources to climate change and gun control issues.
Bloomberg is not in the race to enhance his financial assets (duh!) unlike Mr. Trump.
Bloomberg is tough. He surrounds himself with intelligent people and is, perhaps, the only person in the race who can defeat Mr. Trump. Trump is a clear and present danger to our Republic. His defeat is priority Number One.
3
There are only two candidates or potential candidates I would not vote for against Trump - Bloomberg who thinks he can buy the Presidency and Hillary Clinton who thinks she's owed it.
Electing another giantly wealthy candidate is not what this country is about.
5
Yes. Blomberg has made numerous remarks that are considered racist or sexist, but he is also a New Yorker accustomed to speak his mind ( and worked in the Finance industry).
His charitable and political giving has demonstrated his personal rather than political priorities. In reviewing locations that have benefitted from his generosity, I have only one criticism- Had he planned to run for President earlier on, he would have also given more money to Western States that are sparsely populated, and to programs of concern to rural America.
There is also no question that he is a highly competent executive. Look what happened to NY city after Bill de Blasio took over as mayor.
Mr. Peters, I have to take exception with your use of the term “so-called stop and frisk.” There was nothing ambiguous about the practice, it was the de facto practice under Mayor Bloomberg. And it was harmful in so many ways. I hope that his apology is sincere, and that the Black pastors who are lining up to support him are with him for reasons other than so-called “charitable donations.” Mr. Bloomberg will benefit from the fact that he is defined mostly as the Mayor of New York City. The details of his mayorship aren’t so pretty. Just look at the skyline of Gotham City today: thanks a bunch Mayor Bloomberg.
3
It is far more than what he has said that should keep him from being the Democratic nominee because actions speak louder than words but do they speak louder than $Billions of dollars? The last thing the long term progression and health of the Democratic Party needs is another right leaning, GOPLite, moderate that will ensure the status quo and legitimize the Plutocracy already so firmly entrenched in our form of government. Long live a government for the people and by (not buy) the people, we are not for sale.
2
These negative ads against President Trump will backfire on Mike Bloomberg. People will tire of seeing these attack ads and will turn the dial. These ads will probably have the opposite effect. They will direct more support for our president. People know President Trump and like what they see. They have not seen much of Mike Bloomberg. Once his true self is revealed, they will run away. Who will be the benefactor. President Trump.
4
I would not hold any past comment against Bloomberg. After all, with Trump's 16K lies, and counting, the goal is to remove Trump from office, by hook or crook. Besides, if you look at all of Bloomberg's accomplishments, they easily outnumber past discrepancies. I like "Mike". It has a familiar ring to it.
2
"throw them up against the wall" should play well in the South, as can already be seen in polling. I can't see that working well for him in the rest of the country, however. It's an interesting question if this inflammatory quote will be brought up in debate questioning.
2
First off, I'd rather support Bloomberg who is paying his own way than a candidate who is accepting PAC money with anonymous donors (who will come calling if that candidate is elected).
Two, I think Bloomberg understands the American people better than the media and pundits on the East Coast where they give too much weight to black Americans who make up only about 10% of the nation's voting public. Take a look at his "small-town" commercial. It shows America as it is -- white, black, Asian, Latinos, and other tribal groups. It shows an America beyond the misguided thinking of the East Coast media and television programming. Bloomberg is not perfect, but I don't know anyone candidate who is. I do know he is smarter and more ethical than the sitting president.
2
A politician should never tell the truth unless it is politically correct and it will remain so forever.
1
Yes when the unexpected happens, a man of integrity like Mr Bloomberg when ask a question while mayor, actually gave a truthful, straightforward answer. Yes some people don’t like that.
They prefer that their politicians tell little lies and half truths, some nice, PC version of the facts so that everyone is happy all at once!
You really anything Warren and Sanders are saying could ever possibly be implemented?
Mr Bloomberg is a man of high moral standards and is the most qualified candidate by far the lead the country. He also has the abilities and resources to kick trump to the curb and has my vote.
2
It may get to the point where no one is pure enough.
In which case we are stuck with Trump again.
1
The offensive and disturbing comments by Bloomberg are not "remarks", such as, I like dogs more than cats, or I prefer electric razor to blades. They are comments that indicate a racist and elitist perspective on life - and they are inconsistent with the values that made our country strong and beautiful.
4
I wish politicians would stop the fake apologies and grow some backbone. I will not vote for Bloomberg, or any Democrat, but I don't blame him for stating what he believed (and believe me still does, fake apologies not withstanding).
This culture of intolerance towards views not sanctioned by the PC orthodoxy is not going to have a good ending. It's leading us straight into totalitarianism and politicians and the media would do well to start thinking about the road we are going down.
1
let him who is without sin cast the first stone
None of the candidates would pass a purity test.
The only test they need to pass is this: can they beat Trump?
Mike is by far the best equipped and positioned to do this.
1
I’m a Black Man and voting for Bloomberg and I actually have already voted for him in the California Democratic Primary. The 2020 election is not a Purist test, a chance for a Revolution or an experiment to see who defeats Trump.This is about electing a Candidate who has a highest chance of defeating Trump an amoral man, master of corruption and a threat to our Democracy. To defeat Trump at this moment, you need strategy, money and a fighter. The Russian Misinformation machine is out there ready to pound on the next Democratic Nominee, the GOP is ready with ad wars and a billion dollars or more in funds. So what do other Democrats have to respond to Trump? Not much,Only Bloomberg has shown an ability to outsmart Trump while the rest of the field talks about “Stop and Frisk” something that affected black and brown people but not like the 1994 crime bill supported by almost by everyone running with the exception of those who were not in the Senate. Everyone has Skeletons in their Closet but anybody wagging a finger and calling Bloomberg a racist never lived in New York during the time he was Mayor. He supports a lot of progressive causes, has resources to defeat Trump and that’s why I’m on his team. Trump needs to defeated by any means necessary and Bloomberg is the means this far.
3
He's a contender. Let's see how he does in the debate.
538 right now says that "...No winner..." is the most likely result right now with a 40% chance.
1
So Bloomberg made some insensitive comments. Big deal! I'm so tired of people being politically correct and of the "woke" culture. It's almost as if people have no backbone anymore. Whatever happened to "sticks and stones will break my bones, but names will never hurt me?" If someone is fat, I call them fat. As a person from a minority community, if a given minority neighborhood has a high crime rate, I support deploying more police there and stop-and-frisk policies to deter crime and make the city safer for everyone.
Bloomberg looks like the best candidate to me, followed closely by Mayor Pete. Sanders and Warren don't even come on my radar.
2
Will Mike Bloomberg appear at the debate on Wednesday. With all the negative press he has been getting about his past behavior, he may decide to stay away. He needs to get out there and face the music. If not, it looks as though he is afraid. Or arrogant.
The main is 78. Trump is well into his 70s. Bernie is 78, Biden is around the same thing, warren is 70.
I am almost 75. Look at all our earlier Presidents and how they looked after their term ended (until now...all Presidents took the job seriously). It is a killer job and I seriously question whether we should be considering such older citizens. Remember that Reagan had alzheimers during the latter part of his tenure.
Now, new issues have popped up.
Statements seemingly questioning the IQ of farmers and factory workers in a 2016 Oxford address.
Bashing both the NY teacher's union AND the NY ACLU, calling the latter extremists in the same vein as the NRA, in 2013.
How many more nuggets will drop before people wake up to this man's troublesome past as an indicator of his temperament for the Oval Office.
A repeat of Trump from 2015-16, seems, only this time by panicked Dem "moderates" reacting to Donny's Dictatorship, like his minions did to the "Elites".
C'mon, people, not again, not another Billionaire who could not care less about the 99% ... you know, farmers and factory workers and women and young African-Americans and teachers unions and civil rights and other pesky groups.
4
Oh come on..
I’m not a rascist or misogynist but have made impolitic remarks at times under certain circumstances that were not meant to be insulting but could be construed as such.
Anyone put under a microscope has things that they are not proud to have said or done.
“Let he who is without sin cast the first stone”
Donald Trump does not need to be placed under a microscope.
In the clear light of day, he embraces all of the seven deadly sins.....
Bloomberg has made some impolitic remarks, and made some mistakes (who hasn’t) but look at what he is actually done. He has given away more money to philanthropic causes than what Trump is likely to be worth.
His actions do speak more loudly than some of his words...
1
Humility and humble pie: Bloomberg needs to display both in large and frequent volumes. If he comes across as an arrogant billionaire, he's toast on Super Tuesday. But if he shows a genuine human side and can express empathy for those his policies have hurt, he stands a chance at redemption, and votes for the most electable candidate -- on that condition.
I am really not interested in supporting a 78-year-old who can already wield plenty of power outside of the Presidency due to his billions. I don't want another four years of a belligerent, mouthy President, even one who might forward my ideals. I want someone who will try and restore dignity and trust in the Office, both here and abroad.
If Bloomberg is really interested in saving our democracy, let him pour his money into a younger candidate with a proven track record of finding the middle ground that is necessary to forward any meaningful legislation. Klobuchar is my choice. I believe her motivations are purer than those looking to accumulate more power.
2
No one who runs for president is indifferent to accumulating more power. No one is purely “pure”.
How about if Bloomberg wins and then resigns mid-term ? It’s constitutional.
Despite the variety of responses here, we will see the pro Bloomberg comments shoot to the top of the Reader’s Picks as if these were the only comments being made.
Bloomberg’s willingness to pay people to enhance his online presence in social media, creating a false impression of his popularity, should be a red flag.
Is electing a “better” dictator really the best we can do? Is the state of our country going to continue to hang on the preferences and prejudices of a single man?
3
I am shocked that anyone would even think about taking this billionaire seriously for more than a second.
5
I urge Sanders, Warren, Biden and the rest of the Democratic contenders who have been running in the primaries and holding debates to keep hitting the plutocrat Bloomberg's brazen attempts to purchase the nomination by pouring all his billions in a veiled form of bribery, which shows him lavishing his possible critics with bundles of gifts and huge donations. It is a horrible shame that our country's democracy has become a marketplace where the billionaires get what they want. Citizens who really care about this country and our fragile democracy should not be salivating at the sight of a plutocrat with a past of racist actions and clear signs of authoritarianism.
3
The Democrats quest for an immaculately conceived candidate will never succeed. Because there is no such animal. So their best course of action is to stop self-immolating themselves.
When they doubled down on identity politics back in the '60's they set themselves up for this environment. When your caucus is little more than a bunch of self-aggrieved, single issue groups it's impossible to not say something that doesn't offend someone.
1
Democratic voters of all races should afford to Mike Bloomberg the courtesy of listening. None of us are perfect when it comes to stances or comments we have made in the past, we are human. One should be judged on what they have learned and who they are today. His comments on the 2008 housing meltdown were simply pointing out the predatory and careless lending practices that gave large mortgages to people who did not qualify and thus foreclosed. No mention of race. His inheritance of 'stop and frisk' from America's Mayor and subsequent expansion was a mistake which he acknowledges. If we are not willing to consider him as a viable alternative and chose Saunders as the nominee, he will be crushed in the general election and then we will have four more years of the bigoted ignoramus who currently occupies 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue currently. Remember that wealth or poverty are not indicators of character.
1
Both Bloomberg and Buttigieg were mayors, dealing with city realities. They have had to deal with inconvenient truths.
2
Bloomie should stick to his past controversial positions. Mostly he was right, i.e. stop and frisk, the banking and housing crises, the purveyors of crime.
1
He's only running because he fears Sanders or Warren will win.
1
My fellow progressives - let's put our little purity meters away this year.
The planet and the nation require that we do so.
We can get the political correct machines humming again in 2024....
3
Democrats - please stop the circular firing squad - this is driving me crazy! The only person who benefits from democratic purity tests is Trump.
The ultimate insanity will be when Trump uses democrats in his ads to convince Americans he is the only "pure" candidate running.
2
No one is perfect. I still believe Michael Bloomberg to be the strongest candidate to defeat Donald Trump...We (and the world) can't take another four miserable years of Trump. And Trump fears a Bloomberg candidacy the most...and for good reason. Bloomberg earned his extraordinary wealth through his intelligence and hard work. Trump, on the other hand, squandered much of his "inherited" wealth through making poor choices.
2
Bloomberg didn’t implement or defend stop and frisk BECAUSE he is a racist.
He did it because he was trying to bring down crime in NYC and thought the policy was doing just that
Intent and motivation are important
4
I believe many Mormons, Evangelics, ethical Republicans and Conservative Women will not vote for Trump in the general election.
1
@Mary Elizabeth Lease
Bernie’s millions do come primarily from book revenues.
@M
a book written based on his 40 year career as a politician.
two fundamental facts.
Bernie Sanders is a 40 year career politician whose wealth—such as it is—comes from tax payers. [no political career no book revenues]
Mike Bloomberg bootstrapped his business out of thin air and whose wealth—such as it is—is self made and spent to advance core issues of progressives.
2
“A zebra does not change its spots.” Michael Bloomberg has been saying racist and sexist things for years. It was not until he decided to run for President, that he began to apologize. He is too late for apologies and more of his insensitive remarks will surface.
1
Zebras have stripes, not spots. You don’t give me much hope in the electorate!
1
Zebras aren’t spotted.
I wrote a similar line in a previous post using tigers changing stripes. Zebras would work too. But, I was trying to make the opposite point, that yes, intelligent, resourceful and empathetic individuals can learn from their mistakes and change with time. Sincerely.
Yes, sure, Mr. Bloomberg ‘seeks power’. Who running for any office, isn’t? It’s not the ‘mere fact’, it’s how that person will use the power.
The current office holder has repeatedly stated that he can ‘shoot somebody on 5th Avenue and get away with it.’ More crucially, he’s highjacked the DOJ and is holding prosecutors hostage.
Vote for whomever you choose, that’s your right under the Constitution. If you’re in the DSA I’m sure you won’t vote for this fellow. But it’s not hard to understand Mike Bloomberg’s significant contribution to winning back house races in 2018 - and its not just ‘money - he’s buying the election!’. Money is a means to build an effective organization, one that can do the basic blocking and tackling required to win elections.
People, really, is it that hard to see the contrast?
“You don’t judge people by the mistakes they have made.” That same sentiment was not shown towards President Trump. He still is being criticized for past offenses. President Trump is in no means a racist where Mike Bloomberg is. He is trying to mask his real feelings but it has bombed. He also made bigoted statements about the Irish. He has made disparaging statements about farmers. Is there anyone he has not insulted? Time will tell. More stories are bound to come out as the campaign progresses. Mr. Bloomberg can run but he cannot hide. His goose is cooked. He is finished.
1
First a few days of Charles Blow arguing against Bloomberg, now this. Mike might not be my first choice but he’s the most. A fairer article might veto compare the incumbent and Bloomberg’s philanthropy record.
2
Anyone who wants to run for president in the US in the future had better watch what they say from about age 5 on.
4
Bury yourself in self aggrandizing purity tests and enjoy another four years of pain. Do we all enjoy enabling our tormentors, our do we want to work together for a new future?
1
Are you serious? "impolitic and insensitive" remarks? That's the best you could do? When its trump the media goes ballistic. It's things like this that really makes the media look bad. And oh, for the record, I despise trump and all that he represents.
3
Oh the comically high cost of political correctness and tribal insecurity. Let’s keep disqualifying candidates based on insensitive remarks made about {insert #movement here} until there is nobody left.
2
In the 2020 election there is only one thing that matters. We all know what it is. Any other discussion or speculation is a waste of time.
1
The same people who said Trump could never win in 2016 are now saying he can only be beat by a corporate democrat. If democrats vote out of fear and/or aim to pander for the Trump supporters or those who left them for the GOP, they will lose again. This election is about Trump versus no Trump and therefore candidates who bring new energized voters, have not only the best chance to win but also for the first time, undo the Reagan revolution.
It's trickled-down economics, industrial monopolies, corporate welfare, massive deficits, the widening of the income gap, the raping and pillaging of our environment, etc. which began under Reagan that is the cause of our political and social problems. There are only two candidates that have plans to undo this plutocracy that the GOP and corporate democrats brought to this nation, they are Warren and Sanders. The rest of them will only skirt around the edges with a proven result of having the massive GOP plutocracy defeat them in the next election to continue their toxic governing style of government by and for plutocrats. Trump not only continuously self impeaches but also self defeats and this is our first opportunity in over 40 years to make our government for and by the people. I hope the foolish democrats do not get goaded into bootlicking billionares to win the presidency and not change a thing, because their will be more Trumps and next time another fascist fraud carnival barker may kill our democracy for good.
in the day and age of the internet it is disappointing to so many making so much up out of thin air when they could easily see for themselves what is real and what is agenda driven claptrap.
It’s not what Mike Bloomberg said it’s what he did in NYC. He had NYPD stop and frisk hundreds and thousands of New Yorkers of color many of who found themselves with records lasting a life time. Courts found the policy unconstitutional. Mike also held up compensation awarded to the Centeral Park 5. Yes he was good a mayor alright- for rich white New Yorkers. At the Hudson Yards he created New York’s version of Alphaville, a dystopian nightmarish castle on the west side of Manhattan. Now this bombastic egomaniac thinks that he is the only answer to another deranged New Yorker. Our national insanity is astounding.
3
Bloomberg vehemently defended this racist policy as recently as January 2019 in a speech to the Naval Academy’s Leadership Conference, and only apologized in the week before declaring his run for president. Does anyone really think he is sincere?
Also, aside from being rich, why is he the one to beat Trump? Are we counting out Buttigieg? He is a far stronger candidate in my opinion, who has gotten more than his fair share of criticism from the NYT, whose staff seems somehow irked by him. We won most recently with Clinton and Obama- younger, centrists, relative newcomers. Let’s do it again!
1
The family background and childhoods of Sanders and Bloomberg are identical.
Mike Bloomberg’s earliest memories took place around his family’s dining room table in Medford, Massachusetts. His father – a bookkeeper at a local dairy who never earned more than $6,000 a year in his life – sat down and wrote out a $25 or $50 check to the NAACP.
People evolve. Obama was against gay marriage at first, then supported it. Mike should get the benefit of the doubt as well. Big picture? It might take a moderate like Mike to beat Trump. We have to stop shooting ourselves in the foot looking for a perfect candidate, because there's no such thing. Mike has apologized but the press -- mostly the NYT opinion writers -- can't let it go. Honestly? This reminds me of Hillary's emails, which helped put Trump in office.
3
The comments by Democrats slamming Mike Bloomberg remind me of a scene from the movie "As Good As It Gets."
Carol Connelly, played by Helen Hunt, is a financially challenged single mother with a chronically ill son. Deeply neurotic Melvin Udall, played by Jack Nicholson, is a successful author who offers to pay for a specialist to treat the boy.
Carol has an argument about it with her mother, Beverly, played by Shirley Knight. Carol is focused on the negatives.
Carol: "There is a seriously goofy man behind this. You are not allowed to block out that fact!"
Beverly: "Do you really want to go back to the runt doctors in Emergency who keep telling us they can't help?"
Carol: "It lets a crazy man into our lives!"
Beverly: "Come on! Why fight when we know how it will come out? This isn't like stockings or a string of pearls! You don't send this one back!"
Capisce?
Our republic is in dire peril of becoming an authoritarian state ruled by a moral monstrosity named Donald Trump. Things are bad enough now. Imagine if he wins. Worse, imagine if a candidate like Bernie Sanders or Elizabeth Warren tops the ticket, spawning a domino effect in highly contested down-ballot races that puts the House back in Republican control and gives Mitch an even larger majority. Do you think our democracy will survive?
Bloomberg isn't perfect. Yet Democrats in NYC elected him three times.
We have a billionaire with a top-drawer operation coming to the rescue.
You don't send this one back.
1. We as men make comments of when seeing a hot female/women we want to hit it. Mike is just another man. Fact!
2. When you see crimes in bad area, you need to protect the citizens and will do whatever it take to take away guns and put criminals in jail.
3. If you own a bank, would you lend money to people with bad credit or buying a property that's have lots of crime, while at they can't see to have income to pay?
4. Mike donate $10s of billions to many cause.
5. Never heard of him cheating on his wife.
6. He never file for bankruptcy or cheated on his contractors.
7. He made his money from nothing.
1
Americans are smarter than the punditry believes. They know that no one accumulates 60 billion dollars without having left some odorous crumbs behind.
The question is: Are those crumbs really that odorous after all the human waste left behind by Trump?
I think that Democrats need to think long and hard before piling on Bloomberg for those crumbs, lest they may very well continue for another four years to smell the odor presently emanating from the White House.
Mike Bloomberg has made racist and sexist statements. But not only has he appologized for them, he has quietly spent vast sums to aid minorities and women.
BUT.
He has not appologized for his very diligent and all too effective work to destroy the public school system in New York City.
There can be no excuse for his work to destroy the public school system that was the engine of upward mobility for so many different groups in our city. It liberated the Irish, the Italians, the Jews, the Poles, and the Blacks. It was never perfect, but it always aimed to be so, And, while it is certainly true that it disadvantaged African-Americans to some extent, at its worst it was far better than almost any other school system for every minority group who attended.
