Unfortunately even the moderates are going after him. Stop and Frisk needs a better explanation and apology, but Bernie's attacks on him for being a self-made success, and rich because of it, goes to the very heart of this debate. We are a capitalist country, success is measured in wealth, jobs created and businesses - small and large - built. In slightly over 200 years our system has delivered life changing enhancements to the planet, and the major problems that come with it.
"That Guy" in office now denies those problems and refuses to address them. Bloomberg will start to fix them. S & F was a terrible mistake but in the overall scheme of things it should not be the deal breaker that prevents him from the nomination. Bernie can't win and we all need to recognize it.
Mike should walk into the debate in a very expensive suit, with a T-shirt under the jacket - On the T-shirt should be a big red target - to acknowledge and make light of what will be coming his way. And if Bernie gets nasty (no doubt) Mike should dish it back stronger and more forcefully.
A self proclaimed "Democratic Socialist" will never win. Bernie should just be honest with us and change his name to George McGovern; a campaign I worked on, and have learned from but one that younger voters simply don't know about.
5
Who's going to run next time (2024)?
Will Joe Biden or Bernie Sanders even be alive then? Frankly, I doubt it; Biden may still be alive, but he'll be senile enough that even HE will notice that, and not run. Sanders will probably be dead, and both he and Bloomberg will be much too old. This time (2020), Elizabeth Warren strikes me as young enough to serve two terms, but she'll be 75 years old on Election Day, 2024!
That leaves the younger, non-Geritol set, the Buttigiegs, Steyers! Frankly, I don't see anyone on the Republican side. Trump looks like he will be re-elected, unless he gets hit by a truck, but the NEXT President is very likely to be a Democrat.
1
What’s really sad is the RNC let Republicans choose Trump and the DNC does not. Now for a second election cycle the DNC is choosing the nominee and the Democratic primaries are nothing more than a farce. Give me Mike, it will be the end of the Democrats.
5
That would guarantee Trump's re-election:
"I do worry the left will put up a 3rd party candidate and siphon votes from Bloomberg."
In 1968, Hubert Humphrey won Texas with about 40% of the vote. So it's happened. It would happen again if some third party runs Sanders and/or Warren. If beating Trump is the goal, running Sanders is the closest thing to suicide I can think of. Running anyone else is probably not much better, but running Sanders would be near-suicide.
5
A non-US reader writes:
"I don't get it why Americans are so obsessed with winning."
In elections, there's no silver medal. You either win or you lose.
3
A reader writes:
"Moderate Democrats will vote blue no matter who."
Or they'll stay home.
"Moderate Republicans won’t."
Since Trump will be the only Republican on their ballot, who else will they vote for? Will they stay home?
@Commenter. Yes, moderate Republicans will stay home. Moderate Democrats won’t. Bernie supporters definitely will drive another Trump victory if Bernie isn’t the nominee. Many of them actually voted for Trump in 2016 because they were trying to wake up / shake up the DNC. They still want to.
4
"Candidates can also qualify [for the Feb. 25 debate] by earning at least one delegate in the ... Nevada caucuses on Feb. 22."
Isn't Tom Steyer all but assured of qualifying for the Feb. 25 debate? He's running a strong second in NV (and in SC, for that matter).
I'm very curious about Mike. I'm also prone to disregard candidates that criticize and attack other candidates. Will Sanders' and Warren's attacks on Mike diminish their own appeal? In my case, very much so.
10
@Deirdre Well said. I’m with you. I do worry the left will put up a 3rd party candidate and siphon votes from Bloomberg.
3
Bloomberg and Warren. That’s a cynical ticket but it will bring in progressives that Bloomberg can’t get otherwise.
2
@Oliver. It’s an interesting idea, and I think it might. Undecided swing state voters will vote for a white woman before they will vote for a gay man.
Didn't Bloomberg endorse and fundraise for incumbent Scott Brown (R-MA), Elizabeth Warren's 2012 senate opponent?
1
Bloomberg is not the savior of the free world. It’s depressing to see so many Democrats expecting him to b, just like Republicans expected Trump to be. That worked out well.
It’s going to be interesting to see him actually have to speak to the American people and be challenged on his abysmal racial record in an actual debate. Or what passes for a debate.
8
No one cares whose money a candidate spends.
In 1932, a company surveyed prospective voters. After determining which newspapers they read and which radio stations they listened to, the company predicted the winner. But FDR won instead. So they went back and asked why people voted the way they did? The answer was that they listened to "opinion makers" - a guy at work or Uncle Henry. The point is, people vote, given the way they feel, informed by trusted others i.e., the same way they buy (don't you read reviews?).
A lot of money or a little money doesn't much matter. All that matters is votes. And votes come down to how people feel about you and that has less to do with your money than your person - people read people.
And as for Bloomberg, nobody knows that till the votes are in, because then we'll know how people feel
1
Sanders keep saying that Bloomberg is part of the Billionaire class. Sanders has been compared to a FDR type liberal. Doesn't he know that FDR was a fabulously wealthy man? Despite his wealth, FDR did what was necessary to help the country. Bloomberg wasn't born with money like FDR, he earned his money. He has had a history of supporting needy people in New York and throughout the country. A billionaire can be super rich and care about helping all Americans live better at the same time.
11
@dyegriffin
Fine.
He doesn't need, nor should be President to continue these attempts at cleansing his soul.
Anyone that has had 64 women file sexual harassment lawsuits against him isn't presidential material. Anyone that has told his pregnant employee who was asking for maternity leave to "kill it", isn't presidential material.