And Mike Bloomberg worked diligently to destroy the NYC public schools, appointing an array of incompetents with no knowledge whatsoever of education to run it.
I can forgive many of Mr. Bloomberg's faults. But not his destruction of our schools for a generation.
3
Impolitic? Yes. Insensitive? Depends on how 'sensitive' you are.
Wearing 'sensitivity' on your sleeve has become the badge of honor of identity politics. If the identitarians want to kill Bloomberg's candidacy, well, they have themselves to blame for 4 more years of trumpism.
"Impolitic and insensitive"? No, perceptive.
Best candidate to beat Trump.
Admits mistakes... willing to evolve... great humanitarian.
Dems stop chewing on one another or you get Four More Years.
1
Frankly, none of the Democratic candidates are ‘transcendent’, none are saints, and neither are we. The issue is Donald Trump, the way he seeks to bastardize the Constitution on a daily basis, the way he has reduced the standing of the United States in the eyes of the world. In order to survive in politics or the modern world, you must have a thick skin. What Mr. Trump has done is a disgrace. Some semblance of grace, and the truth, are what I basically need to see in whoever can become the new president in November.
“You judge them by their ability to fess up.”
MMM Okay where are Mikes tax returns fess up man.
Also exactly what is Mike going to do to end the War on Drugs?
Crickets... h
He is against legalizing weed and or anything at all about other drugs. I'm glad he is attacking Trump but I won't vote for him.
4
Bloomberg should held to the same kind of scrutiny routinely used to conclude that Sanders will fade under the socialist label with which the Trump campaign will brand him. I can certainly see a barrage of Trump ads depicting frightening videos of black young men thrown against a wall as Mike allows that they should be thrown against a wall. And what fun they’ll have with a redlining ad!
This will likely suppress the black vote killing any chance of a Democratic victory.
1
Who hasn't ever had thoughts or made some comments that in hindsight were wrong or just plain stupid?
Who has had the backbone to stand up and say they made mistakes?
Compare Mr. Bloomberg with Mr. Trump, did Bloomberg call for the death penalty for a group of innocent young men or for years spread the outright lie about the birthplace of Mr. Obama?
2
Let me be extraordinarily clear here.
We are facing the end of this country as we know it if Trump is not expelled from the White House this fall. This campaign will be a bare knuckle street fight. Trump is not leaving unless he is dragged out by whatever hair he has left on his bulbous, orange head. Most rational people fully realize this.
Mike Bloomberg is known for bringing a gun to a knife fight. With his personal resources it will be more like a bazooka.
That is what we will need. Period. End of story.
We can save the squishy, politically correct squabbles for 2024.
Mike 2020.
2
“Insensitive and impolitic”? How about using the actual words that describe his past behavior, racist and sexist.
1
Bloomberg is Trump in disguise. Look it up. Same womanizing issues. He has government experience that is memorable for its deprivation of civil rights. He is also a white supremacist. He blinds people with his use of his money to shovel his autocratic actions under a veil of deceit.
2
Fooled me once..... Fooled me twice .... Yeah but why did the. change of heart happen just on the heels of announcing your candidacy? Exquisite timing. The cynic in me doesn't believe it. Bloomberg is a arrogant, rigid man who always wants his way. Now is no different
2
When will the media begin vetting Sanders? Where are the articles about his and his wife's dealings with nuclear waste being shipped to poor Hispanic communities in Texas? How about this employment record? Sorry, but what someone said 20 years ago isn't relevant to the issues today, especially when they acknowledge these and apologize.
1
How perfect -- a DJT for the Democrats. A scrappy con man for the right and a polished elitist for the left.
2 New Yorkers selling the the Brooklyn Bridge
2 opportunists who jump to other side to get in the game
2 middle aged white men of privilege
2 men motivated by ego, not public service
2 men with history insensitive to women and minorities
2 purveyors of racist policies
2 men indifferent to human consequences of policies
2 men who talk the populist game but play the plutocrats' rules (fixing NYC finances 101: $165 parking fines + $75 late fees x 5 million automobiles)
2 men who see the country through the lens of profit/loss and balance sheets, not millions of people whose lives are squeezed with wage losses, rising costs of essentials, and depreciating value of human capital
2 men who use public office to pursue personal fantasies (a wall at the border vs. Amsterdam on the Hudson)
2 whose governing style is my-way-or-highway
2 white men with messiah complex -- and a constituency who see them as their savior ("MRJ can beat DJT, nothing else matters")
2 who have amassed huge war chests for go-low attack campaigns
-- and the country will get what it deserves.
4
“You all are going to start focusing on him like you have on me,” Mr. Biden said.
Joe, the poor-me position has already been occupied by Trump. It appears his cult doesn't mind his pity parties, but it's a bad look for you and he already staked out that territory, so don't go there.
Yet another NYT article where paid influencers can flood the comments with pro Bloomberg campaign themes. (https://www.salon.com/2020/02/14/mike-bloomberg-is-paying-social-media-influencers-to-post-fake-messages-to-make-him-look-cool/)
Should Bloomberg (whose party loyalty is a matter of opportunity) win, we can expect something better than Trump.
But you could hardly call it a democratic republic. For that, you would need a candidate who participated in all the primary races, who was willing to debate his opponents, and who didn’t have, and spent, many multiples of the funds unavailable to the actual candidates.
2
Past remark? How about past and maybe current behavior? Here’s a link to an Apprentice staffer who says the President is a drug addict. If there’s an investigative journalist around it would be nice to know if it’s true. I do notice that no one is suing him.
https://crooksandliars.com/2020/01/ex-apprentice-staffer-noel-casler
1
Hey all of you nominal "liberals" and "democrats," let me help you out here--find a candidate that will not pass gun laws that will make felons out of tens-of-millions of Americans overnight, otherwise you are losing more of us in the poor and working classes then you realize.
You're welcome,
The True Left
Bloomberg ran a fascist police state - unapologetically throwing young people of color up against walls with zero probable cause. He ruined the futures of young men of color, saddling them with criminal records for small amounts of marijuana - further injuring communities already suffering from missing fathers and wage earners. What he did was inexcusable and the idea that we can now dismiss it because he's taking ownership and apologizing for it is shameful. Shame on us 'liberals'. Shame on NYC under Mike.
2
Nonsense and much ado about relatively nothing.
Compare any "insensitive" remark Bloomberg made years ago to any of the thousands of outright racist, ignorant, offensive, profane, hateful, divisive and fear mongering things Trump's hole spews on a daily basis, and it seems to me that Mr. Bloomberg is a relative angel.
God-fearing conservatives and Republicans embrace their philandering, profane, misogynistic, bigoted and racist leader. Democrats and liberals shrink from every misdeed of theirs, no matter it be material or immaterial, however minor. The difference? Control of the executive branch.
Has Bloomberg ever boasted about firing a gun on Fifth Avenue? How about grabbing; has he spoken of that? Rapists and murderers?
None of these comments have prevented the current occupant of the Oval Office from getting elected.
Flat Earth
But as the criticism swelled, Mr. Bloomberg was in Houston introducing a new initiative for his presidential campaign called “Mike for Black America.”
Anything Bloomberg has said Trump has said worse. Anything Bloomberg has said about women trump has grabbed worse. Stop and frisk or your father being arrested with the kkk or decades of lawsuits from the federal government over unfair housing practices, or “good people on both sides”...
Come on people. Why are we holding Bloomberg to higher standards then trump? If they can get over it for what they believe is the common good then we should too.
1
The Times rates these remarks as “impolitic” and “insensitive.” Normally they would be labeled “racist” and “unacceptable.” The Times wants Bloomberg to work.
Calling Al Sharpton. Why hasn’t he called out Michael Bloomberg about his racist remarks? He is always front and center whenever there is a racist situation. His silence is telling. His organization has benefitted from Mike Bloomberg’s millions. I guess money talks but in this case it makes one remain silent.
2
I am beyond ‘tearing out my hair’ puzzled why Trump can do no wrong, as far as his party and his adherents are concerned. Bloomberg’s or Biden’s past comments, for example, are rightly considered ‘troublesome’ yet Trump perseveres no matter what he does and his failings are legion. Despite the urgency of replacing him with someone with at least a modicum of decency and integrity the Democratic candidates – and all the leading candidates would do a stellar job getting the US back on a humane footing – are being dissected beyond measure. It is time to put aside personal preferences and back and vote for the Democratic candidate, no matter who she or he is.
3
continues to astound me too
The failed rollout of the ACA damaged the Democratic party immensely and gave a very good opening that Republicans have exploited.
The Democrats need a candidate who can govern. Bloomberg made some mistakes but he was a highly effective Mayor of one of the most complex cities in the Country.
The country has been moving in the right direction for a very long time mostly because the Democratic Party finally rejected the Jim Crow alliance under President Kennedy and Johnson.
We need a large, responsible and functioning federal government to get back on a track of expanding civil rights, health care access and access to quality education along with a functioning social safety net and environmental protection. I trust Mike Bloomberg as the technocrat who is most able to do that.
The Democratic party can't just be a party of ideals and ideas. It has to be highly competent in actually delivering services and regulations. I believe Mike Bloomberg has a proven track record of actual governance that can't be ignored.
12
While it’s no secret Bloomberg has made mistakes and caused irreparable harm to 5 million black and brown people, and made sexist, misogynistic remarks, which should not be overlooked; IMO, this still does not come close to the harm caused by our current POTUS. While I’m not necessarily advocating a vote for Bloomberg, my point is merely perspective and one that impresses upon Democrats to make sure our priorities are in the right place when choosing a nominee.
I wish the Democrats would wake up and realize that promising health care nirvana has been done before and cost them dearly, helping to deliver huge losses for not only them but the nation.
I work with elementary school children, am an indigenous environmental activist, and have the privilege of having attained a lower middle class economic profile after a childhood of poverty and trauma. I hope very much that the diverse coalition of everyday people who support Bernie’s candidacy will make it clear that fellowship and ideals are of greater power than wealth-based calculations that demand we sacrifice our best intentions.
I want to vote FOR Bernie’s positive vision of a dignified future, not despite Bloomberg’s questionable understanding of working people’s experience of the world.
10
Environmental activists normally don't hv a real world perspective, they just see their narrow agenda. We need people who see all aspects of reality.
1
@Tammy
The realities of ecosystem collapse, plummeting pollinator populations, extreme storms and wildfires, Cancer Alley, plastic pollution, topsoil loss, increased drought, aquifer depletion, and so forth should be sufficient to cultivate the opposite of narrow awareness. These realities should open our eyes wide to a crucial moment for transformative change. It has for too long been easier to dismiss the concerns of scientists and those who would protect the living earth. This short-sighted, largely profit motivated thinking has brought us to the brink of widespread environmental collapse and all its attendant chaos.
In the real world, we are all inescapably and wholly dependent upon the life of the planet. I find it wholly realistic to at long last work towards the true independence of sustainability. And maybe even healing.
Bloomberg had the foresight to see this coming and prepared accordingly. It also demonstrates Bloomberg knows how to remain composed while handling a crisis.
Bernie Sanders also has some skeletons in closet, including video footage of past statements he made regarding visits to other countries and their economic systems, including the Soviet Union.
Bernie Sanders has not been vetted to degree the rest of the field has been. However, his past is coming out sooner or later. It could be in the near future or, if Bernie is the nominee, during the general election.
Is Bernie preparing for this day and will he be as thoughtful as Bloomberg has been in addressing his past, or will Bernie be be caught blindsided?
18
Why give the benefit of the doubt to Bloomberg when similar racial & sexist transgressions were not excused for Trump. More hypocrisy and selective memory by the great unwashed.
@Louis: what are you talking about? Really. "Bernie Sanders has not been vetted to degree the rest of the field has been." What does this even mean??? Thirty years in Congress as a "socialist" -- even w the quotation marks, you're going to get vetted.
"including video footage of past statements he made regarding visits to other countries and their economic systems, including the Soviet Union."
Oh, you mean the part about free education and health care??
This country is so deep into the toilet.
1
So to sum:
Bernie’s biggest political misstep, to you, is his visiting of the Soviet Union back in then ‘80s. Okay.
We compare this, then, to Bloomberg’s numerous (over 40) sexual harassment claims, and even his linking of the financial crisis to the elimination of redlining? Mind you, this is to say nothing about stop and frisk, of course.
Bernie has been through 1.5 primaries by now. If the worst skeleton in Bernie’s closet is a trip to the Soviet Union, it is simply a reach. That or you are quite the optimist to think there will somehow be things in Bernie’s history that compare, on any scale, to Bloomberg’s. To that I say, good luck.
What I think however, is that to many centrist Dems, holding Bloomberg to account matters little to them. (This after attacks on “Bernie Bros” and the video of Bernie in the Soviet Union came out, ironically).
What I mean to say is that, for some reason, we give Bloomberg’s history a mulligan but attack a guy who, as you say, commented on and visited countries that had “different economic systems”.
Can anyone explain why that is?
1
No surprise here that plenty of politicians are lining up to endorse Bloomberg as he dangles his billion dollar pocket book in front of them and they line up for donations. It doesn’t matter how harmful his policies were, he can buy his way out of any controversy.
22
@av35
What Bloomberg policies are harmful to the United States? He has apologized for "stop and frisk." When was the last time you heard a GOP member of Congress apologize?
2
Bloomberg's core business is data analytics. He did that well enough to dominate the industry and earn 60 billion dollars.
If his analysis said that people in certain places had a higher risk of defaulting on mortgages, he would advise his clients to adjust their metrics accordingly.
See the problem yet?
His remarks were insensitive for a politician but predictable for a successful but outspoken data analyst.
So here's the 64 dollar question: has he made the transition into being a politician with responsibility for public policy, and will this cause him to moderate his actions and words accordingly?
What will he do when he faces another dilemma like Stop and Frisk? It's not in his DNA to ignore the data. It makes perfect sense to concentrate police resources on places where the crime is taking place. But a politician has to handle it in a more humane and nuanced way. The data analyst said "there they are: go get 'em." The politician has to add "but make sure you respect their rights. Living in a neighborhood with high crime does not make you a criminal."
He has until March 3 to convince me that he has learned the lesson from Stop and Frisk.
Postscript: I'm in the "Never Trump" camp: if he wins the primary I'll vote for him in the general election. Same goes for Sanders, Warren, or whoever else the Democrats nominate.
23
@mlbex: The high-risk mortgage pool was a relatively small fraction of the total market that brought down it all because an enormous pile of derivatives had been built to insure these investments. Derivatives are a zero sum game, but when everything goes bad it takes a long time to work out.
1
Redlining is and was a pervasive practice carried on for years that penalized sellers and buyers of homes by location, race, and ethnicity. It has been enforced by law and custom throughout this country (not just the South) since the late 1800’s. It has deprived African Americans especially of the opportunity to build wealth through housing. Bloomberg will have to come up with more than,”Oh gee. Sorry I got that wrong,” if he wants my vote
1
@mlbex
"Bloomberg's core business is data analytics."
that is categorically not true.
Bloomberg's core business is information collection and distribution.
1
A centrist Democrat will not get elected. If that is who goes up against Trump, Trump will be reelected. The status quo before Trump is what led to Trump being elected. Dramatic and necessary change from business as usual is what will defeat him. Bernie or Bust!
15
@Pranav If those are my choices, I am going for Bust.
I will never vote for Bernie, even if he is the Democratic candidate. You can dress a pig up any way you want and call it whatever you want, but at the end of the day it is still a pig. Similarly, Bernie's policies cam be dressed up in any way but at the end of the day they will bankrupt this nation or at least the upper middle class.
1
The last 3 words are anarchist speak and precisely why many are not on board. We’d rather not bust!
1
A centrist Democratic is the only Democrat who can take on Trump. Bernie, who comes from an irrelevant state and who has never accomplished anything other than brainwashing a relatively small group of people, has "political liability" printed across his forehead.
1
If you've never had the pleasure of working for an imperious executive or the delight of knowing a children from wealthy families, then you probably haven't experienced the word "impunity" first hand. To act with impunity because the rules, the regulations and/or the social mores just don't apply to them. It's like Leona Helmsley when she said 'taxes are for little people.'
People in this country equate wealth with intellect and greatness. To fight fire with fire or in this case our rich guy vs their rich guy, they are still rich and haven't a clue about how every day human beings go about their lives.
20
@JD Ripper I worked for a woman who - during a renovation - asked her decorator "where do the poor people go to buy [SOMETHING]." The subsequent answer was Home Desperate.
@JD Ripper
Bloomberg's boyhood was humble. Vastly different than Trump.
Bloomberg wasn’t born rich. He’s a self-made man on the right side of gun, environmental, most social and other issues. I won’t hold his success and money against him. I would like to see how he performs in debates with the other candidates. He’s going to have to deal with Congress if elected, hopefully, with consensus and not fear and intimidation. We don’t need another Putin wannabe. And we need, at last, to get something done in this country.
The last thing we need as a nation is another New York City Billionaire with a checkered past. One is one too much.
27
@Curry
Trump thanks you for your loyalty.
4
@Curry Trump and Bloom are the same? Lacking the ability to reason is a big part of why this country is in trouble.
5
The two party system is in a shambles. Republicans are indeed the house of Trump, the democratic Presidential candidates can't get out of their own, individual ways and the party in general is in eternal hand-wringing mode. As someone else here said, if we're making the election a purity test, we're all done. As always, we pick the leader who is least objectionable. THE MOST IMPORTANT THING is to get Trump out of the White House. Mr. Bloomberg is the only person with the street creds to take him on. Furthermore, not taking campaign donations means he's, at least in theory not beholden to anybody. Unlike all the other candidates, he's approaching this as a business problem.
7
@Larry Is it the same person writing all this stuff?? Henny Youngman used to hand out $50 bills to people who walked up to him on the street and told him a good joke. What's Bloomberg paying??
"Mr. Bloomberg is the only person with the street creds to take him on."
Street creds?? Bloomberg??!!
Which street?
1
@Larry
Is the most important thing really to replace one olld, white, autocratic NY billionaire with another old, white, autocratic NY billionaire?
You Not-Trump-By-Any-Means people are so short sighted. Trump is a symptom of the issues we're facing, not the cause. Replacing him with a near clone would accomplish nothing.
1
@Larry he may not be "beholden to anybody," but there are many that are beholden to him.
1
I was at a Bernie rally yesterday in Denver. I got there early so I people watched.
I have arthritis in my knees so I sat in the ADA section which was packed. There many people in wheelchairs, many people watching the sign language interpreter, there were a few service dogs, there were men with veterans shirts waving their canes. The young man who looked all of 18 who sat in front of me, was so passionate about what Bernie said, in the way he responded, I thought he must be on the autism spectrum. He wore headphones some of the time because the rally was so loud.
There were also women wearing headscarves. There were trans people. And people who wore native regalia. I saw signs in Spanish "Unidos con Bernie" too. There were older people. A few people near me looked so WASP that I thought they must be there just to see what the competition was. But their faces lit up when Bernie took the stage as much as everyone else.
What I mean to say is that Bernie has a broad coalition among many people. Something I just don't see Bloomberg having.
25
@Innisfree
Miigwech (thank you) for sharing this lovely scene. I am so proud to be a volunteer for Bernie’s rainbow coalition.
6
Be careful how you speak about people with autism. Your comment about the “passionate” young man’s response to Bernie is offensive.
@Innisfree
swell...
and if Bernie isn't the candidate will all those you describe come out to vote this time?
Who wouldn't want to change something said years later? And compare Bloomberg's comments to that of Trump's "...because I can get away with it". The only difference between Bloomberg and Trump is that Trump's MO remains, "because I can get away with it". By contrast, Bloomberg's viewpoints have evolved. Look at how he has donated his huge estate to liberal, helpful causes.
Trump vs Bloomberg = Bloomberg wins
Trump vs Sanders = Trump wins
14
@Patrick McGregor
He's done NOTHING but donate a few pennies so he can take the deduction from his taxes.
1
For Democrats who consider themselves to be liberal or progressive Bloomberg would seem like a candidate of last resort, not only because of his history of insensitive comments but his relationship with Wall Street, which is the main focus of his business. But since all the other candidates seem to be flawed he could win, particularly because he is guaranteed funding with his own money. He has won elections in NYC but nowhere else. Whether he can win anywhere else remains to be seen.
1
This story declines to mention that Mayor Bloomberg has announced a bold $70 billion investment plan for Black America. He has apologized profusely for "Stop and Frisk."
If it's not Mike claiming victory on November 3rd, then it very well could be another four years of Trump, and all the nightmares that come with it for women's rights and the Black community. And should Mike choose Stacey Abrams as his running mate, that ticket would be more than formidable. Let's move ahead.
14
@Gary
Yes, he has apologized 'profusely' after advocating and defending 'stop and frisk' for twenty years, and just months prior to announcing his candidacy. Do you see an angle here?
1
@Gary Mike??
Of all the candidates who might try the first-name thing -- Mike's the last.
Awareness is the most troubling of all human states: Once you are aware, you have only two choices. Either you defend your errors and continue on the path of that erroneous belief and action, or you change. Regardless what you do, you will never be the same. That awareness will trouble you for eternity.
Every candidate is flawed. Every person struggles with firmly-held beliefs they once held and now find deeply in error. How they have subsequently evolved those beliefs is key to any person, thought, or deed.
The current beliefs are what trouble me more about the current candidates, especially in the face of the current occupant of the WH and his enablers.
5
Just an observation: We have a cultural mindset that looks for fault. Instead of article after article that features what good someone brings to the table, we look for and almost celebrate the bad. It's everywhere, in job applications (have you ever been arrested?), grades (this is what's wrong...), and the ugly comments online on just about anything. I would like to see a shift in talking about what Bloomberg offers. Let's see a list of Bloomberg's accomplishments right beside Trump's. Year by year. Away with the drama and let's see the work, good and bad.
24
Well said
Great comment!
Democracy and running for the nation’s highest office should not be bought but earned. Public financing is the answer to this problem.
With that said, I’ll vote for a dish towel before I cast a vote for the narcissist con man representing the rich and powerful.
11
Bloomberg is smart. He understands something that other Democrats do not.
Everyone has a price. EVERYONE.
Everyone’s support and “forgiveness” is available for the right compensation.
Poor Bernie, Joe, Lizzy, Amy, Pete, etc.
They are about to learn that the price for most people is not particularly high. And well within range of Bloomberg’s pocketbook.
13
Amassing great wealth for oneself in business doesn’t qualify one for leading a nation.
17
@Lilly
But neither does it disqualify them.
1
Bloomberg was also a successful mayor of a, maybe the, major city in America.
1
@Lilly Running New York City for three terms does. Showing that you have a head for numbers and business is the bonus that goes with Bloomberg.
Trump ran his company into bankruptcy numerous times. Now he is trying to do the same for the country.
1
Who will appoint the next Supreme Court justices? Nothing matters more.
They will decide if, as Trump and Barr maintain, the president is literally above the law. They will decide if women have the right to control their own bodies. They will decide if the Commerce Clause allows Congress to pass environmental laws and other nationwide protections for those within the United States.
For me, any Democratic President, Mike included, will save the Republic by appointing worthy justices, not authoritarian political hacks.
There is no option for anyone who opposes Trump to enable his re-election, either by voting for him or not voting for his Democratic opponent, whoever that may be. Including Bloomberg.
13
The article is obviously void of pointing out if red lining was a necessary banking instrument implemented due to the financial crippling that transpired or I should say was not reported until the ending of the Boy George era. Leave it for the democrats was the mantra. I say delayed because it took that amount of time for Paulson to come up with a viable plan to rescue the banking industry that was in great peril do to excessive banking practices due to excess. The creation of TARP and didn't show his hand by leaving half of TARP money to be distributed by the democrats. THey give up a concerted effort to reach reelection. How many bankruptcies besides Trump were recorded during that 2000 to 2008 stretch of republican greed? So the question is did Bloomberg have a viable point to make or was it strictly a racial put down? Incidentally, Paulson got a big delayed payment from Goldman Sach which supposedly his defereed retirement and other payments due and Goldman's did the in everybody's face thing and gave out management bonuses despite poor performances. Paulson retired back to the midwest from whence he came (Dartmouth grad by the way) with a net worth valued at 850 million dollars. Good eight years he had running treasury. When he started his net worth was only one third of what he went back home with. I'd say M.B. was thinking of M.B. back in the days and now he's going to share with his country and make it a democracy again.
4
We’ve said the phrase “stop-n-frisk” so often that we’re numb to its meaning. As declared void by a federal judge in 2013, it violates the Constitution’s 4th and 14th civil rights amendments. Let’s not also forget that Bloomberg was a huge fan of these civil rights violations increasing incidents 5x over previous Mayor Guiliani. This is far deeper than a “caught on tape slip of the tongue” remark.
12
@Shaw Taylor Or look at it another way: four young guys -- BLACK!!!! -- walking down the street, minding their own business, then thrown against a wall by brutish men in blue uniforms, searched rather brusquely I'm imagining, found guiltless, then sent on their way.
What'd you learn at school today, son?
Well, actually, outside school, Dad.
My dad is the same age as Bloomberg. He has said some sexist things in his life--things that I don't approve of. Thankfully, as he's gotten older and wiser, he no longer approves of them for his former self either. He's changed his thinking, and made apologies. He's actually a staunch defender of women's rights now. He always was, but he didn't live up to his own standards really. I can't prove it, but I think Mike Bloomberg is probably in the same boat as my dad, and either one of them is light years better than Donald Trump. If we can't forgive anybody, we're not going to have somebody who can beat Donald Trump, and then this country is truly lost. It's democracy and institutions destroyed. I'm not willing to cede the election to Donald Trump because Michael Bloomberg said some stupid stuff in the past. He's apologized and I think he's learned his lesson. I do not expect a repeat of his past mistakes. That's good enough for me for now, this is war.
15
@KC Good comment. That was the prevailing thought when they grew up. Many of my older male relatives have made a similar journey. Let's accept their enlightenment and move on, concentrating on their current thoughts and plans. That was then, this is now.
2
Bloomberg actually has real world accomplishments and tons of experience. He's also likeable. The leading democratic candidates have all been career politicians who have a lot of hot air behind them with only Biden having some real executive experience, but Obama picked him because he wasn't a threat politically, he still isn't. Bernie will self implode as his ideas are not real. Why would 20 million union, state, local and federal employees want to give up their premium health care for DMV level care, ever? Those groups are the base of the Democrats and heavily minority.
Winning is the mission, Bloomberg will.
12
Saint needed. Only a perfect record will do.
11
The support for Bloomberg's candidacy is just more evidence of Trumps utter debasement of our systems and colonization of our minds. In essence, what people are saying is "We want our own Trump, and just like the Republicans we're willing to believe that what he has said and done is meaningless. We love the ads!" This is the most depressing development yet.
7
Our Trump is Bernie. Calling all successful business and professionals greedy is a non starter.
1
I'd rather have a Bloomberg who was crude and rude in the past and is not controlling himself, than a ranting Socialist who will drive the Democratic Party into the ditch and give Trump a second term. This is what's important to me.
13
Bloomberg is by far the highest qualified candidate. As the past 3 years have shown, Republican voters don't care for misogenist conduct or pathological lying in a candidate, or racist comments. Whatever Bloomberg said, it is a long way from repeatedly sexual harrassing women and cheating on one's wives over decades. And whatever he said about stop-and-frisk as a mayor, there are statistics that tell a different story than what some people might want to see. Voters are really not smart very often. Mitt Romney would have been a great president. So don't obstruct the path of the the only exceptional candidate the Democratic Party might get in decades. And if you can't see Buttigieg or Kobluchar beating Trump, no matter how great they would be as leaders, then Bloomberg is the only realistic chance to beat Trump. We know a lot about Bloomberg, voters knew very little about Trump prior to his election. Never forget that Bloomberg does have a positive track record, not just nothing like the Don.
6
I think that Bloomberg is doomed. He shows a real dislike for human beings. When people, especially women, are useful, they are okay. When they are creating a problem as in pregnancy, he has been caustic and cruel.
So all of us who are no longer useful economically or who cause some difficulty, beware.
There is really no appropriate, thoughtful, fair, moderating Democratic candidate to date.
6
I wholeheartedly agree with everything you stated except this:
"...if it's Bloomberg, I will vote for and support Trump." Never.
3
The last thing we need as a nation is another New York City Billionaire with a checkered past. One is one too much. You folks already gave us Rudy Guiliani.
8
@Curry,
As opposed to a self-identified socialist with unrealistic proposals and who has made past comments that could be interpreted as supporting the former Soviet Union or suggesting breadlines aren't so bad?
Bloomberg isn't perfect but I will take him over Sanders any day.
1
I'm an independent voter. I haven't decided on a candidate yet. One thing for sure - never Trump! Never Sanders. Both are decisive. But you can't look back over a candidate's record and hang them with it. Trump has lowered the bar soooo much that short of murder... the electorate will not find a stray vote here and there a deal breaker. We have to look at the person and the entirety of their service to make a determination on character, potential for growth and whether they can get the job done.
3
No matter who the Democrats pick to run against Trump all of them no doubt have something that they wished they hadn't said or done in the past. So pick your favorite and Trump will find something to denigrate and embarrass them.
4
Democrats would be fools to insist on their candidate being someone with an angelic background. As the article stated, Bloomberg’s failings pale in comparison to Trump’s. Furthermore, Bloomberg did something that Trump never does – he self-reflected and he apologized. Democrats need to get over the idea that their candidate has to have a perfect past.
4
@KR I can't prove he has self-reflected, and you can't prove he hasn't. Ultimately we have to decide for ourselves whom we trust, and then it's a bit of a leap of faith.
How about a reporting that black on black crime in NYC was a major concern of folks who lived in those neighborhoods.
How about reporting on how African Americans were targeted for the mortgages that were least likely to be repaid while simultaneously being the most like to make huge commissions for those selling the mortgages.
5
Belief in our human capacity for growth is a core Jewish principle: flawed humans as we all are, the goal of tshuvah (return) is simple: own your errors and when circumstances for repeating the error arise, don’t err again.
People can change for the better and often do. Let’s support this idea and let anyone including Bloomberg be more aware and evolved than they used to be.
4
As a voter, I find it highly insulting that Mr. Bloomberg is attacked for buying an election. Voters are not stupid or blind and they are not for sale. Give voters credit to make up their own minds. If other candidates' attack is that he is trying to buy an election, then that says something about those candidates and their trust in voters.
4
“I have reached the point where Bloomberg’s past sexual harassment statements don’t matter. He’s the best candidate to beat Trump.” Now, switch Bloomberg’s name with Trump and Trump’s with Clinton. Now, we sound just as insane as Trump voters.
11
It seems that a key part of Bloomberg's strategy to deflect his past indiscretions is to astroturf the comment boards of major media outlets, including the NYT and WSJ.
And, of course, paying off top Democratic politicians.
Money can't buy you love. But sometimes it can buy loyalty.
7
Any person who has held an important elective public office, particularly an office with constituents who are diverse in background and often at each other’s throats, has made mistakes both in policy and in public remarks.
Michael Bloomberg is no exception, but the key is what he has done to admit those past mistakes publicly, to promise to do better and to apologize to those people harmed by the policies and remarks.
Contrast Bloomberg with Donald Trump, who never admits a mistake, never apologizes and seeks revenge against anyone who criticizes him.
As usual, the best that Trump and his campaign staff can do is engage in false equivalencies, measuring Trump’s utter disdain for the rule of law and the Constitution against the minor, transient errors by his rival.
It would be as though Michael Bloomberg’s people could only reply to a criticism by saying, “Mike Bloomberg is not as short as Donald Trump is fat.”
3
The guy got crime down. Everybody knows young males with nothing to do commit most of it. Giving kids something to do is part of it, but getting the weapons out of their hands is the first step.
6
It's all fair and good that a certain amount of scrutiny be given to some of Bloomberg's past words and deeds -- especially as he aspires to higher office.
That said, there's no doubt about some of these remarks being racially insensitive, and no amount of crime stats or apologies will change that.
After three years of Donald Trump and his blatant racism this country has to do better than that.
2
They are all trying to buy the election...Bloomberg just has more money...I am black and I am not poor or ignorant but would not vote for him without a personal apology.
4
Bloomberg is much preferred to Trump or Kavanaugh. Keep up the good work Mike.
6
I am exhausted from King Trump, his minions
and their beliefs and actions. I am exhausted from the entire process of selecting a Democratic ticket.
As a former NYC Jewish Gay Man, I was appalled by stop/frisk and Bloomberg's "apparent " racism.
All voters have their red light issues.
If Bloomberg wins the nomination, he will receive my vote for two reasons.
1. There were not good people on both sides in Charlottesville.
2. Watching my country become an hateful Christian State is absolutely frightening.
Anything but Trump, period.
11
Among the principal differences between Mr. Bloomberg and Trump is that Mr. Bloomberg has shown contrition for his past comments and misdeeds. Trump is proud of his puerile debasing of women, his championing of the racist Birther movement, his denigrating minorities, and even his rank dismissal of rape allegations: “She’s not my type.” And we’re worried about Mr. Bloomberg? It’s no contest; in the pantheon of disgusting behavior, Trump trumps everyone and makes Mr. Bloomberg look like a saint.
4
I hold no grudges against MB. But if he succeeds in winning the nomination you will only ever see multibillionaire oligarchs running for President in the future. Making our presidency available to the highest bidder is wrong and disgusting. Anyone but Bloomberg and Trump.
6
In 1968 you said...A friend of your third cousin told us he saw...40 years ago, you were seen with...stir it up media! The difference? Democrats wander around the political forest bumping into trees. Republicans stay on the same path and follow the leader. We’re going to lose again!
4
The title is about past remarks, but the article itself focuses only on race, not on the many sexist comments attributed to Bloomberg.
7
Anyone writing commentary about political candidates in major newspapers should have to disclose their political registration so we know how seriously to take their comments and judgements!
1
@Susan in NH
No one who reads the Times daily should have to ask that question...
2
Henry Louis Gates, Jr. NYT Mag 2/03: "I want to say this right, because I haven’t said this to anybody: Among all the candidates, the person who I believe could stand toe-to-toe, strongest and longest with Donald Trump is Mike Bloomberg." It's time to cease and desist with the character assaults; time to focus on defeating Trump, the worst scoundrel to ever occupy the White House. It's literally life or death for this country.
4
People will always find flaws in a candidate, but if there is such a thing as fairness, we should avaluate the person by his over-all accomplishment. Mr. Bloomberg may have uttered insensitive statements or may have told crude sexist jokes some years ago, but it does not erase his monumental achivements as an individual, as a philanthropist and as a public servant. Also, a man's thingking and views evolve through time, even at a late stage in life. So what may be his thoughts many years ago may not be true now.
The glaring fact is, this man has, through the years, poured billions of dollars to worthy causes such as education, public health, gun safety, climate change, responsible parenthood, etc.. Evidence does not lie--that is where his heart is. No amount of malicious smearing can take that away from him.
Moreover, he put order, stability and direction to New York City after 9/11 when it was in its knees. This is a solid achivement and no one should be able to take that from him.
Does he have less right to run for president becuase he is a billionaire? No. All American have equal right to run for the White House whether you are a common man or you are a billionaire.
5
“When someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time.”
-Maya Angelou
It's already a shame that this lesson has been ignored, repeatedly, with Trump.
6
Let’s put these remarks next to those of the dotard in the White House and they will seem benign in comparison.
4
Can you imagine how minority candidates like Harris, Booker, and Castro would be doing if they had even one tenth of the money that Bloomberg has. These highly qualified real Democrats instead had to drop out while racist Bloomberg uses wealth to exploit an uneven and ridiculous primary system.
6
Like every other candidate, Bloomberg has some baggage that is unpleasant. He has apologized and changed his mind about enough of these issues to make me believe he understands why those statements were offensive and wrong. That does not make him perfect, but it is a far cry from the sociopathic behavior of Donald Trump, a true racist and misogynist who never apologizes for anything he has ever said or done. If Democrats cannot rise above these purity tests, they will forever be doomed to failure.
4
Stop and Frisk might have saved Tessa Major’s life.
6
The Jacobins who run the ‘progressive’ Democrat Party these days apparently don’t find Bloomberg woke enough.
And — quel horreur! — Bloomberg previously advocated for common-sense policies and that is an absolute disqualifier with the current mob.
The only thing left is to start changing the names of the months. Thermidor, anyone?
Oh, Trump’s not going anywhere and ‘progressives’ will have no one to blame but themselves.
4
Forget racist remarks: What about explicitly racist policies like stop-and-frisk?
If part of the point of removing the current president is to end the ongoing terrorizing of American citizens for being not white, we should probably not embrace as his only major opponent someone whose past includes terrorizing of American citizens for being not white.
2
If it is true that Bloomberg is considering Hillary for VP, he ain't goin' nowhere. The dems will never succeed with a ticket that shuns deplorables, farmers (agricultural), industrialists (manufacturing), or young, minority boys/men.
3
We need to keep our eye on the ball. Trump and the GOP have become a full-on fascist party, daily assaulting our Constitution, the fairness of our elections and the very idea of objective truth. The Supreme Court is being stacked with extreme right-wing views. Authoritarianism vs democracy itself are on the ballot this November, and failure isn’t an option. We aren’t going to get another bite at this apple.
Bloomberg is far from perfect, but a Bloomberg administration would bring with it a Democratic cabinet, reprofessionalization of government agencies, appointment of normal judges and in general, restore sanity and competence. If he can beat Trump, I would vote for him any day and especially November 4th.
4
Trump says horrible things, and get away with it, and on a daily basis. Not only that, he does horrible things, often on a daily basis, and gets away with it.
A democratic candidate who made some stupid comments over the last 30 years gets sliced, diced and fried. And the people are all so proud of themselves for exposing the transgressor.
One of the things we constantly hear from Trump supporters is that he tells it like it is. They actually admire his brash and hurtful statements. People are sick and tired of the ultra polished, canned and rehearsed statements coming out of politicians. Bloomberg was never a career politician. He has a history of making unacceptable statements, as would any Wall Street tycoon who thrived in the brutal world of high finance. But he gets the job done. He's a winner.
That's what the Democrats need, a winner, especially now. Most of us can put up with some past impolitic statements to get rid of Trump.
6
Comparing an apple to an orange.
2
It's obvious progressive Democrats want to sink in 2020 with their socialist Pied Piper and trash any person who challenges their ideals.
Ideals are great, but so in winning back the White House.
The millions of centrists again have no voice.
Tom Perez of the DNC appears to be like the captain of the Titanic after it hit the iceberg. But even the Titanic captain appeared to take whatever action he could do to save the ship.
5
Frankly, I'd rather we have a Plutocrat in the White House than the current Despot.
I'm for Mike.
8
Let’s take racism and misogyny head on.
Mike Bloomberg, a life-long Democrat before he ran for mayor, responded to statistics showing that violent crime was centered in black neighborhoods. He insisted that “stop and frisk” was working. It took him too long to recognize the harm it was causing to innocent people or admit that the policy was not what was reducing crime – which was, in fact, decreasing. I am convinced that, if the statistics had shown that violent crime was centered in a white ethnic district in Staten Island, that is where “stop and frisk” would have been escalated.
Mike may have been obtuse, but was not a racist. In fact, he has given tens of millions of dollars to programs that educate inner-city kids and initiatives
to regulate gun ownership.
I was around in the 80s and had friends who worked on Wall Street. Wall Street was a zoo. It was a male- dominated culture where women were routinely disparaged and harassed.
Michael Bloomberg was not a sexual harasser. His comments show that he was something of a jerk and,
at the time, a man of his generation in believing that moms did not work as hard as women without kids . He no longer believes that, and his company and foundation have given opportunities to a generation of woman professionals. His companion of 20 years is a professional woman.
Republican trolls will try to sink Bloomberg, as will those on the left who have no sense. I like Mike. I will vote for him. Bloomberg/Klobuchar in 2020!
6
There is some serious astroturfing going on here. Some of the arguments in favor of Bloomberg in this comment section are really too unbelievable to take seriously.
Bloomberg is being systematically pushed by all major news outlets because he will not fundamentally change anything about the current system. Not "fundamentally changing" the system was Biden's line, too, while he was also being pushed by all mainstream media outlets. Then he proved himself too feeble and senile to be a viable candidate, and practically within the course of about two weeks, all the manufactured mainstream enthusiasm behind Biden has been swiftly redirected behind Bloomber.
The man was a Republican. His contact information was in Jeffery Epstein's little black book. He is literally BUYING an election. If he becomes the Democratic nominess, then the Great American Project will officially have come to an end. C'mon, people...
8
Maybe Bloomberg should borrow from Trump’s playbook and just double down: “Yeah, I said it and I might’ve meant it back then. So what? You gonna vote for Trump?”
4
It's not just what Bloomberg says or has said it's also what he's done and what he is doing.
It's not democratic. It's slimy.
6
I call this article a cheap shot! Trump has spent the better of his LIFE degrading women. It didn't die with the Access Hollywood tape where he said, "... because I can get away with it!" In fact, that's his MO. Bloomberg might have changed his tone, and verbiage, but actions speak LOUDER than words. What person wouldn't want to change something after it is spoken? (including Sanders' attack on Biden about approving a war 20 years ago.)
And what about Sanders today? His supporters are full of attack, attack, attack. One would think Sanders is above that behavior, but his supporters are proving that wrong. NYTimes should run a front page article about his supporters and not tuck it into the Sanders vs Union article. It's a big issue that should not be ignored.
This type of article may be politics today, but there's absolutely no need for the NYTimes to run a negative Bloomberg front page article with a biased headlines unless there are positive viewpoints in that same article.
4
If records are to be scrutinized, look at the entire public service. The NYT printed a few days ago the extraordinary
philanthropic millions given to causes we hold dear; gun control, climate change, health care to name a few. No one should be characterized by some actions without presenting the entire record. He is basically a decent person whose ideas evolve and change, and the dems better stop berating each other. As for TV analysts .... Bloomberg is now being shredded...which helps Trump. The free press will disappear if Trump is reelected. The media is showing great stupidity.
5
DeBlasio says all the right things. Compared to Mike Bloomberg he is a second rate mayor.
2
Attacking Bloomberg for insensitive remarks will reveal the blatant hypocrisy of the acolytes of Trump’s personality cult because Trump has uttered incredibly insensitive remarks (P-Grabbing anyone?), and Trump acolytes merely shrug off such sexism and racism as Trump being Trump and speaking truth to Washington.
Balderdash.
As Houston Mayor Sylvester “You don’t judge people by the mistakes they have made. You judge them by their ability to fess up.”
Trump never fesses up to any of his 16,000+ lies.
4
How ironically fitting the mayor of Houston, in endorsing Bloomberg, justifies his support by saying, “You don’t judge people by the mistakes they have made. You judge them by their ability to fess up.” Both need look no farther than the local Mudville nine, otherwise known as the Houston Trashtros, who just gave all of America and baseball a master-class in cheating, stealing a title* and, rather than fessing up, covering up, thereby sullying themselves and the American pastime forever. Beyond Bloomberg’s past racial and sexist “peccadillos,” his opportunistic last-minute party-switching, nomination-buying and rules-changing smack of both the baseball disgrace and the one currently occupying the White House. Of course, perhaps this is what happens, when we allow “Houston baseball” and Trump to set the “ground rules”.
2
On the topic of Stop and Frisk I think Bloomberg was just wrong but on the redlining comments I think people are spinning his words and intent. The following NY Times article explains why:
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/15/opinion/bloomberg-redlining.html
2
It's not about a purity test people, it's about replacing one narcissistic racist plutocrat with another narcissistic racist plutocrat. Yes, Bloomberg is slightly less racist than Trump and has a few Liberal causes he financially supports, but he is out of step with most American's on how to address the wealth gap (he believes in trickle down economics for example). How did the middle class fair in New York while Bloomberg was mayor? Not too well. He uses his money to buy support and stifle descent. He's thin skinned and autocratic in his governing style. We can do better. We have better. Though the party establishment are freaking out, polls showed that the voters were happy with their choices pre-Bloomberg's meddling. We should trust in the process and then support whoever's the nominee. In no particular order: Warren, Buttigieg, Sanders, Biden, Kobachar, whomever, but not another racist narcissistic plutocrat.
2
Not only did Bloomberg not apologize for stop & frisk until he decided to run but he was quite nasty about it. Bloomberg is just as racist as Trump. And what’s up with the black church leaders ? He donates to their churches and all is forgiven. What a bunch of sell outs. One of the problems in the black community is our leaders are often chosen for us. Theses ministers aren’t elected by the people but the press runs straight to them when they want to know what black people think. Why ?
6
As a black American, I find the campaign slogan "Mike for Black America" to be incredibly crass, pandering, and insulting. Most black people believe that these "black leaders" who never uttered the name "Bloomberg" before in their lives and who are now suddenly endorsing him are bought. Period. What we're asking is: Where was "Mike for Black New Yorkers" when he actually had the power of political office?
7
Maybe the constant Press Corps coaching isnt that effective.
...
I've always seen Mr. Bloomberg as nothing more than a Wall Street Trader who built a fortune off of Inside Trade Tips.
He parlayed an early fortune into a Media Empire that does little more than broadcast the more mundane "inside trading tips". He now has Bloomberg TV, which does little more than hawk worthless stock for personal gain with the morning cheer squad chanting "Go Stocks Go!".
..
Three terms as mayor of NYC? Nothing Accomplished. Oh wait. No more Jumbo Slurpies. So thats not entirely true.
....
Michael Bloomberg....a self-absorbed Wall Street Inside Trader that wants to buy the White House.
Are you sure you want that?
6
Why should Bloomberg's remarks be troublesome? trump said worse & still got elected. Stop worrying about these past things so much & mover forward. You can't beat trump by worrying about the past & being nice...he won't be this time either. He will be worse.
1
At a time when Americans and the citizens of the world are under siege by the richest of the rich forcing them to fight their wars, pay their taxes and give deference to their children for placement in the best schools just because they have money, Bloomberg is not only part of the problem, the Bloombergs of the world ARE the problem. Anyone who thinks he is here to promote a healthy middle class or has the average American in mind, had better do some reading. He's almost as disingenuous as trump-- but better at cloaking his disdain for Democracy because he's not a psychotic imbecile like trump. Bloomberg is NOT what the banana republic of the USA needs at this point. He needs to be shut out of the discussion.
6
It will be very amusing to see how liberals throw their supposed sacred principles under the bus with respect to Bloomberg. This mini-me wanna told his top saleswoman to "kill it" when she told him she was pregnant.
He has insulted minorities, farmers, union workers, average Americans and everyone else who doesn't fit into his little world. Please nominate Bloomberg and Hillary. It's the best thing you can do to help Trump get reelected and destroy the Democratic party.
4
Bloomberg; Yes. The others are so busy "knocking" each other they have become inefetectual and redundant.
Democrats get it together or lose the House and Senate
Win both houses and Trump is "zip".
Recently, Pres Obama mourned the loss of Kobe Bryant in a speech to the NBA All Star brunch in Chicago. So, were those remarks insensitive in light of the fact that Bryant was charged with rape in 2003? I wouldn't cancel Obama because of that but that's what a purity test would demand.
3
So white guys, many holding dope, would not be stopped--sweet. But the dark guys would be thrown against the wall, cops digging in their pockets looking for "weapons," finding weed, then they'd be busted, lives disrupted, and given criminal records. The young white guys would proceed with their careers, while the convicted dark guys would be denied most good jobs. Multiply that by a half a million. That alone will never get Bloomberg my vote.
4
Bloomberg is repeatedly showing us exactly who he is and we should believe what has been revealed. His “apology” was anything but and his obvious discomfort and attempts to avoid flinching when in close physical presence to blacks are both obvious and off-putting. No black person should vote for Bloomberg , and when he is forced from the race, we should next turn our attention to voting out of office all of the black politicians who have sold us out for a few pieces of silver.
4
Bloomberg is head and shoulders above the other candidates and the only person running who can defeat Donald Trump in November.
IMO this is a pretty good article which sums things up-
https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/rosiegray/michael-bloomberg-campaign-2020-democratic-primary
Do Democrats want Trump to be president until 2025? Or do they want somebody who will be more than competent- and most likely do a fantastic job leading the country and the world- to put Trump out to pasture?
2
The tiresome modern habit of tearing every human being apart to expose and criticize his or her every word and action since kindergarten is just that--tiresome. Human beings make mistakes. The say or do things from time to time which they regret. They also have changeable minds. Is there anyone who thinks and speaks at 50 exactly as they did at 20? Show me one and I will show you an idiot. People change. Their ideas, and ideals change. Few humans exist whose entire life can be illuminated and not once found less than moral and upright.
2
Has anyone been watching and listening to the man currently in the White House over the last 4 years? #hypocritical
2
The discussion around Bloomberg’s prior comments is healthy and demonstrates that we as a country can and should do what families do all the time - say things we don’t mean or regret, own up to them, and move on. Bloomberg clearly knew all of this would come up, and he clearly is prepared for it. Unlike Trump or frankly even the other Democratic candidates, he admits he was wrong. When Bernie is challenged on things he said along the way, or is asked about his health records (which is promised to release but now won’t), he just dismisses the questioner. Just like he dismisses anyone who disagrees with him.
Living in Florida, I’m voting for Mike. And remember that it is next to impossible for Trump to lose if he wins Florida. All he has to do is win PA, NC, and AZ and can lose MI and WI. Bernie is against fracking (I am too) but PA relies on energy for a lot of jobs. And most of Florida looks more like Georgia and Alabama than Miami. FL is not going to vote for Bernie. FL will vote for Mike.
9
Until Mr. Bloomberg enters the debates as every other candidate has, we have little knowledge of who he is, other than public record.
With the recent succession of billionaires as presidential candidates, for better or worse, it will only be a matter of time when we'll see more Trumps and Kochs along with the Bloombergs and Steyers.
4
I think people should reconsider what issues gave rise to Trump. Was it racism and/or increasing income inequality with decreasing confidence in institutions?
If it was racism, Bloomberg’s past comments and strong support until recently of stop and frisk are not going to inspire confidence in many people that he wants to help communities of color.
If it was the economy, then he’s not going to alleviate concerns there, either. The populist movements happening on the left and right began after the financial crisis in 2008. Congress members on the far left and right voted against the bailout, and populist movements on both sides have grown since then.
The wealthiest person on Wall Street is not going to address the issues that gave rise to Trump. He may stabilize institutions like the State Department and the Justice Department. However, social unrest will increase. See what happens with the next recession.
107
@BK
Have you heard those remarks?
There's not much doubt that racism was involved as much as racial profiling.
Now, imagine if it were your particular racial/ethnic group being targeted by an indiscriminate "Stop and Frisk" policing policy.
Regardless of the statistics, no doubt you wouldn't like it.
That's just how people in communities of color feel.
And they VOTE!
2
@BK --Exactly! Both parties have failed to address rising economic inequality. They are both supported by the 1% CEO/corporate investments crowd that has seen stock market profits increase wealth for the 1% by 200% over 15 years, while workers' pay increased by only 5% not even keeping up with cost of living. Those same workers saw their jobs and then their homes removed through no fault of their own, and those with homes saw the equity disappear that would have paid for their kids to go to college. It's more and more an "Escalating Class War Against Bernie Sanders" https://www.commondreams.org/views/2020/02/17/escalating-class-war-against-bernie-sanders
The #NotMeUS movement is supported by millions of voters coming across with $18.50 avg donations to support our candidate to the tune of $95 million -- an all time record grassroots movement. Then along comes Mike Bloomberg, a Republican until 2018, and he's spending an obscene $300 million on TV ads and has 400 paid staff canvasing California for votes.
Meanwhile, Senator Sanders -- nominated by the Progressive Democrats -- is the #1 choice of Latino voters, young voters, young black voters, and the #1 choice of the largest group of voters in the USA: The Independent voters, who are 42% of the registered voters. Bernie Sanders CRUSHES TRUMP by 18 points among Independent Voters. So he should be the nominee -- and the "Moderates" should vote for Bernie and stop trying to find any other candidate.
15
@BK --Exactly! Both parties have failed to address rising economic inequality. They are both supported by the 1% CEO/corporate investments crowd that has seen stock market profits increase wealth for the 1% by 200% over 15 years, while workers' pay increased by only 5% not even keeping up with cost of living. Those same workers saw their jobs and then their homes removed through no fault of their own, and those with homes saw the equity disappear that would have paid for their kids to go to college. It's more and more and "Escalating Class War Against Bernie Sanders" https://www.commondreams.org/views/2020/02/17/escalating-class-war-against-bernie-sanders
The #NotMeUS movement is supported by millions of voters coming across with $18.50 avg donations to support our candidate to the tune of $95 million -- an all time record grassroots movement. Then along comes Mike Bloomberg, a Republican until 2018, and he's spending an obscene $300 million on TV ads and has 400 paid staff canvasing California for votes.
Meanwhile, Senator Sanders -- nominated by the Progressive Democrats -- is the #1 choice of Latino voters, young voters, young black voters, and the #1 choice of the largest group of voters in the USA: The Independent voters, who are 42% of the registered voters. Bernie Sanders CRUSHES TRUMP by 18 points among Independent Voters. So he should be the nominee -- and the "Moderates" should vote for Bernie and stop trying to find any other candidate.
4
Not having cable TV is interesting. I haven't watched anything on commercial television in years, so I have no exposure to the Bloomberg ads. Without the context of these ads, Bloomberg means very little, & what I read about him does not impress me. I see Warren, Bernie, & other Dems on Insta, but that's about the total extent of my exposure to political ads, & I have the choice of whether to watch them or not. Which means that Bloomberg is going to have to work a lot harder to reach steady voters like me, whose habits are in line with those of a younger set that does not watch old-fashioned commercial TV. Not that it would do any good if I did see his ads. I've been waiting for the Democratic Party to field better candidates than the corporate centrists they usually stick us with, & now we've got two great progressive candidates in Bernie & Warren, so there is simply no way I'm going to turn away from candidates who at last are speaking a language I understand & relate to, to vote for another plutocrat & his billions. He may want to raise taxes on the rich, but he's not going to change the way our tax money is spent, which is the more important issue. It will still wind up in the hands of the oligarchs of the military-industrial complex, and our healthcare, educational system, and infrastructure will continue to be ignored under yet another (yawn) corporate centrist. Bloomberg, go home and do something useful with your money besides supporting the advertising industry.
17
@Allison "Bloomberg, go home and do something useful with your money besides supporting the advertising industry."
You can read the report of Bloomburg Philanthropies here:
https://www.bloomberg.org/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI757ZnYPZ5wIVmY7ICh0Mlw8nEAAYAiAAEgK_E_D_BwE
1
@Allison
You have a computer so you can easily watch a few of those ads. Why do I have to point this out?
1
@Clearwater: I use my computer to work and read. Why would I use it to watch ads I don't want to watch in the first place? Commercial TV forces them upon people, and that is the reason I don't watch commercial TV, so why would I go to my computer to call up something I don't want to watch anyway? Bloomberg's method of campaigning is one devised for a man who thinks he's entitled to my attention, just because he thinks he can afford to buy it. Well, no amount of money is going to buy my attention, anywhere. A man who thought it was just fine and dandy for the police to stop and frisk people because they happened to live in, or even be passing through, a high-crime neighborhood is not my idea of a good politician or a good citizen. A man who casually became a Republican just so that he could run for mayor of New York is my idea of an opportunist with no solid values. And no billionaire got to be a billionaire by being a nice guy. Bloomberg is just trying to save his own rear-end from a drubbing by the working class -- the people who are sick of billionaires thinking that they can call all of the shots and grab all of the attention, just because they have money. We've got one NY billionaire in office now, and we don't need another one, not by a long shot. Bloomberg can take his ads and stuff them.
2
I believe Mike is heavily supported because he is 'one of us', a member of the rich and powerful club who will maintain the status quo. His racist and misogynistic comments and actions over the years should be taken at face value; he has told us who he is and we should listen.
43
@islandgirl
Agreed. And I would even go a step farther to say that with the exception of Sanders, the status quo is all we’ll get from the other democratic candidates, too. I used to be for Warren, but I’m not so sure anymore.
10
Despite Mr. Bloomberg's professed dislike of Trump, it appears he enjoyed rounds of golf with Trump.
8
Fellow democrats: get over yourself.
Take a cue from the republicans who fall in line and vote for hopelessly flawed, unqualified candidates driven purely by the desire to create a theocratic, all-white America that works exclusively for the top 1%. No flaw in the candidate stops them, no words or deeds of the candidates that would horrify ordinary people - bothers them. That is why I love them, even if I don't agree with them. They know what they want, and they show up. They are very tolerant of everything wrong their candidates do: including the overt and successful attempts to suppress voting by democrat. Yes, the Bloom had blacks flung against a wall and frisked; it is indeed dastardly. But it is a minor speck compared to what Trump is doing - all enabled by Bernie primary supporters who voted Trump and helped him win.
Democrats proudly display their callow, weak DNA; that would be the one that thrives us to shoot ourselves in the foot and let evil prevail because our candidate did not walk on water and because we could not see a halo around their heads. It is the Bernie supporters who begat us Trump, that enables this wholesale looting, pillaging, coarsening, destruction of everything that makes America beautiful and the promised land.
52
@Kalidan.... Absolutely! Bloom is imperfect and he's apologized for some of that, but more importantly his imperfections pale to nothingness compared to those of Trump, who is truly a monster. "Fellow democrats -- get over yourself" is right on target!
The November election is not about who you like the most; it's about the Democratic candidate who has the best chance of sending Trump back to his 2-bit reality tv show! Bloomberg, despite his imperfections, is that candidate. Financially, his deep pockets are precisely what is needed to fund a difficult campaign. He's a moderate, he'll work productively to get things done with congressional Republicans, and he represents the best of traditional Democratic ideals.
Others in the race for the nomination are too far left and will be hammered as "socialists" by the Republican campaign. But how great would it be to hear Trump dare call Bloomberg a socialist?!
It's critical that Democrats wake up to reality, and quickly! Put Mike at the head of the ticket, and perhaps one of the other candidates vying for the nomination in the veep position. If she could be persuaded, Michelle Obama would be a wonderful veep choice. But for God's sake stop the infighting and especially stop ganging up on Bloomberg! The objective is to dump Trump and "Mike's the Man" to do it!
3
@Kalidan If--by your estimation--the Republicans are working the politic system well, what does that say about the system itself?
We don't actually have to accept degenerates as our representatives. If we use Trump as our new measure for fitness for office, we can all limbo under that bar.
2
So it seem like it's just Bloomberg is under the microscope.... the democrats only hope.
Soviet honeymooner Sanders says he wrote the bill on Universal Health Care, but the media rarely provide insight into impact of the law to people or economy.
Joe Biden and Hunter Biden claim they did nothing wrong in the Burisma relationship but they do make it clear they will not do it again. An investigation is required here, it stinks bad.
It's so funny that Cuba honeymooner deBlasio is now supporting Sanders.
14
Given Bloomberg’s very long public record of supporting progressive causes, does anyone really believe that the man is a racist? People make mistakes. He made a mistake. He has apologized. Move on before the stable genius is re-elected.
59
@Tom Molinari
Throwing money at "progressive causes" does not make one righteous. The Sackler family is just one example.
6
I can’t ever in my life imagine reducing Stop and Frisk and defending redlining to mere mistakes. Much less telling people to simply move on already.
Question: why is it that now Bloomberg has entered the race, the level of accountability to which we held our public officials has all but vanished?
A second, more rhetorical election: why is it that Democrats seem to be increasingly more accepting of a billionaire attempting to buy our election outright?
3
I saw a video yesterday with Bloomberg insinuating that farming is for rubes: “I can teach anyone how to be a farmer. 1 dig a hole, 2 put a seed in, 3 put dirt on top, 4 add water, 5 up comes the corn.” It would require limited editing to make a neat campaign spot for Trump to run in the Midwest. Beyond that, and beyond the obvious such as stop and frisk, Bloomberg is alienating young people by trying to buy the nomination with his equivalent of pocket change.
A lot of older Democrats in my life are convinced Bloomberg is The One to defeat Trump, but I think they're misreading the moment, just as the Democrats did in 2016. When is the last time a Democrat won a 1st presidential term campaigning as a centrist? Why do we suddenly believe the stop & frisk mayor, with a mountain of sexual harassment lawsuits under his belt, who fought minimum wage increases, supported the Iraq War, stumped for George W Bush, and has advocated social security cuts, is the best Democratic champion?
I think a Bloomberg nomination would backfire, possibly to the point of destroying the Democratic Party for good.
24
@Ted B Barack Obama was the last time a centrist candidate won a 1st presidential term.
1
@Steven Freedman Obama campaigned as a progressive. He governed as a centrist
2
The mind-boggling thing to me is that all we need to do is go back to 2016 to see proof that electing a centrist will never work, especially against a GOP that is in lockstep and has no plans to grant concessions of any sort anytime soon.
4
Bloomberg’s past mistakes pale to insignificance when compared to Trump’s past and current errors. The major difference between them is Bloomberg is the bigger man and has the character to admit his mistakes. He knows right from wrong as evidenced by his apologies for the wrongs. How many apologies have come from Trump?
The Republicans have shown their capacity to overlook all manner of racist, homophobic, misogynist, and other outrageous and unpresidential behavior to get what they want and the Democrats are still looking for a saint to lead them? Perfection in this world had been obtained by only one ... the wise as well as the good have gone astray.
Bloomberg can beat Trump. For one thing, he will drive Trump nuts because Bloomberg has earned his billions, not inherited his wealth or beat people out of theirs. His political skills were honed in the crucible of the New York political scene. He's no rookie.
Clash of the billionaires! May the best candidate win. My money's on Bloomberg.
40
Why should we let a plutocrat buy our elections?
16
@JDK
How much does any Presidential Campaign cost? Sanders? Hillary? Trump?
Answer: A mind boggling fortune. Fact.
At least I will know where Mike's is coming from. I'm voting for Mike. He's the pitbull that will send Trump yelping out of the House he has made into a national junkyard.
2
@JDK Sorry, but do you not think they already do?
@JDK
Because none of the other riders in the Democratic clown car can beat Trump. That's why.
Sorry, I don't care what he said years ago. If everyone was judged by their impolitic comments that they made over the years then no one, of any race, religion sex or political affiliation would ever get elected.
He's still the strongest candidate the Democrats have.
72
For those crying purity test, what exactly is it you dislike about trump? Bloomberg has topped whatever bombastic Trumpism you’ve heard and hated, and had the managerial competency to see its twisted evil to completion. Why are Democrat’s even considering this man when there are plenty of great candidates without such a miserable history, and that have better chances at beating trump? Am I living in an alternate universe? I’m beginning to think all these comments and likes are paid staff of the stop and frisk billionaire himself..
17
There is absolutely nothing Bloomberg or any other candidate could or has done that could compare to Trump's history of lyiny, scheming, and adultery. I like Bloomberg and will vote for him. I do worry about his history of being a Republican.
25
Mike Bloomberg isn’t so much ‘buying an election’ as he is using his own money to save America from the tyranny and oppression of another four years of Trump.
60
I would like for someone to define what "buying an election" means. Are not ALL of the candidates trying to raise millions and spending those millions to do exactly what Bloomberg is trying to do ... garner more votes? What's the difference between that money coming from lots of sources (Sanders, Warren, Klobuchar), a good number of sources (Buttigieg, Biden) or one source (Bloomberg, Steyer)?
Sanders and Warren both tout the fact that they are dependent on small donors by design and that restriction makes them unbeholding to special interests. If that's true, is not Bloomberg, by not accepting ANY outside contributions, even more shielded from the special interests?
Accusing Bloomberg of buying the election should be called out for what it is ... one group of candidates fear that another candidate has more resources than they have to get his message out, i.e., jealousy.
Trump has held us his "billionaire" status as evidence he is a competent businessman. Having a "real" billionaire take him on and prove his billions are a myth and he is no more than a carnival barker selling snake oil makes sense to me.
We all of things in our past that we regret saying, regret doing. Why do we expect Mike Bloomberg to be any different? I think he is our best chance for beating trump. I glanced at the first comment before writing mine, and saw ..."Democrat in name only". Bernie isn't even that! He's an Independent (and a socialist).
21
Trump plays dirty and he will not pause for a second asking China, Russia, Saudi Arabia to help him in the 2020 election. Bloomberg is the only one among all other candidate can beat trump. According to David Brook's article, Berni supporters they already gave Trump victor in 2016 by voting for Trump. Our democracy are at stake.
20
@Shim I object to the Clinton narrative that Bernie supporters lost her the election--a sort of fifth column fantasy. Hilary lost the election because she was incompetent before the election, during the primaries, and during the general election. Bloomberg has demonstrated a great deal of competence, though from a Left perspective in the service sometimes of a malign economic status quo.
3
Question: Who do you trust to defeat Trump and his policies in November?
a) The Tom Perez led DNC and its preferred nominee
b) Mike Bloomberg’s machine
It comes down to what you’re willing to live with-it always does.
12
@JPLA
Question: Who do you trust to defeat Trump and his policies in November?
a) The Tom Perez led DNC and its preferred nominee
b) Mike Bloomberg’s machine
Not a fair choice, given that a, and b are the same.
None of the above.
2
@KR Not sure how the DNCs aversion to Bernie gives you confidence in his ability to beat Trump
@ExPDXer injecting the word “fair” is an assumption politics has room for that virtue.
The only person who has never said anything negative, offensive, heartbreaking, lies, racist comments, or made mistakes - is a new born baby.
If we start judging all politicians by the prism of so called media pundits, we will find faults in everyone.
The real and practical questions should be:
Did Bloomberg do his job well as a Mayor ?
Was he able to improve the lives of New Yorkers ?
Was he able to help New York city improve its image and make city livable?
Does he has the money, resources and stamina to beat Trump?
If you expect Bloomberg to be perfect, then keep looking; you won't find anyone perfect. Get ready for 4 more years of lies, corruption, cheating and trillions of dollars added to deficit.
44
@AIMBloomberg is a shoo in to get nominated and elected president because of his billions , and is willing to spend them on a presidential campaign. He will get Dem. Party out of a tight spot, only one able to do so,since rest of the party Klobuchar, Buttigieg,Biden, Warren, who after Mass. primary tomorrow will be gone for lack of money, r mediocrities, unable to withstand attacks by a united , rich GOPMoney is a virtue that covers a multitude of sins. Bloomberg has it. People will overlook everything about him, his"sexual history, support for"stop and frisk,"his decision to have Bloomberg NEWS cave into the "Chi coms"in return for favors from that autocracy because he has the money.Bloomberg a financed a Dem. takeover of the House in 2018, so why should the presidency prove so much more difficult?
But there is an undercurrent of anti semitism in American life, which could work against Bloomberg. Recall FDR was so fearful of a recrudescence of anti semitism on eve of WWII that he turned back SS.Saint Louis in 1939 because he felt that not to do so might exacerbate that ugly "ism" and prevent US from entering WWII.Allowing Jewish refugees to enter US posed a threat in FDR's eyes to his efforts to get around Neutrality Acts so we could enter the war!This ism is ugly,emotional,based on false fears, but it is there!Do not discount it as a motivator for millions of voters come November!
@AIM Did he really make the lives of all New Yorkers better or only the lives of some white New Yorkers. Ask the black or Hispanic man who still bears the scars on his face from being thrust into a brick wall for being suspected of having a weapon. He might have been let go because he had no weapon but the scars remain. More likely, he was still jailed on some Trumped-up charge to get him off the street to silence him, further scarring him inside as well as outside.
4
@Angelsea : GOOD POINT. Bloomberg has a lot of baggage, the kind you can't take on airplanes, but "en fin de compte,"as I wrote, money is a virtue that covers a multitude of sins, so in the end Bloomberg might very well be the candidate and might win because he is willing to spend billions for the chance to occupy the Oval Office.
Seems like Bloomberg's money and racist remarks are most prominent attributes of his candidacy, because that is all people are talking about. I am yet to hear what he is going to do to solve healthcare problems, housing problems, student loans, and so on. What would he do if (and that is a big if) when he will be in the WH?
5
The trouble is that Republicans see "troublesome remarks" as an asset in their candidate while Democrats view them as reasons to cancel the candidate. So we end up with a Republican candidate who can literally say anything he wants - all the hate and bigotry and ignorance a person can spout - and his supporters love it and encourage it and a Democrat candidate who can barely say anything at all, past and present, without being pounced upon for purity.
16
Bloomberg will certainly make a better king than Trump, but why is it that we feel the need to elect a king?
13
It is amazing how many comments here are willing to forgive Bloomberg for his misogyny, racism, and reactionary politics. Bloomberg is like Trump in so many ways, except that he was a successful businessman.
17
Bloomberg's recently surfaced comment - something that is being interpreted to the effect of "Farmers don't have enough grey matter in their brains..." makes me realize that he would never beat Trump.
13
@josef012
Wow. I guess he subsists on water and air ! And does he think all the food at his fancy banquets comes out of star-trek style replicators or something ?
3
America does not want a progressive revolution only the leftist coastal and media elites. The rest of the Democrats want to vote for a left-center candidate and realize that candidate has the best chance of beating Trump. That is why more voters backed the centrist candidates than leftist ones in New Hampshire and will continue to go for moderate candidates in the rest of the primaries.
In case the progressives forgot, Bernie voted for the 1994 crime bill that was instrumental in the mass incarcerations of minorities. Sounds just as racist to me! At least Mike has apologized for his continuing the policy developed and put in place by his predecessor. He even began winding stop and frisk down toward the end of his term. If black Americans are forgiving Mike, maybe white progressives should be woke enough to listen to their Democratic brethren.
9
Bloomberg is a DNC/Trump-backed straw man, planted to make Bernie look bad, because both are deathly afraid of the overwhelming victory Bernie will have over the neoliberals and Trump. 1000 at a Bloomberg rally: 100,000 at Bernie’s last few rallies. Get it?
12
@Robert M. Koretsky
Sure bud. Nobody needs to go to such elaborate lengths to make Sanders look bad. His own record of zero accomplishment, together with a basic understanding of math, are more than plenty to make him look bad.
Many Democrats will stay home or vote third party if Bloomberg is the nominee. If the final choice is one racist mysoginistic billionaire or another, that will at the very least be the death of the Democratic party, if not the death knell of Democracy.
I am sickened by the comments making it seem that Bloomberg is the most equipped to beat Trump. There is NO evidence for that. These comments only prove the rise of oligarchy, and perhaps the fact that this is election is the last chance to beat it back.
18
We Democrats need to focus seriously on winning a majority in the Senate. Look at what is happening in North Carolina: a GOP-funded "progressive" is aimed at sabotaging Cunningham. Bernie: ask Mike to hand over $50 million to you for Senate and congressional races! Let's have a progressive House, a Democratic Senate and a wily oligarch in the WH to manage a slow but important turn back to democracy. Let's not focus on picking a "favorite." Let's think "systems" and act strategically to defeat Trumpism. Mike Bloomberg has learned from experience and has good policies for the environment and health care. He is staunchly pro-choice. With Trump reelected, what will happen to Roe v. Wade? Wishing money out of politics will not make it disappear! Let us bolster the Center right now against fascism (and crazy Apocalyptic ideation!); then in 2024 or 2028 take the WH for a new generation of progressives..
6
If you want pure then die and go to heaven. It isn't going to happen in politics. You've got to win the presidency, then you need to control both houses of congress and then you have to get past the media and then the egos of our politicians. Not going to happen. We need to boot Trump and the Republicans out and annihilate them from the political scene. Then we need to focus on moving forward, health, education, infrastructure and rebuild our foreign relationships and international trade. It will not be perfect but it will be better than Trump. Perfect ain't gonna happen.
10
@Tom
You don’t expect purity, but you don’t like Trump. Everyone has a threshold for where they’re willing to compromise. What exactly is yours? Maybe you would vote for Trump if he ran as a Democrat.
1
"Time and again we see Bloomberg insulting the middle class and the working class, union members and not yet union members," the organization tweeted. "Maybe it's time for pundits to stop pretending he's just another candidate. Bloomberg is an oligarch spending his play money to buy the White House."
11
Let’s use some economies of scale here with Bloomberg’s past foibles.
Let’s compare what he did and said with what Trumpo has done, is doing and saying.
The Times should avoid the false equivalency it exhibited in the ‘16 election between Clinton’s emails, which turned out to be a tempest in a tea pot, and Trumpo’s past indiscretions, his character, his racism and his dishonesty to name only a few red flags on why the grifter was unfit for office.
If Bloomberg can beat Trumpo he’s been a Paragon of Virtue as far as I’m concerned.
15
It's not just that Bloomberg has the money. It's also that he's taking it to Trump insult to insult, taunt to taunt. I sense that some Democrats are happy to see that. It's as if the big playground bully terrorizing the third-graders is suddenly challenged by a new, bigger guy on the scene.
Bloomberg is particularly threatening to Trump with respect to the economy, Trump's main argument for re-election. Bloomberg can speak with more authority.
15
Bravo, New York Times. Let's litigate the past when social mores were different; prioritize our wokeness; and go out of our way to inflict damage on a candidate who supports black families and small businesses, puts money and time into fixing climate change, fixed failing infrastructure and raised teacher salaries in NYC, and works to remove illegal guns from our society. I grew up in the NYC 'burbs in NJ, I do know firsthand.
Mike has my vote and for the first time in a while, I have hope for our nation and my kids' lives.
Your coverage reminds me of your campaign to destroy Hillary with front page story after story on her e-mails. That huge threat to our democracy, worthy of such coverage. Keep this up on Bloomberg and other candidates, and if Trump wins, NYT will be part of the reason.
I have noticed a dearth of reporting on Sanders' Senate record. I had to look it up from other sources and was so shocked at how little he has accomplished. As Hillary noted, he is full of bologna.
32
Bloomberg did NOT raise teacher salaries. In fact, after his 12 years as mayor (he disregarded term limits) he left EVERY labor union with an expired contract because he did not (and does not care) about the middle working class. Bloomberg is dangerous. I would vote for ANY of the other democrats over him.
4
@NYC
"he disregarded term limits"
Umm, no. He lobbied the City Council to change them, which it did. And after that, he ran for a third term, and was elected by the citizens of NY.
If you were educated by members of the NYC teachers union, but still lack the basic reading/writing/comprehension skills that would allow you to understand what went on on your own city, maybe the teachers don't deserve a raise or new contract.
I’m glad Bloomberg is spending his money and contributing to the DNC. He’s irritating a lot of liberals. So what? New York is the land of irritability. Who’s the Republican who’s running this country. He’s very irritable. I’d rather read a report which can ask: Who rejects money in the DNC? Why’d they reject money? What are the costs of running a primary campaign? Who dropped out of the primaries because of money? I’d love to hear a report rather than a a couple peoples democratic gripes. It’s irritating! I like Mike! I don’t have any money to give Democrats money if the can’t delivery. Sorry, but Mike pays his own way. Realism, I like it.
9
At the end of the day, it should be remembered that its a Liar’s Club from beginning to end.
1
I'd like to offer a defense of Bloomberg, not for racist arguments he made, but for the context in which he made them. (I'm not a Bloomberg supporter, nor supporter of any specific Democratic candidate.) Bloomberg is a big-city boy (he grew up in the Boston area), and for many who came of age in the 1950s and 1960s, it was nearly impossible to avoid highly charged attitudes about the role of race in urban blight and crime.
Where I grew up, on the South Side of Chicago, white flight was in full force during the 1960s. My neighborhood of South Shore saw some two-thirds of its 65,000 white residents head for the exits of the suburbs or the city's North Side rather than live with the large numbers of blacks streaming into the city from the South in the so-called Second Great Migration. With all the racial tumult came crime--white-on-black crime and black-on-white crime. As I discovered in researching a historical novel that's just come out (Gouster Girl), the racial tensions of that era were all-pervasive and unrelenting.
The fact that many of today's white liberals don't like to acknowledge the black-on-white crime, in particular, that grew out of the tensions doesn't mean it didn't happen, and that it didn't leave emotional scars on all involved.
4
@David Gumpert
Sorry, there is no context that makes racism understandable or acceptable.
2
I’m truly baffled by the regular popularity of comments defending Bloomberg on these pieces. Is he paying for these as well? It’s not a “purity test” to want a candidate who, you know, is a) not racist, b) not sexist, c) not a billionaire oligarch seeking to exploit unprecedentedly lax campaign finance rules to buy an election, and d) actually a Democrat. And you can’t apologize your way out of these problems when there’s literally zero evidence you’ve changed on any of them. Mitt Romney 2012’s platform is hardly more appealing if you add gun control and opposition to coal plants.
13
I wish Bloomberg would run for president as what he is...a Republican. And he should run against Trump in the primaries if he wants to defeat him. If Bloomberg is suddenly so strongly wanting the nation to go Democratic then he should put his vast fortune into turning the Senate and keeping the house. And after a Democratic candidate is chosen he should use that fortune to support him or her. But what he's doing now is awful.
12
Bloomberg said that the end of redlining contributed to the 2008 financial crisis. That seems to me like a reasonable statement. There were MANY factors that contributed to the 2008 crisis. More important than redlining was probably the construction of complicated financial derivatives which were sold as "safe investments" by the big investment banks to unsuspecting investors, including pension funds.
The real outrage here is that big bankers like Dick Fuld of Lehman Brothers destroyed their own companies and walked away with fortunes. And Obama's Justice department did not push for prosecution even though the evidence against Fuld seemed overwhelming.
Real issues are complex. We need to think more deeply than simply saying, he said "redlining is a factor, so he must be racist."
If Trump wins it will because extreme elements in the Democratic Party see racism and sexism under every rock and demand conformity to standards only achieved by those politicians willing to be mendacious.
Why did Plato turn against democracy and regard the best form of government an autocracy run by philosopher kings?
Actually I don't know the answer to that. But I suspect that he might have realized that the Achilles heal of democracy is that the ordinary voters often use superficial reasoning.
Or "black and white thinking" when considering issues that become more and more complex as the population increases and society becomes more diverse.
Perhaps democracy is already dead.
4
I like the word fess up . Make promises that can be realized, not the smoke the republican make. Example, reverse the flow of trickle down. Not a flood but steady flow. Tackle the medical monopoly.
2
My problem with the guy is that he’s forbidden his news organization from publishing stories that are critical of Democratic candidates. As much as I despise Trump, we cannot replace one totalitarian for another. A free press is essential to our democracy.
5
@Eric R.
Think. He did that because if Bloomberg media criticized the other candidates, they, and you, would be crying all day about how unfair that was, and he would be accused of making improper campaign contributions. And by the way, there are other media outlets, and they seem to be taking on the mantle of criticizing the other Dem candidates just fine.
1
Bloomberg is basically a billionaire Republican. If he wasn't dumping hundreds of millions in advertising revenue on social media platforms and mainstream networks, with hundreds more to come, his past would already have rendered him unacceptable as the Democratic nominee. Instead, he is being given a free pass and being treated and talked about like a savior. That treatment is the equivalent of throwing minority voters, and women, for that matter, up against the wall and telling them their concerns don't matter when compared to the bottom line of corporate interests.
His campaign will lead to chaos at the convention and he is certain to foment a dismemberment in the party which will help Trump get re-elected. If Trump is re-elected, Bloomberg will make everything he spends during his campaign back, and more, in the form of tax breaks.
9
Well into middle age and life as a hugely successful, self made businessman, Bloomberg became a politician. In order to get on the ballot in the city he shifted from being a Democrat to being a Republican. He was elected three times as Mayor because the majority of progressives in New York approved of the job he did. His administration was free of corruption. Under his leadership the city bounced back quickly after 9/11. We're reminded lately of Bloomberg's serious flaws. I wish Sharrod Brown had run for President. I wish Cory Booker was still in the race and had more support. But sit on the sidelines in 2020 witnessing the re-election of Trump, and the Supreme Court and Federal judiciary will no longer be recognizable. Medicaid coverage will shrink. Income disparity will widen. The deficit will boom. Air and water quality will deteriorate. Clear facts will be denied. The GOP will abandon all responsibility as a Congressional check. White supremacy will continue to rise. There is no escape from that reality. Come election day, not to decide, is to decide.
20
There has been a heated discussion among Republicans to blame the liberals for causing the recession by letting anyone borrow anything.
And there seems to be economic evidence that it was indeed part of the problem.
2
Where is Bloomberg's apology to the Democrats who were arrested for peacefully protesting the Iraq war and GW Bush outside RNC convention in New York, August 2004?
Republican Bloomberg addressed the RNC in a speech supporting the war and the re-election of George Bush, rather than Carey who campaigned on a plan to end the war.
NYPD on orders from the Mayor herded peaceful protestors in plastic, orange nets as if they were tuna fish. Some that were just walking by. Protesters were hauled off in police vans and locked up for the week in a Sanitation truck garage on a pier over the Hudson River in unsanitary, filthy, greasy, stinking conditions.
Most of the people locked up were Democrats exercising their right to peaceful protest of an unjust war.
For the Democrats to nominate this police-state supporting Republican would be a travesty.
34
Yes, in 2004 Bloomberg sung the praises of a war criminal who was running for re-election against an actual war hero who was anti-war.
6
@Billy
Thank you for that important information. Hopefully (in the days before cell phone videos) there is some footage archived somewhere. I'm guessing Bloomie has spent considerable energy trying to disappear any official images.
4
There is no way I am voting for a billionaire plutocrat for president. No way. I will sit it out.
Trump has his Russian oligarch friends. The solution is not to replace him with our own real live Wall Street oligarch, very comfortable using anti-democratic, corporate tactics to get his way. How do you think a billionaire gets to be a billionaire?
He will lose to Trump. Yes, comfy suburban whites who care about their 401Ks and about keeping health care and education all to themselves will turn out. Everybody else will stay home or vote for Trump.
The Democratic Party manipulators had better think long and hard about this one. We will not vote for some former Republican (he really is a Wall-Street-first Republican) who will turn the Dems into a center-right party (even further to right than it is).
No way. No how.
21
But wouldn’t that be a vote for a different plutocrat? All elections are about the lesser of evils.
5
@Jim
A billionaire gets to be a billionaire by delivering a product people want to purchase.
Democrats used to know that.
4
Oh, the irony of the 2016 corporate Democrats criticizing Bernie for not being a Democrat his whole life are now running with open arms to a man who believes he can purchase democracy.
25
Let's face it we have been buying presidents long before this. Citizen's United does that and Russia helped it further this last time.
Blaming Bloomberg for past misdeeds will only delay Trump's removal.
I want too see democratic candidates and Bloomberg tell us what they will do, not say nasty things about each other. This will only help Trump to stay on the throne longer. The man is unhinged and keeps extending his power. The GOP follow fearfully.
Keeping that in mind, can we not work to support the contender who can debate, persuade voters, and dethrone Trump?
5
“Lord knows if African-Americans had absolute purity tests for people who had problematic issues in the past, we would never advance as people"...
Let's be clear that we're not talking about "absolute purity" here. This was not a matter of making a "mistake," then realizing and repenting. This was a stated policy, maintained for years in the face of opposition from minority leaders. It is far more than just somebody having a bad day, or making an unfortunate comment. And if you don't think that Bloomberg's apology for stop-and-frisk smacks at least a little of opportunism, call me for a free supply of cynic powder to sprinkle on your waffles. Didn't Disraeli--a far better politician than Bloomberg--say: "Never Apologize, Never Explain"?
Making a simplistic comparison between the "mistakes" of Bloomberg and Trump also adds little. What Trump has done regarding race relations results from a combination of cynicism, racism, and pandering to the worst elements of American society. The word "mistake" has no meaning in this context. \The larger point is that to just A-B Bloomberg and
Trump overlooks other, better candidates for president than either.
The still larger point, never mentioned in this article, is that Michael Bloomberg is just too old (and so is Donald Trump) to be elected to a four-year term as president. The difference is that Trump voters won't care, but those of us who retain our critical faculties should.
13
Mike, unlike the demagogue Trump, has the smarts to surround himself with brilliant, effective and non-corrupt people. He's a genius at hiring. And he will do that has soon as he is President Elect (or sooner) and not still be in the process 3 years later with no success like Trump.
Mike has the grace to understand his mistakes and apologize publicly for them, and I don't care what you are inclined to believe in this "woke phase", for when someone points out that something was wrong to a mentally healthy and truly successful person, they ruminate on those mistakes, they learn from those mistakes and they accept those mistakes. Mike can do this and he demonstrates he can do this. Trump hasn't apologized to anyone for anything ever - Ever!
And Mike is so much more than capable of getting in the ring with Trump and not pretending this is still the 1950's while he's fighting the world's premiere example of a modern corrupt authoritarian lie machine that others have always later said in essence, "Well, I didn't know Trump was capable of going that low!".
The balance, health, and very soul of our country and planet are in doubt if we get 4 more years of Trump because not only will that be horrendous in and of itself but all bets are off that he and his enablers won't change things to stay in power. Donny Jr. anyone? Ivanka? Pence?
You may not know this yet, but the fight is between Bloomberg and Trump. Let the only human of the two win.
22
Mike Bloomberg is an extremely intelligent guy who made some politically incorrect mistakes. There was in fact some truth to the need for stop-and-frisk during his mayoralty. The last time we disqualified someone with brains, we got Donald Trump.
19
This reminds me of the movie Trading Places when the Duke brothers make a $1 wager that Eddie Murphy could easily replace Dan Akroyd at their commodities trading firm.
In other words, the billionaires are in control and the rest of us are their playthings.
Vote for Bernie.
18
Bloomberg need not disavow any of the policies he adopted or statements he made. He calls them like he sees them. He may sometimes be wrong or not sensitive enough and he should admit it when that is the case. But the fact that some may take offense at his remarks or policies does not make him a racist.
10
I really don't have a problem with most of Bloomberg's past statements, even though I feel like things like "Stop and Frisk" went a bit too far. But at least the policy tried to deal with a realistic situation - there is more crime in black communities as compared to other communities. Is there any denying that? There is no doubt the reason for this is not simply "because people living there are black", we all know about the social injustices behind it, but at some point you have to use realistic tactics to deal with the problem that may differ from the tactics used in other less crime ridden areas. If there were rampant crime in my neighborhood I would have no problem at all with being "stopped and frisked" until the senseless violence was stopped, in fact I would welcome it if it meant keeping my family safe.
9
Don’t apologize. Use fully 2/3 of your billions to correct the baseline issues of jobs, education, drugs for NYC and beyond. Then, you will have shown atonement and some self recognition.
22
I lived in NYC when Bloomberg bent the rules to make sure he got a 3rd term as mayor. I disliked his high-handed imperious style back then, and there's no way I will vote for him now.
You'd all better get used to the of Sanders v. Trump in Nov. 2020.
23
@John In that case, you'd better get ready for four more years of Trump.
2
'You don't judge people by their past mistakes, you judge them by the money they have.'
This dude [Bloomberg] is actually buying his hearts and minds, he's doing it, and yet I was so skeptical that his announced ad buys would move anyone. Clearly I underestimated how powerfully hypnotic ads still are in 2020, and understanding human sociology eludes me again.
12
I guess I can understand criticizing Michael Bloomberg because of the timing of his stop and frisk apology…but it doesn’t bother me as much as Trump quoting scripture – obviously in a way that demonstrated he had never done it before – as he began his presidential run.
I guess I can understand criticizing Bloomberg because of his redlining statements because redlining effects more black neighborhoods than white…but it doesn’t bother me as much as Trump Management Inc. refusing to rent to minorities when our current president was its president.
I guess I can understand criticizing Bloomberg for powering his way to a 3rd term…but it doesn’t bother me as much as the very real possibility that should he lose, Donald Trump would claim the election was rigged and start a Constitutional crisis that would mark the end of American eminence.
Michael Bloomberg as a moderate candidate with unlimited financial resources has the best chance to defeat Donald Trump. We can get back to purity tests, financial equality and getting money out of politics once Donald Trump has been de-fanged and relegated to the dust bin of history.
20
An interesting conundrum. The people who support Trump, regardless of his support for racists, his complete and total misogyny, and his endorsement of the NRA and refusal to take any action to support gun control, could conceivably think that a man who actually made a really, really lot of money with no bankruptcies (!), has successfully managed the biggest city in the country, and who believes controlling crime is more important than political correctness, might just vote for Bloomberg.
Will winning those voters make up for losing the Bernie vote? Hard to tell. But having assembled an incredibly talented campaign team, to some extent assuaged the fears of progressives and minorities, and having blasted Trump in his advertising, I think his chances of winning the election as president look pretty good. Then the question will be whether he vetoes the legislation enacted by a Democratic House and Senate. My bet is no, it's a risk I would take.
13
With Bloomberg, there is HOPE here I never from square one, when it was initially being hinted at, had the remotest bit of enthusiasm for a Biden presidential run.
7
It’s truly incredible reading the constant defenses of Bloomberg in the comments. The literal same defenses have been used to defend and support Trump. It’s amazing how some of you can’t connect the dots that you may be part of the problem as well. Just absolutely maddening seeing the Trump of the Democratic Party being defended — it’s every leftist criticism of the rot of moderates and the center with a neat bow around it.
14
@BReed The precise point is that he is not Trump, and that is all that matters in 2020. Just don't be Trump.
6
They are not so much as remarks (word) but actions he imposed on a group which made them victims of his policies.
6
It's interesting that Bernie Sanders has been sending the same consistent message for many years. Bloomberg is quite the opposite. Suddenly, he's a Democratic champion of the people. Not to long ago he was a Republican who was in favor of "slamming" young African-American and Latino males "against the wall" so they could be frisked in utter disregard of their Constitutional rights. The financial crisis? Due to not enough redlining on the part of mortgage lenders. Farmers? They're not very bright and neither are factory workers? Why not just call them deplorables or call them moochers as Romney called many Americans when he unsuccessfully ran for president. Bloomberg changed the law while mayor so he could run for a third term, and people think that Trump won't leave office? Bloomberg is arrogant, self-righteous, and thinks he knows what's best for everyone to the point where even Trump looks benign. Those who support him would do well to look more closely at his record. When it comes to women who have made allegations against him, Trump and Kavanaugh look passive compared to Bloomberg. Bloomberg thinks he can buy the presidency and if he can, our Democracy is stone cold dead. Hopefully the Dems will prevail in November but if it's Bloomberg, I will vote for and support Trump. If you support Bloomberg, it's because you hate Trump and have not bothered to vet Bloomberg.
14
Not a single mention of Bloomberg's comments towards women? In a campaign where a foil to Trump is desperately needed? People keep complaining about "hit pieces" against Bloomberg but I see the opposite happening.
14
@Independent
The Washington Post published a long, well researched and written article on that topic a couple of days ago. In particular, the woman who claimed Bloomberg said 'kill it' when he learned of her pregnancy has had two credible witnesses corroborate her story; one who was right there and heard the exchange, and another who was in an office nearby and was told the story directly by the woman immediately after the incident.
I'm not a Bloomberg fan but I don't believe he's running to protect the wealth of billionaires. I believe he is running to get Trump out of office. Bloomberg does not seem to have the integrity of the rest of the Democratic candidates. But the press should be comparing his past actions and his integrity to Donald Trump's. if he's the Democratic candidate he has a chance to beat Trump as do the other candidates. Bloomberg has not protected minorities and he has protected billionaires but Trump is a true racist and has done things for which he would be in jail were he not the President.
3
Now, it's Democrats ignoring facts. Bloomberg was correct about who was doing the gun crime in metropolitan areas, and he was right about redlining and the downturn. May be unpleasant to some people to hear, but its true.
7
@M
Democrats and ‘progressives’ have no interest in truth.
1
Quite a few voters flipped from Obama to Trump because they felt betrayed by a Democratic party that seemed more focused on protecting crooks on Wall Street than on helping the millions of people on Main Street who were devastated by the 2008 financial crisis. Why would these voters return to vote for an East Coast yacht-set billionaire?
7
Does Bloomberg have enough money to buy off all of the voters or is he only focusing on the "leaders" and "influencers "?
The reason I ask is that I heard it is relatively cheap for a Democratic politician to be bought, only costs 30 pieces of silver...
3
@WestCoastBestCoast
A 55" LG OLED "B" or better model would get MY vote. As soon as the truck pulls up and drops it off I will consider him. Until then? Nah.
What Bloomberg said, about the crime being in the minority neighborhoods, while "politically incorrect" was surely true. It still is true. It's true in my city. And Trump has said (and continues to say) FAR worse things.
10
i have always thought that business executives make lousy politicians, so used to getting what they want, giving orders. good business leaders are inclusive and communicate , leading with a positive attitude and enthusiasm. but, at end of day, their way. bloomberg is particularly arrogant and dictating. but the democrats have NO ONE ELSE. and he supports policies important to me. he may well be frustrated by congress, but , overall, a strong leader is a good thing. and, only democrat who scares trump. bloomberg can beat trump but if elected, he will have to make himself get along.
4
There is no other democratic candidate that can beat Trump. As this phase of the election grinds on, this becomes more and more clear. Bloomberg is the only guy who can take on Trump and win. So, is he perfect? Of course not. But he is socially liberal and willing to admit past mistakes - unlike Trump. He is a morally centered individual - unlike Trump. He is an experienced leader and he puts his money where his mouth is - unlike Trump. And he is realistic about how ideas, like Medicare For All, can actually get through congress. I'm voting for Mike.
12
Honestly? Let's put Bloomberg's comments next to the current President's comments and behavior--head to head comparison--and see what it looks like. Why are we wasting time drawing attention to what is a nano-blip by comparison. Please start focusing on what the issues are and what he will do to fix our country when he beats Trump.
13
I don't believe Mr. Bloomberg should be taken as anything more than a curiosity until we see if anyone votes for him. But, the last thing the general election needs is two take-no-prisoner style politicos from New York sniping at each other for the entire campaign. The prospects are so unpleasant it would be a surprise if anyone shows up to vote in November.
1
What’s more important: the off the cuff remarks years ago and a regretted policy or someone who can actually beat Trump? Keep your eyes on the goal. There’s nothing more important than beating Trump.
11
Americans are realizing that Michael Bloomberg is trying to circumvent the presidential primaries and control the narrative. He is doing it with money.
Up until now he hasn't faced the same scrutiny as the other candidates. He floods the airways with high priced Hollywoodesque "political ads". His tan is perfect, his suit is pressed and he's portraying himself as saving the world. His audience is always the perfect mix of ethnicities. We need to get him into the debates where he can't hide behind his campaign facade.
6
I didn't vote for Bloomberg for mayor, and it's "Hold Your Nose" time. However, unfortunately money talks, and another Bloomberg advantage would be his much greater wealth than Trump. He probably has inside information on the Trump business and could force his opponent onto the defensive and to possibly reveal more tax-related information.
8
Mike Bloomberg is not a saint, but who is? Is there any candidate who has a pristine record of saying and doing the right thing 100 percent of the time? A Trump win in 2020 will be the death knell for America and its institutions. You can bid farewell to the Rule of Law, and tp the First Amendment. Trump will do whatever it takes to shut down the free press and render it moot. He’s already going after NPR. At least MIke Bloomberg respects America’s institutions. I hope Jeff Bezos, no fan of Trump, would throw a few billion dollars at Democratic causes and candidates at the state and local level. If you loved tyranny in Europe in the 1930s and 1940s, you’ll love a second Trump administration.
9
Mike may spend a half a billion dollars by the end of the primaries, if he is not the Dems candidate will he go "independant" ? Throwing the kind of money out there without a win makes it hard to back out of the Presidential race.
The question is will the Dems dissect and mangle every candidate to the point that they become ineffective against the Trump?
4
It is great we vet our Presidential candidates so thoroughly. We comb through the archives going back to their college days checking out everything they said and did.
And yet we ended up with Trump. Go figure.
11
It's long past time to focus only our important socioeconomic issue. If Democrats don't stop tearing each other up Trump will win again.
5
"Past Remarks Are Troublesome for Bloomberg, and Fair Game for Rivals"
We know that the next election will be won or lost depending on the level of voter participation. So, the Republican strategists seem to have started a well-orchestrated effort to dampen democrats' enthusiasm for the 2020 election.
How are they doing that? Simple! First, eliminate the positives and accentuate the negatives of Democratic candidates. Then use generalities to persuade democratic voter that no Democratic candidate has any chance of defeating Trump. So, why bother to go to vote.
So, let's avoid generalities. Let's ask a few questions from Mr. Peters:
1. Exactly, on what basis does he believe that Bloomberg's past remarks are troublesome?
2. Even if we accept that his remarks are troubling, the obvious question is troublesome for whom? If his remarks were directed at black communities, and still the leadership in those communities are endorsing him, why should other voters be concerned?
3. Also, one has to wonder why Bloomberg's past comments, for which he has apologized, are troubling while Trump's past and present comments, for which he has never apologized, are not?
There are many articles in this very publican that carry negative undertones regarding the electability of this or that Democratic candidate. One has to wonder why The NYT is publishing them, given their obvious impacts on voter enthusiasm; thus, voter participation.
6
Bloomberg is promising everything to everyone in the Democratic base. That's just not a believable position.
There are only one or two big signature achievements a president can get through Congress. Progressives shouldn't be fooled.
How Bloomberg hopes to win over the heartland for an electoral college win remains a mystery.
3
Taken out of context completely. Yes, people with limited means (poor) and people with fair credit are higher risk. They are more likely to default on their loans when a medical emergency arises or when life happens. They are more likely to file claims on their insurance policies ( that’s why we use credit in part to develop a persons overall risk profile). Loans should only be offered to qualified people and we as a country should work to find a way to extend opportunity to poor people. Why would you want to loan money to someone with a high probability of paying late or never at all? My grandparents were poor working class Mexican Americans in south Texas. They purchased their home through a program in 1969. Their payments were low and my grandparents eventually paid off their mortgage. This program , call it socialist if you like helped my entire family. My aunt lived in the house when my uncle was in Vietnam and many beautiful memories were made there. This was made possible by a government housing program not by a bank forced to give loans to whomever. There is a housing and affordability problem .But giving loans to unqualified people is not the answer. this contributed to the housing crisis and I believe Bloomberg’s statement to be partially correct. Howeverthough I also believe the housing affordability is a problem and needs to be solved. Everybody should get a shot to own their own home. How to do it? I don’t know I not running for President.
3
We have to begin voting for Ideas rather than Images.
Our presidential elections have devolved into junior high school student government popularity contests.
Mr. Bloomberg is not perfect, he has made mistakes. Like most of us. I hope he has learned from those mistakes. I find it curious that his past behavior is under scrutiny while that of Mr. Trump is ignored.
10
First, he most certainly is a "career politician". His political ambition started when he decided to run for Mayor of New York. It continued after his run as mayor. He wanted to be president. A recent op-ed in the NYT detailed this effort. He piece by piece built his power and influence. And that influence was significant. A writer of a report about the NY police surveillance of Muslims, was told to rewrite that part of the report or get rid of it entirely. He was mentioned eight times and he might not like it. That part was dropped. When the writer of the article got into Virginia politics, he left a message for her so he could tell her why he should be president and "what he’s done with the Democratic Party." Not what he did "for" the party. That gives a hint of his attitude of ownership. But this time his political opponents are not gong to care if he gets upset. They are rip and tear on each other and most certainly will be towards him. He may not do as well as he wants in the upcoming primaries, but I doubt he drops out. He probably sees himself as the best candidate when the DNC decides none of the others can beat Trump. It is doubtful that he will be in any of the debates. Why should he? But if he is, they will be ones to watch.
1
A Bloomberg nomination would result in more votes for the Republican Party in November by Republicans and less votes for the Democratic Party by Democrats. I don't think this is what the majority of Americans would want to happen.
10
"The idea that a battle royale between two cantankerous billionaires with a host of problematic beliefs will engage less-connected voters is likely more chancy than many want to admit. In a worst-case scenario, it’s another version of what I like to call 'fantasy politics for Democratic moderates.' It’s not just that Democrats are selling their soul if Mike Bloomberg is the nominee. It’s that they could be selling it for naught," Senator Sanders told voters in California, where the latest polls have Sanders in the lead by as much as 14 points.
Bernie Sanders 2020 is supported by $95 million, raised via small-donor avg. $18.50 contributions, a record in grassroot funding. Then you have Butigigeg at $75 million, supported by 42 billionaires. And Mike Bloomberg (a Republican until 2018) joining the race and spending $300 million on TV ads and 400 paid staff in canvassing California for votes for him now. Is that what our "Democracy" amounts to these days?
Either way, the Oligarchy sees Trump vs Bloomberg as a win-win, same way they saw Trump vs Clinton.
13
Mayor Benjamin says Bloomberg is "not a career politician."
That may be true but he did spend 12 years as mayor of NYC. That's not exactly someone who just came on the political scene.
And I would believe those supporters who hold office more if they would swear not to accept future contributions from Bloomberg. As a resident of NYC during Bloomberg's mayorality, I saw the pernicious effects of his money. He got members of the city council who said they would never vote to overturn the voters' decision to impose term limits to do just that after Bloomberg dangled money to either support them in future elections or to support their opponents if they opposed him.
And if it was thing that Bloomberg needed to apologize for, perhaps it can be forgiven. But it is multiple things. I guess his campaign should be called the apology tour.
18
@Steve If you think we are going to defeat the criminal in the White House with someone who plays by the rules and can’t fight dirty, you are badly mistaken.
1
He's a Democrat by name only. The only reason he got into this race was to protect the incomes of the oligarchs who seem to believe they don't have to pay their fair share. This country has been floundering ever since "tax cuts for the wealthy" has become vogue. The middle class has been carrying the weight too long.
65
Actually, he’s opposite of what you described. He has pledged to raise corporate taxes and capital gains taxes on anyone whose income exceeds $1 million. Bloomberg doesn’t sound like a man who wants to retain his wealth. In the past few years, he has given billions of dollars away to charities. I remember in an interview he gave once where he stated that his goal would be to die with zero dollars to his name because that would mean he perfectly timed his death and the goal to give away his wealth to the causes he believes in.
9
@Chris
Bloomberg donated a lot of money to Democrats running for Congress in 2018, though.
4
@Chris And Sanders is not even a Democrat in name. He is too good and too ideologically pure to be one. And when your campaign is built around giving everyone “free” stuff you have no right to criticize some one else for buying the election .
5
I’m less concerned about the content of statements he made years ago than being able to trust him. He behaved a certain way for decades and now, all of a sudden in his late 70s, he’s woke and has regrets. That’s ridiculous. People that age don’t change. I think he’s more of a moderate Republican, with few of those remaining now, and only agrees with Democrats on a few issues- gun control, the environment, and abortion rights. If he becomes President, I look forward to seeing who the wealthiest person on Wall Street nominates to lead all of the financial regulators.
29
@BK People "that age" DO change; and people who are enlightened at any age are worth listening to. Bloomberg has the intelligence, the skill, the desire to beat Trump. Bloomberg's generosity and desire to assist Democrats is worthy of attention. We need this man; not one candidate has all the moral high ground, not one is perfect. He can win.
5
People that age don’t change?
3
Bloomberg snubs the heartland and hopes to buy enough ads in the big states to win the nomination.
Electoral college loss guaranteed with someone like Bloomberg, a coastal elitist with nothing to offer to swing states.
25
The world has changed greatly in the past decade. Mr. Bloomberg is nothing if not pragmatic and he knows that the future of America is now dependent on people of color being part of a strong middle class.
DJT is ripping, an already fraying society, to shreds and there is no putting it back together without the participation of "all" of us. Bloomberg knows that. I think that African Americans are realistic in their votes and will go with the candidate who knows how to create jobs, fight climate change and is in support of gun law changes.
At this point in time I doubt that people of color are looking for the perfect candidate nor do they expect racism to go away. An organized society, good wages and common sense are needed to fix this country. I think white people (I am white btw) overestimate how much people of color hunger for our approval. I also think that Bloomberg sees the color green as the most important and he is someone who sees America sinking and looks to right the ship. Let's stop litigating the past.
38
@Lcall
Stop and frisk was already litigated. It was found unconstitutional because of it’s discriminatory effect on ethnic minorities. Bloomberg still supports it. Currently. Why would any ethnic minority support someone who supports racially discriminatory police practices, especially when none of the other democratic candidates do?
6
@Blarn
" Bloomberg still supports it. Currently."
This is a flat-out lie.
Watching American politics is fascinating. While I won’t comment on Bloomberg’s past statements and policies, the recurring comment from candidates and supporters of him “buying the election” is ironic. Every US politician “buys” the election through their campaign donations - the difference with Bloomberg is that he’s “buying” it with his own money, not someone else’s...
71
@Mike B
But that is a pretty important distinction. "Someone else's" money is supposed to be donations from the electorate, IOW a form of public endorsement.
That isn't how it works since Citizen's United, but that is the theory.
5
While Citizen’s United was, and remains, a travesty, isn’t equating donations with support just another form of disenfranchisement? Even without it though, how can elections establish a government by the people and for the people if it is predicated on donations as a form of endorsement? Wouldn’t huge swathes of the electorate (e.g., low income and middle class families living paycheque-to-paycheque who may be barely making ends meet) be therefore excluded from supporting candidates with priorities aligned with theirs, enabling candidates with alternative policy goals favoring the wealthy to prevail? (I recognize that this is essentially what happens already)
Money politics are likely forever intertwined with no viable silver bullet... interesting thought exercise though...
2
good comment until we have taxpayer-funded elections I favor small donations and money from the candidate's own pocket over large donations and corporate donations.
3
Bloomberg built one of the world's largest media companies from the ground up. He was the best mayor New York has had in at least a half century.
Sanders has named a couple of Post Offices. You decide who is more fit to be President.
84
@Sparky Senator Sanders was elected 8 times, sometimes with a 70% margin in Vermont, by Democrats, Republicans, Independents, and even Labor Party and Libertarians.
#BernieSanders crushes Trump by 18 points among Independent Voters, who currently represent 42% of registered voters. They out number both major political parties. Sanders is also the #1 choice of Latino voters, young voters and young black voters.
In 2016, when the Progressive Democrats had the courage to nominate Bernie Sanders to go up against the 1% CEO/investments candidate, a full 75% of Democratic-voters under age 50 voted for Sanders.
He was the senior member of the US House Budget committee and became known as the "Amendment King" for his brilliant ways of working around DC gridlock.
When Bernie Sanders is president, #NotMeUS movement will support him in every way. First and foremost, every news cycle, every week will be filled with the fact that corporations are currently paying in a record low federal revenue of 3%, compared to the 50% federal tax revenue that came from corporations in the 1970's with the USA had a thriving middle class that was the envy of Europe.
President Sanders will be a uniting Progressive Force FINALLY for Real Change.
10
@Sparky Probably the guy that doesn’t still support racially discriminatory police practices that have already been found unconstitutional by the courts.
2
@Sparky - the choice is crystal clear: Bernie Sanders
4
In this political age of Trump, every single criticism of Michael Bloomberg that can be perceived as a drawback may also be seen as reasons to vote for him.
Trump doesn't apologize and if Bloomberg hopes to become President he will probably be cautious about being too contrite for decisions that he made that carried with them inherent political consequences.
With Bloomberg's money and the influence he has bought, he appears to be untouchable. At this point there is nothing he has done or could do that would disqualify him from becoming President and everyone, I mean everyone, knows that he is the only candidate with the background and financial resources to capture the White House.
At this point, the media is doing due diligence by documenting his past, but it is probably going to have about as much of a chance of hobbling his candidacy as it would if Trump shot someone on Fifth Avenue.
31
@PeterW I wonder who has more sexual harassment claims against them: Bloomberg or Trump.
That this does not matter to Democrats shows Trump has made them as crazy as the voters who excuse Trump.
2
I would have preferred that Bloomberg NOT apologize for his ‘stop and frisk’ policy. The policy saved lives, especially those of color. And it made neighborhoods safer. Of course there should be equal treatment but that must require ‘equally behavior’. Simply watching the evening news reminds us that the behavior of some is far from being the same as others. Everyone seems so focused on ‘diversity’, but unfortunately, when it comes to crime in the tri state area, there is very little diversity and most of us don’t seem to care about THAT lack of diversity.
19
@Malone Cooper The policy was deemed unconstitutional because it discriminated against people of color. Apparently you, like Bloomberg, are ok with that.
Thank God he has no actual chance of winning.
2
@Blarn
Lots of people are OK with that. Including most of the people who lived in the affected communities, where stop & frisk reduced crime rates significantly.
@Blarn
People of color are the suspects in almost every crime in the tristate area, as seen on the local news every night. Jesse Jackson himself made a comment years ago to the affect, that if he's walking on a quiet street at night, he'd hope that the kids making noise behind him were not people of color.
These same people are themselves discriminating against their own by victimizing mostly people of color. When policy claims that it is unconstitutional to target the people who commit most of the crime...that's when we get a president like Trump. But I guess you're ok with that, as you're ok with Blacks targeting other Blacks.
When you have repeated mistakes that follow a pattern, they are not a rare lapse that can be forgiven. Rather, they are evidence of an underlying code of beliefs and assumptions. There is no reason to believe that the underlying code has changed.
If politics were a marathon race, Mike would be viewed as taking a limo to the 26 mile mark and running the last 3/10ths of a mile.
The offering of apologies repairs no past damages.
181
@RM
And it wasn't like he was just someone expressing opinions that people could decide whether or not to agree with. He was mayor of the largest city in the country for 12 years and able to make those opinions into policy.
20
@RM
Right, and this is why it's so important that we accept the reality:
Mike Bloomberg has apologized AND has put forth the most progressive pro-Black American agenda of any other candidate, not just in this election, but any prior election. It's clear you haven't looked into any of Mike's plans. If we're going to be so focused on past records (and we absolutely should be), then it cannot be ignored that when Bloomberg puts a plan forward and pledges it will get done, it will get done. He doesn't promise pie in the sky, because he cannot deliver pie in the sky. He promises real solutions to real problems and the record demonstrates this.
In sharp contrast, Sanders has no concrete plans or actionable strategies for anything. Just more divisive, unproductive rhetoric aimed at disenfranchised voters. Sanders has proven over decades that he is incapable of achieving anything of significance whatsoever. He'd lose to Trump, but in the remote hypothetical that he a) wins the nomination and then (even more unlikely) b) wins the presidency, we'd be looking at 4 years of spinning tires, wasting trillions of dollars, and alienating Americans who actually work and drive the economy.
21
@Ltron - Former Sen. Majority Leader Harry Reid, an icon in Nevada's Democratic politics, told reporters, "I care a great deal about Bernie Sanders. And he has gotten where he has by having people support him. And so I'm not going to be critical of Bernie Sanders." -- Meanwhile, Sanders was clear in his message: "Democracy is not billionaires spending hundreds of millions of dollars trying to get elected. Democracy is when working people stand up and fight for justice."
Trump vs Bloomberg is a win-win for the Oligarchy, just like Trump vs Clinton.
19
This self-flagellation is getting tiresome. Here is a potential candidate that, without question, supports gun control, women's rights, environmental issues, is politically moderate and, as much as any leader did, brought back NYC from the utter chaos of 911. I once met Bloomberg at a breakfast for small neighborhood businessmen. I was blown away by his granular knowledge of issues, how X affects Y affects Z, and the law of unintended consequences. He challenged conventional wisdom (and the teachers' union, another "progressive" blind-spot) in an effort to change the narrative of failing schools. As for that 'red lining' comment, unfortunately "opposition research" seeks to discredit targets as it distorts context. See: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/15/opinion/bloomberg-redlining.html
While Bloomberg's efforts on affordable housing is mixed, the number of homeless has not improved under his progressive successor after 8 years. Clearly, it's a knotty problem that defies 15-second sound bites.
He was instrumental in pushing two projects that secures New York's long-term future: the Roosevelt Island hi-tech campus that will make NYC a world competitor in basic sciences, and completion of Water Tunnel No. 3, the very unsexy but most important city infrastructure project in the last 100 years that mayor after mayor kicked down the road.
So stop picking nits and tell me how the other candidates are better or achieved more -- not Pollyanna promises, but actual achievements.
283
@Mel Laytner yes, we need someone capable of analyzing complex issues and choosing the best option. Trump didn't even kn I w the significance of the Arizona Museum at Pearl Harbor until he was told by John Kelly.
I don't care if Bloomberg made crude jokes about women; his policies will benefit women, and everyone else.
8
@Mel Laytner Well for one, he is quite literally buying the election. That should give any rational person some pause. It's interesting that you fail to address his stop and frisk nonsense, a policy that is very clearly racist and authoritarian. He fought long and hard with courts and the people to keep it in tact as long as possible. He defended it as early as January 2019. Mike Bloomberg is not a moderate. He is a billionaire republican who is subverting democracy.
7
@kcl 64 different women have filed sexual harassment complaints against Mike Bloomberg. He is a serial abuser, simple as that. These aren't just "crude jokes".
5
Interesting comments. Bloomberg may be controversial when considering his past mistakes. But, if he is really repentant of his old remarks, and willing to do better, the American people are a forgiving bunch...and may give him a chance, and the benefit of the doubt, and accept him as one more of the current democratic candidates. Still worrisome is at least the appearance that Bloomberg is trying to buy the election. However, he is infinitely better than the current vulgar bully, a professional liar, and forever cheater, trampling on this suffering democracy as if there was no tomorrow. Therefore, anybody but Trump ought to be acceptable. Can you imagine 4 more years of a mafia holding hostage the administration, when there is a complicit republican party willing to look the other way? The worry is the fickleness of the electorate...if their favorite is out.
44
Most people have said or done things in their lives that are not reflective of who they are. So, whatever comments Bloomberg may have made is water under the bridge. He is from a different time when being "politically correct" was not yet known. Look at Biden, his language or comments about black people and other minorities have been criticized many times. Americans need to be pragmatic and see what the candidate has to offer not just his language or past comments. Biden has proven not viable, so Bloomberg's candidacy is now offering another alternative to American voters fighting to defeat putin and his cabal at congress and the WH.
49
@Alice HdM I'm just a few years younger than Bloomberg and I know exactly how Bloomberg's attitudes have been treated in the world I have lived in: they are the words and deeds of a racist and a misogynist. My parents and my husband's parents (who grew up in the Depression) taught us never to use that kind of language. It's nothing new to treat others with decency. I'd accept his apologies if they weren't just another political transaction made for a single purpose.
4
We are voting to hire a chief executive for the largest economy and military in the world. Most past presidents were not qualified including President Obama, so we must stop this terrible habit of electing based on feelings, hope and theory. Voters are investors so their goal should be to elect a president who has the experience to manage and move forward such a big country in collaboration with its governors. Bloomberg has the know how and the relationships with the mayors and governors who would work in tandem with him to implement policies. Sanders, Warren don’t as much as I like them, and Trump is a Bomb.
65
@Hisham Oumlil: Sure Hisham. That's exactly what we were told about Cheney and Rumsfeld.
3
Hisham .. great post. I for one want to hire a president that us capable of running the huge corporation that is the us govt. if Bloomberg is president that means Bernie Elizabeth Cory kalema and a host of other progressives are still in the Senate, I hope in the majority. what is everyone worried about... or do you think that the Senate the house and all the governors and state attorneys general roll over and die if Bloomberg is president. ????
1
As an independent who absolutely will never vote for a Republican again at any level, I am relieved and thrilled to support Boomberg for president. Finally, an intelligent, confident, socially and environmentally progressive but econicamly conservative and sane person who knows how to get the right things done and run an organization, which is what the presidency is actually intended to do. Let the politically correct Berners sit home again this election; Bllomberg will activate and win the key independents and heretofire unheralded but disgusted Republicans in the swing states.
92
@JCX yes, same here I will never believe or vote for any Republican candidate. Their lockstep support of this liar, cheat, and all around abomination has proved to me that they cannot be trusted to do the right thing.
It is a sad day when the very people who should be reigning in trump have decided that they are ok with his criminal acts. Where is their moral decency, where is there obligation to defend our democracy? If the republicans are not doing their job, they don't deserve to be in office.
5
You would think Bloomberg had been arrested at a Klan rally in Queens in 1928 from all the hyperventilating in the media this weekend. I have listened to the complete interview recordings of Bloomberg. He sounds articulate and real smart. Like the other Democratic candidates would like to sound. Trump and Sanders with their blowhard demagogic styles could never sound as thoughtful and thorough. There is a reason more African American elected officials have endorsed Bloomberg than any other candidate. If the hyperventilating latte-sipping liberals could ever show the same common sense Bloomberg would get the Democratic nomination and win the general election in a landslide.
138
@Bananahead
The African American elected officials who have endorsed Bloomberg are those whose pet projects he's backed or donated to.
3
@Bananahead very interesting that you've listened to Bloomberg's interviews, not excerpts...the whole thing, and think that banks refusing loans to people in lower income areas was what prevented financial crisis and that such logic is articulate and real smart. Very interesting.
We can agree to back Bloomberg because of the larger goal but to say that his past remarks that he has apologized for, are articulate and real smart is...interesting.
Every week Bloomberg is going to have to pretend to apologize for another thing that he said or did that shows that he is a Republican trying to hijack the Democratic Nomination. He is hijacking this election so that the Republican Party and global billionaires can't lose it.
I mean, what better way to fix an election than to make it between two of your own candidates?
If you are in a fight, or a battle and fear takes over and you panic, then you lose. We the People must be resolved and stay loyal to process, because it is process that Trump is attacking.
Instead of panicking after two out of fifty states, why don't we let the current candidates finish the primaries that they started by following the rules and participating in the debates? Then in a few months, we can all get behind the candidate that won, and beat Trump.
Trump is a danger to the Constitution because the Constitution is a set of rules and Trump keeps manipulating them. The way that Bloomberg is manipulating the Democratic Primaries shows that he is the same as Trump. Mini-Trump can't beat Trump, and even if he does, the rest of us still lose.
We don't need a candidate to trade insults with a rude president.
We need a candidate that has always fought for the 60% of the population that works for a wage plus their families.
We need a contrast to Trump. Otherwise, what did we win?
24
@McGloin
Bloomberg has spent millions of dollars fighting climate change, supporting gun control, supporting a woman's right to choose and helping put Democrats in office in 2018.
That's a real contrast to Trump.
31
@McGloin How can you align Bloomberg with Trump? As human beings, we make mistakes. Surely you see that Bloomberg's mistakes pale in comparison to Trump's. Please understand that the rest of the country is not in a coastal bubble: Middle Americans will never go for Sanders or Warren in great numbers in the general election who they see as way too far to the left. So far we have only seen the votes of diehard Democrats.
Bloomberg is a moderate who will attract not only middle of the road Democrats but Republicans who are sick of Trump. He is the only one who can win against Trump in the general election. Surely that the greatest consideration here. Besides, he is mature, experienced and very accomplished. Are you actually holding his financial success against him? I have never heard anything about dishonesty in how he attained his riches-- have you? As for his political machine, it is indicative of his brilliant administrative qualities; his problem solving ability and his efficiency. He is the one who gave us the NYC of today-- who pulled us out of the destruction of 9/11 and built the quality of life you enjoy in Brooklyn today.
3
I think when you make a conspiratorial argument like in the first part of your comment, it really undermines your overall credibility. I’m just saying.
We put up with Bloomberg's elitism in New York because it's a complex city to run, it's heavily dependent on Wall Street, we're used to people like him, and we remember what the city was like before Giuliani addressed the crime issue.
Even when he changed the laws to allow himself a 3rd term, we went along because we knew things could be a lot worse.
To expect all Americans to be as accepting is another matter. The rest of the country isn't like the City of New York.
19
@AACNY Except the anti-Trump part of the electorate is pretty disgusted, especially now with Trump's increasingly unhinged acts. And voters increasingly understand that Bloomberg has the money to fight Trump, much more than the other candidates. That could win over a lot of people.
19
@AACNY It's simply a distortion to say "he changed the law". He asked the city council to change the law. They voted (voted) to do so. There was no gun to their head. At the time, the NYT endorsed him as an effective mayor. And, things have gotten a lot worse with the current administration in power.
1
@Reva Cooper
Yes, they are disgusted. They desperately want someone to punch back at Trump and give him that bloody nose they've been desiring for years.
Bloomberg is their "revenge" candidate. Their hatred suddenly has a home, and it's with Mike.
1
As a black woman, I'm voting for Bloomberg. His comments from the past are troublesome, but compared to Trump the guy is not that bad. As much as I love and adore Biden, he unfortunately does not have the resources to help the black community like Bloomberg does. Mike literally has the funds to carry out what he promises to do, should he win the 2020 election. Mike is the only one who can beat Trump. Mike is Trump's worst nightmare.
161
@Isabella
Bloomberg is not going to be spending his personal fortune if he becomes the Democratic nominee - he'll be spending taxpayer monies.
If he stays true to form, his spending and policies are going to enrage trump supporters and likely won't sit well with the Democratic party faithful - but he won't be trump.
No one should kid themselves; Bloomberg is a autocrat, he brooks no dissent and believes his ideas alone will better our country. Bloomberg is not a 'nice guy'; he's a very smart guy and a very rich guy with zero exposure to American life as most Americans live it. The rich are not just 'different' than you and me, they live in another world where their bidding is done quickly and without question, they don't care for other's opinions or expertise generally and are intentionally insulated from those of average income and especially the poor.
Is he better than Trump? Yes. Is he president material? No.
13
"Mike" won't help the black community with "his" resources and his stance on stop and frisk is unforgivable but I will vote for him if he's the Democratic nominee. Until then, I'm a Bernie bro!
2
@Juno Thank you Juno! I couldn't agree more.
There is no perfect candidate. I'm sick and tired of everyone jumping in and tearing apart people once they surge in the polls.
Any Democratic candidate in the field--in the debates, or not yet in the debates, has flaws, warts, embarrassing past statements, retractions--yet any one of them is 100% better than the tyrant in the White House.
If Democrats continue to self-immolate, they have only themselves to blame when their purity tests, and pickiness, elects Donald Trump.
123
@ChristineMcM There is no perfect candidate but "not-a-republican in the last decade" is pretty high up my list of qualifications
2
@ChristineMcM Instead of ripping the Democratic candidates to shreds, I'd like to see the NYT columnists focus on whenweallvote.org and encourage readers to do all they can to get out the vote.
1
Pull up all the old tapes you want and yammer endlessly about it. But the final question is, who is the best bet to defeat trump? Everything else is meaningless.
91
Note to Democrats who are carping on some past remarks of candidates: Access Hollywood.
39
Insensitive according to who? What was said was accurate. Some people have obviously a problem accepting a spade for what it is - a spade! To some, the truth appears to be inconvenient politically.
24
Where was all this contrition before he decided to run for president? Very convenient...
Bloomberg‘s been a believer in the same low tax (particularly on capital and business income), low regulation economic policies advocated by Trump‘s team. Similarly, his views on education are virtually identical to those of Betsey DeVoss (privatization over investment in public education). He always was, and still is, a free trader, currying favor with China’s overlords. And finally, he has evidenced no affinity for unions, seeing them as “distorting the market” for labor. In short, he’s a classic neoliberal of the kind that has championed the policies that created the vast inequities in income, wealth and political influence that currently afflict our nation.
Others may find backing Bloomberg as justified by “exigent circumstances” — i.e., the abominations of Donald Trump — I do not. I see it as backing a continuation of the very same policies (absent foreign affairs, immigration and the environment) that make Trump so unacceptable.
Sixty billion dollars buys a lot of “friends.” If he’s truly converted, let him stop monopolizing the media, self-funding his campaign (read “buying the nomination”), and put himself before the people in debates to defend his record in person, like everyone else.
We’ve had enough of entitled billionaire saviors. It’s time for the people to take charge.
32
Hillary lost because African-Americans sat that one out. But now we think Bloomberg is the electable one? On top of that, I don’t see White blue collar workers warming up to a billionaire from Manhattan who thinks he’s smarter than them. What are people thinking? Bloomberg can’t beat Trump!
24
@Iris Arco That’s an incorrect talking point trotted out to make Black people responsible for others’ actions. Trump is president because of underreported VOTER SUPPRESSION in Black communities. Secondly, 53% of White Women voters pulled the lever for Trump over one their own.
2
@Iris Arco
"I don’t see White blue collar workers warming up to a billionaire from Manhattan who thinks he’s smarter than them." Yet they voted for Trump who is a billionaire from Manhattan who thinks he’s smarter than them. Duh!
Democratic candidates, instead of concentrating on their outreach to voters, are busy beating each other up. Best way I can think of for them to lose the Presidential campaign.
16
@Jan Warfield I think the press is doing it more than the candidates themselves. Most of them are running respectable campaigns.
1
He was right to focus police where the crime was, and government requiring agencies to target low income lending did lead to the financial crisis. Get over it.
35
@Keith No. He doesn't have the right to "throw someone against a wall" because of the color of their skin. It's unconstitutional. Find another way of finding the bad guys than banging everyone who has a specific race.
5
While others are busy attacking Bloomberg, Bloomberg is down and dirty in the fight against Trump, whose decades of impolitic and insensitive remarks and problematic policy stances are far worse than anyone else's. In case anyone needs reminding, the White House is currently leading a frontal assault on democracy. Candidates, you have one job: Get rid of Trump. If you're not really serious about that, if you can't focus on it, if you're not surely ready to achieve it, then please step aside and let Bloomberg lead.
34
@Joe down and dirty? Yes, you could say that for a Twitter bragging on who has more money and who is the genuine billionaire as far as their exchange got.
1
Bloomberg is appealing to conservative Democrats in Republican states who are ignorant of his political history. Great...
Let's face it. Bloomberg is a Never Trump Republican attempting to hijack the Democratic nomination. He can't run as a Republican because Trump Republicans will sabotage their own primary to defeat him. He has to buy his way back into Democratic circles.
However, as Harry Reid's Chief of Staff recently noted, "...if the Democratic Party gave the nomination to a billionaire who supported Mr. Bush [George W.], it might as well shoot a big chunk of the Democratic electorate into space and hand Mr. Trump his re-election."
That's about the most intelligent assessment of Bloomberg I've heard to date. The guy is damaged goods. That Christians in Texas are presently unaware is hardly surprising. However, you're basically asking the entire left-leaning constituency along with minorities, women, labor, and progressives to stay home next election.
Wrong answer. Try again.
27
Have you forgotten that Trump was a long time Democrat that successfully tried to hijack the Republican nomination because he knew he would get more attention (attention was all he wanted, he never dreamed he would be elected) in the Republican primary?
1
@Andy How can you make such sweeping generalizations? I am a woman and a progressive Democrat, and I would absolutely vote for Bloomberg IF he looks to be the best chance of defeating Trump. I intend to vote for the eventual nominee, I don't care which candidate gets it. ALL of them are better than Trump. They will get my vote in the general and I'll be there to vote as long as I am still breathing.The media puts candidates in tiny little boxes, not the voters. Let the primaries play out. If voters don't want Bloomberg then he'll have to bow out due to low support. If he gains in support then it's what the majority wants. Anyone who would sit it out because they think he is no better than Trump is ridiculous. Look around? This is as good as it gets under Trump. If he wins, all bets are off.
Two items jump out this past weekend. 1) The mendacity and hypocrisy of Bloomberg, and 2) the toxicity of Black American politics. Bloomberg's own words and actions confirm the former, while his firehose of cash plays into the latter. Listening to MSNBC and CNN in recent days confirms what South Carolina and the Black vote is really about. Cash. Anecdotes of campaign workers leaning toward Buttigieg, but jumping on the Bloomberg bandwagon for $6,500 are but one example. We've heard many Black politicians talk about the need for campaigns to "invest" in these areas, a dog whistle for nothing more than buying support and votes from the preachers and politicians there, and their friends and families. Representative Jim Clyburn confirmed it on CNN on Sunday morning, noting that the money matters. He is smart enough to withhold his endorsement until the bitter end, presumably when the stakes (and price) for his support is highest. And here is where Bloomberg exploits that toxicity, using raw cash to whitewash his track record. Black leaders sell out principle for that cash, going out of their way to say "he apologized" and act like comments from 2015 were eons ago. Don't be surprised if Clyburn endorses Bloomberg from out of nowhere. Politicians have to eat too, right?
15
@TL
Mitch McConnell bought off Republican Senators from impeaching Trump by promising them "dark money" contributions for their forthcoming campaigns. Only Mitt Romney, who has his own money, held out against this.
Nobody is more financially corrupt than the current G.O.P. president and Congress.
We can clutch our pearls and say Bloomberg's use of his money is bad and corrupt or we can take Bloomberg's money to get rid of McConnell and Trump. You decide.
47
Mike Bloomberg has the wherewithal to beat Donald Trump. Full stop. The American people can’t fund a candidate the way Trumpworld and Russian oligarchs can fund a candidate. And now it appears Mark Zuckerberg is throwing in for Trump too. I’m sorry to all the Democrats who want a purity test, but we just don’t have time for it right now. Let’s put out the fire that’s been Donald Trump, assess the damage and get to work with healthcare, taxes, infrastructure, gun safety (which Sanders opposes) , women’s reproductive rights and all the other things Trump is assaulting on a daily basis. Win now, rebuild the Democratic Party, rebuild our country and move forward. Democratic Socialism will have to wait another decade while we rebuild and educate the population about policies. We aren’t there yet.
31
There's an old Korean saying that if we shake anyone's jacket vigorously enough, some dust will inevitably come out.
That's the perspective we need to apply to Bloomberg's bid for the Democratic nomination. He has apologized for the overzealous crime control tactics during his NYC mayoralty and other lapses of judgment, such as on women, in his private business before, so we need to look at the larger platform that he now offers along with his reflectiveness, his integrity, his intelligent eloquence, and his pugilistic persona that the nation needs to cleanse the White House of its current fetid odor.
His program is all progressive without the risk of being labeled "radical" by any standard. On jobs and wages, on equitable access to healthcare and higher education, on climate control, on equal rights for all, on infrastructure, on unifying the divided nation , on repairing the seriously-damaged global standing of the U.S., on running a corruption-free and fully competent government and a whole lot more, I fully trust his message. It's not merely words but is backed by a personal and administrative-and political record that is outstanding for the most part. Even his charitable causes give us a good window on his laudable social conscience .
Yet some refuse to see the corrective power of his potential. Others, incredibly, keep calling him a thinly-veiled Republican whose very status as a multibillionaire should be treated as suspect. So petty, so disheartening!
28
@VCM I meant to write "...on climate change and gun control...." Sorry for the typos.
I thought Bloomberg’s joining the race was insanity, but so far, he seems to be the only candidate who knows how to swipe back at Trump. I still think most of the field is too old, but I want to see Trump lose more than I want to see anyone candidate win.
20
It’s very hypocritical for Sen. Sanders demagoguing Bloomberg’s "stop and frisk” policy in order to score political point, considering Sanders was against immigration at that time.
14
There is actually a big difference between being against immigration (what is perfectly OK with the Constitution), and harassment of the American citizens based on color of their skin ( what Is unconstitutional) .
5
Bloomberg is not the savior. He’s another ego-driven billionaire who recently switched parties because he saw it as his oath to he power of the presidency. We already have one of those, and it’s one too many.
10
Bloomberg is the smartest and most capable candidate the Democrats have. How can you tell? Look at the talent he attracts in running his business, in running NYC and now running for President. Another way to tell is by simply looking at who all of the other candidates are attacking.
26
@trob
Hooray, it's the "best and the brightest" all over again! The same people who gave us Vietnam, Iraq, and the financial crisis, will be there to lie for Bloomberg, and what's worse, they're good at it. His cabinet will look like a Madame Tussaud's recreation of the Goldman Sachs boardroom.
1
When someone shows you who they are believe them. It’s not a matter of impolitic remarks. It’s that those remarks led to destructive actions. In New York Bloomberg’s words led to actions that hurt people unnecessarily. They way he talked to, and about, people not of his race or class is how he treated them. City workers, homeless people, blacks, Muslims, women, demonstrators were derided, deprived and jailed. When he decided to overturn the law to get a third mayoral term the people he showered his largesse on were people from groups he had previously insulted. They owed him and they came out to support him like they do now. It’s politic to now say he’s sorry but I bet he’s not. The past is not dead, it’s not even past.
8
I won't argue that moral behavior is a relative, that if someone else does something bad that makes it OK for you to also do something bad. We each must strive to do our best. And then we must answer for any of our misdeeds, as Mayor Bloomberg is doing here.
OK, but that said, since we're talking about "decades" of remarks, I can't help but note that the Washington Post has been counting the number of lies that President Trump has told in his 37 months as president—he's currently over 16,000. Also note that I don’t think that over the course of his lifetime he has ever apologized for a single misdeed.
16
The notion that "only Bloomberg has the resources to beat Trump" feels like a Mulberry Street extortion racket where one powerful mob boss promises to protect us from another.
All these donations to women's causes and African American churches and organizations were calculated purchases for Bloomberg's own political self interests.
Bloomberg's lies and distortions are nearly as bad as Trumps. Bloomberg did not endorse Obama in 2008. His advertisements now seem to portray that Obama is endorsing Bloomberg.
Democrats should send him packing back to Bermuda. That's where he prefers to spend his weekends.
14
There is a rising sense of inevitability about Bloomberg's campaign. What should have been clear two years ago to democratic leadership is now coming into focus: When the house is on fire, you need a firefighter, not an architect. Now is not the time for the radical redesign blueprints of Warren or Sanders. If the party had unified behind Biden early, Bloomberg would have stayed home and written PAC checks. But he rightly foresaw that Biden might falter. Buttigieg would decimate Trump in the debates but he won't win Virginia, Pennsylvania, Florida or Ohio. Perhaps a Bloomberg-Harris or Bloomberg-Abrams ticket is in the offing?
16
It does seem to me that Bloomberg may have some insights into what caused the 2008 financial crisis. Perhaps he should not have said it, but the end of redlining may have been a factor.
10
What's the purpose of the presidency? Is it to be an effective leader of the federal government's agencies? Or is it to use the bully pulpit to set direction for the nation's policy?
The answer is probably both. And this is why my view of Bloomberg is conflicted. As a manager and executive, Bloomberg seems by far the most effective of all the candidates. He has a good record managing New York City's finances. And of course, he's had immense success managing his private businesses. His campaign has also been exceptionally well-run—aided of course by the immense amount of money he has to fund the effort—but still notable for its effectiveness so far.
Switching to the bully pulpit side of the job, Bloomberg certainly can be a bully. He's got an authoritarian streak, and he projects an "alpha male" personality. He's a bit stubborn, confident, almost cocksure. That's effective, but it's also dangerous. If the policy he is promoting is bad, effectiveness in promoting it can be disastrous.
So what about policy? There are many reassuring signs: he's strong on climate change and gun control and he's donated a lot of money to very good, liberal-leaning organizations. But on economic and social justice, there are alarming signs: he called Obamacare a disgrace, he's opposed living wage laws, he's suggested redlining should have been allowed, he's said many dismissive things about women, and of course there's stop & frisk.
Bloomberg seems a highly effective manager, but to what end?
2
Democratic Party being such a disorganized and unfocused mess is what is going to secure Trump’s re-election. Trump knows this as he watches the DNC implode (I’ve heard it referred to as the DNC sleepwalking) I will vote blue no matter who is on the ballot b/c Trump has to go but I’m seriously worried they will not secure a candidate who can actually beat Trump. Bernie can’t beat Trump. I will vote for him if he wins the nomination but he won’t win.
5
It’s more than remarks. You can’t have a nominee for president who actively engaged in, promoted, and defended policies that traumatized and scarred tens of thousands of innocent people.
At least not a democratic one.
Trump will destroy him over stop and frisk, the red lining defense, you name it, and that will further alienate the democratic base that we need to get out the vote.
Bloomberg bought himself a third mayoral term and barely eked out a victory against an unknown, underfunded opponent. People don’t like him. He’s polling well now because he hasn’t actually played the sport, he’s only run ads showing himself sinking three pointers.
There is no reason to vote for Bloomberg over a Biden. If you’re looking for a moderate, Biden is a far better option.
4
Running for the presidency of the United States would not be a piece of cake.
Bloomberg knew that going in but he underestimated our free press and the degree to which he would be denigrated for his past mistakes.
He is forging ahead anyway in this race. Statistics indicate that he is making real progress much as he has done before in his life.
I respect Michael Bloomberg even with his published faults which are now coming "fast and furious."
His faults don't bother me. He probably would be an effective president but i'm against Citizens United so i don't want Michael Bloomberg or anyone else buying the presidency of our country. That is one "item" that is not for sale.
Democratic senate leader Chuck Schumer said that "Overturning Citizens United is probably more important
than any other single thing we could do preserve this grand democracy"
We tell the Republicans that they can't have things both ways and neither can we Democrats.
There must be another Democrat who can beat Trump !
@M.W. Endres ...and you don't think trump is "buying" the presidency? He's just dping it with other people's money!
Doesn’t this line of thinking imply that a tiger can’t change its stripes? Is it possible that an intelligent and resourceful person, one who consistently has demonstrated the capacity to learn and change - he got fired on the cusp of middle age and got busy changing - could have learned and changed from his experience as mayor? Or, if it’s ‘explained’ as mere calculation: I must say these things to get what I want’, then is it any different from Trump, who in his past has espoused any number of liberal lines and hung out with the Clintons?
Personally I think there is a clear distinction between these two men. They aren’t even the same kind of billionaire. Hold people accountable, yes, but I doubt that hauling everyone before a Committee for Liberal Safety will ultimately produce much in the way of genuine change.
1
Bloomberg will be a far greater defeat then Clinton was if nominated. » Anyone but Trump » is quite of an inefficient slogan considering Trump’s popularity in his own party. Then take in account the large sway of left leaning independents, progressive youth and Sanders supporting Democrats whose vote will be either missing either against an ex Republican billionaire buying the nomination.
The anti establishment vote brought Trump and will keep him in power unless DNC decide to finally support their own anti establishment candidate whose integrity, history and convictions are far more genuine and recognized as such even by the majority of Trump’s supporters.
To all who believe that Sanders could be brought down for his self determination as a democratic socialist, for Christ Sake, none really care about it especially when Bloomberg wealth, establishment standing and connections come into light.
People has pronounced quite clearly their preferences
in 2016 and despite that Clinton got more votes the scenario will repeat itself with far more deafening noise unless the Democratic establishment decides
to actually go and defeat Trump instead walking the road to another election disaster that will spell the end of the party for at list a generation.
You truly want to stop Trump? Statistics are clearly showing the only candidate who can and will do that. Sanders.
As for him being socialist .. that is truly hilarious, for anyone who knows what socialism actually means.
6
Sanders lost a LOT of votes in the New Hampshire primary, a state next door to his home town. To an untested newcomer, Pete.
Same for Warren
That proved to everyone how flawed the current crop of candidates is to mainstream America.
Time to face reality
5
Just remember 2016. If we want another 4 years of what we've already been going through forget about Bloomberg.
And if anyone thinks it's going to get better, that's just a dream. Our incumbent President is just beginning, and he'll continue to destroy what's left of our democracy and our earth.
Trump's Wizard in the back room is Brad Parscale with also BILLION dollar budget, subsidized by their other wealthy "government on the head of a pin" guys.
The only probability of maintaining our future, is supporting Bloomberg. Yes, like all of us he's imperfect. However, he's the only one who can successfully and financially rebut their second term! And if he doesn't get nominated, he'll finance the winning candidate.
11
I’m not voting for the billionaire who thinks he can buy the election. I’m not sure we live in a democracy.
12
@Zejee
Watch the Russians decide our election again....Trump and McConnell have assured that.
2
Whether you consider yourself lucky or not, we live in politically extraordinarily Interesting Times. The advent of Trumpism shakes the very fiber of America.
From the early days of the race I have adamantly supported Elizabeth Warren, and still do. But so far at any rate, not enough others do.
Mike Bloomberg has proven that he is capable of change - he was once a Republican, and, yes, he still supports some conservative issues. He has done a lot of questionable things - like supporting Stop and Frisk, and Bush's war on terrorism. But he has also done a lot of good things which seem in exact opposite to some of the bad - like avidly supporting the advancement of African Americans.
But, perhaps most of all, I do agree that he seems to know how to effectively deal with a man like Trump and this fact may indeed make him the most electable candidate.
6
So, four days in a row of hit pieces about Mike Bloomberg from NYT and WaPo. If he's still standing at the end of this "get Mike" run I will definitely be voting for him because that is the wherewithal along with his shrewdness, capabilities and resources it will take to throw the most inept, dangerous, anti-democratic and corrupt ever person out of the White House.
113
@Clearwater I'm thinking the children running the NYT and WaPo are Sanders supporters. Still haven't seen a hit piece in either. Don't even bother looking at Huffington Post.
1
If we get 4 more years of Trump I'll hold Mr Jeremy Peters personally responsible.
50
@Marco Avellaneda if we get four more years of Trump, I’ll hold anybody who voted for Bloomberg in the primaries responsible.
14
@Marco,
We can’t blame the umpires. They are doing what they are supposed to do. That being said, Bloomberg seems to be running the kind of campaign that the Democrats sorely needed. I’d love to see him humiliate Trump.
13
@Marco Avellaneda
If we get for more years of a lying, manipulative, rude, sexist, racist, billionaire Republican that doesn't respect term limits, it will be because the Democratic Party nominated one so a Republican would have to win, no matter who voted.
If you nominate Bloomberg, you will have two Republicans running against each other! Haven't you noticed that?
The Democratic Party becomes irrelevant.
The Republicans will never stoop laughing at your complete and total surrender in the face of Trump, the Chosen One.
And the Constitution will be shredded on Fifth Ave in a bipartisan ceremony.
If you nominate Bloomberg, I will probably be applying for asylum is some First World country by the time the election comes around.
1
So Bloomberg "unapologetically defends stop-and-frisk policing in New York City’s minority neighborhoods — “Because that’s where all the crime is” So when a politician state the truth - that minority neighborhoods have more crime - he later has to apologize for stating the truth? PC insanity
202
This is so true. Impolitic, these days, often means simply politically incorrect ... but not incorrect in itself. The media, in its thirst for the next sound bite, the next headline, is doing its fair share of stirring the pot and keeping DJT front and center, which he thrives upon.
13
Poor neighborhoods have crime. Not so long ago you were very brave or foolhardy to walk through an Irish section of town. You think it's okay to suspend the Bill of Rights for certain Americans?
Everyone underestimated Donald Trump in 2016.
Don't do it again.
Bloomberg!
140
There are other comments too, basically "the deplorables" stuff where he said he could teach anybody to be a farmer or a factory worker, he said that in a very belittling way. Then there are alleged misogynistic remarks.
I'm enjoying the Left twist themselves into pretzel knots saying they must go Bloomberg or face Trump four more years.
At this point, the Left would say Charles Manson wasn't such a bad guy, he only ordered killings, he didn't do it himself, and he said he was sorry. Bloomberg isn't that bad or course, but the way the Left "forgives" when they want something, they can forget they ever had any high ground whatsoever in their lives.
See what desperation does? The Left hates Bloomberg because he's rich but they love his money so he can beat Trump.
15
@Elizabeth Carlisle
I think you’re confused. It’s not “the Left” who is supporting Bloomberg. Most of the people supporting him are centrist/moderate Democrats and Republicans. Progressives are the people questioning his past policies and statements. That said, I would like to see your definition of “the Left”. Categorizing millions of people based on the statements of a few isn’t an indication of thoughtfulness.
7
@Elizabeth Carlisle
Yes. I am desperate for Trump to be gone.
And I don't hate Bloomberg. I'll take him in a New York minute over Trump.
No pretzel knots here. Smooth as rolled dough.
14
There is no evidence that Democrats would support Manson if he ran. On the other hand, not one Trump supporter has publicly announced they would not continue to support him if he shot someone in the middle of 5th Avenue. So which team is more deplorable? Will you be the first to reply and confirm you would stop supporting him if he shot someone?
3
By ending redlining, was Bloomberg implying that enough junk mortgages were let to people of color to collapse the system when they defaulted? Clearly nothing remotely close to that happened. What’s with this unfootnoted accusation anyway?
16
@Maggie
I was under the impression that the vast majority of defaulted loans were to non minority borrowers. The values in formerly red lined hoods were so low that defaulting was less likely.
Am I wrong on this? Do you have info on it?
2
I TRULY want to feel comfortable voting for Mr. Bloomberg, but I can’t ignore his long track record of racist policies and misogynistic comments. If we accept his conveniently-timed stop-and-frisk apology and his “Borscht Belt jokes” explanation, how different are we really from the hoards of Republicans who looked the other way when Trump called Mexicans rapists and pleaded “locker room talk”, etc.?
27
@Jeffrey
Some key differences here.
Bloomberg's position on climate change is just one of them. We're running out of time, if its not too late already.
Only one planet. So I could care less about the rest of his record.
9
@N you realize that is exactly what Republicans say about Trump. They don't like him personally, but he supports their policies so who cares about his vile remarks and opinions.
1
@Erose
Two words
Climate. Change.
And this should not be a political topic, its hardly the same as abortion or immigration.
Bloomberg's record as an administrator is there for everyone to see. Mayor of NYC. steered the city after 9/11 and introduced a lot of measures to make the city greener. Definitely a workoholic, who put the ciry before his company and then returned to run it. Smart as a cookie. Digging up his quotes from 12 years ago is risible if it werent that he is running against Trump.
83
Who cares which Democrat wins South Carolina or other Southern states with the black vote. Come November they are all going Republican with thier electoral votes. This is about winning.
15