Anyone that has amassed over $64 billion dollars and now at the end of his life declares there is a wealth inequality issue isn't presidential material.
Anyone with 5 different phone numbers in Jeffry Epstein's little black book...isn't human.
6
Who could have predicted that the two leading candidates to defeat an old guy from New York City might be two old Jewish guys from New York City.
7
Bloomberg is Trump with more money and better manners. Please read up on his comments about women, in his personal life and in the workplace, and his rationalization of "stop and frisk" in NYC. Trump threatens and fires people; Bloomberg buys them with his philanthropy. Some recipients have said, "We don't want to alienate him." Sound familiar? Do we really trust an authentic billionaire to fight against economic inequality and for the common good? On what evidence? Haven't we learned yet that character matters?
Republicans will beat Bernie over the head with his heart attack and hang the "socialist revolution" sign around his neck. He will not win.
Elizabeth fought Big Money to create the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the only concrete action taken to help the 99% in the wake of the 2008 crash. She knows how to get results. Like Frances Perkins who gave FDR most of the ideas for the New Deal, Elizabeth will continue to fight for all the urgent issues facing the 99% today: living-wage jobs, workers' rights, women's rights, educational opportunity and more.
She is the only candidate to have won an election against an incumbent Republican. She connects with people on a personal level. A championship debater since high school, she will go toe to toe with Trump and get under his skin, like Nancy Pelosi. We need her courage and vision. She is the winner who can unmask Trump and return our focus to the common good.
5
@Laurie S.
Ah c'mon, Senator Warren was corrected when she first said she was " the only candidate to have won an election against an incumbent Republican" (in 30yrs.) on the debate stage; and factchecked in real time. That was pretty funny actually.
Sanders won his congressional seat defeating Republican Rep. Peter Smith in 1990 to win his House seat. A seat held by Republicans for over 30yrs.
By the by...Biden did as well in '72.
4
Michael Bloomberg would be my choice ; right now all the other nominees pale in comparison to the experience both in his acumen in the business world and as a former mayor of New York City . He has worked hard in both areas ; he earned his money the hard way ...by working . My second choice would be Elizabeth Warren ; another hard worker . So what if he is spending his millions in getting votes ; that door was opened with Citizens United . His redlining and stop and frisk remarks said in the past are just another way to sling mud on what is his unimpeachable work record ; everyone says things that are regrettable in the past . Stop and frisk is being used as a tactic and as regrettable as it was , Bloomberg has apologized .
4
I understand regretting what we say in the past and maybe it should not come up...except his comments are from 2013 and 2015!!! I would call that te very very recent past lol. So they are relevant and definitely attest to his disconnect from the common man. Also, kind of weird he fails to understand the real reasons beyond the economic crisis...isn’t he smart?!
5
Watch Frontline's "America's Great Divide" on YouTube, which underscores that business-as-usual centrism no longer works in today's political climate. Trump won in 2016 precisely because he campaigned as a populist, appealing to the "forgotten Americans". Sanders, not Bloomberg, is the antidote to Trump.
13
Trump is very smart. He’s aligning himself with Sanders. He is sowing discord in case Bloomberg is the nominee. Then he can capitalize on the anger Sanders supporters will have. They voted for Trump last time. Why not this time too?
12
I agree with your assessment. And trump would love to have Sanders as his opponent.
10
@Oliver I thought it was Putin who voted for Trump
Get your talking points straight, and they might be believable
4
@Semper Fi ... Trump prefers Bloomberg. More material.
5
A few recent and past photos of Bernie with Sarsour, "Some people did something" Omar, and the Palestinian flag wearing at her induction into the United States House of Representatives,Tlaib, and he's done. Dems lose again.
8
Sanders asks the crowd, "Anyone here with $60 Billion, you can run for president, and you can buy the airwaves,"......
Well, four years ago Sanders baited his audiences in a similar fashion while running for the Democratic nod during the 2016 primaries, whipping his audiences into a frenzy asking them during his rallies, mind you these audiences were packed with Millennials drowning in Student Loan Debt, "Does anyone here have Student Loan debt?" Then promise to get that debt resolved.
And now he's back, using defamation and other divisive tactics in front of the camera, while as recently reported in the past couple of days, relying on strong arm tactics behind the scenes using his subordinates.
Sanders clearly cannot fight fair, instead, always looking to defame his opponents using issues accutely sensitive to his immediate audiences, taking out Joe Biden and Elizabeth Warren using just that strategy.
But in the mean time, he's paving the way for a Trump victory. Trump will eat his lunch as he labels him an un-American Socialist.
Bloomberg has Trump frightened. With a Bloomberg victory Trump is going to fall into the hands of the New York State Southern District Court. And he'll not have the deep pockets he's relied on for all these too many years to keep him free.
8
If Trump wins the election he will because:
If Bloomberg is nominee the progressive base will stay home.
If Sanders is the nominee moderate Democrats and Republicans will stay home. 
Not only that, both candidates have the potential to ruin the Democratic Party for a generation if they lose. And if they win, Sanders won’t get anything done and Bloomberg will face a primary challenge in 2024.
4
@Oliver. Moderate Democrats will vote blue no matter who. Moderate Republicans won’t. And Bernie supporters on NYT comments have said things like “maybe that’s what it takes, the DNC nominating someone besides Bernie and that person losing. That will shake the DNC up, and maybe then a new, truly progressive party will emerge. Sure, we’d have more pain for a while, but it would be worth it.”
6
Word has it that The Simpson character Arty Ziff, is actually Michael R. Bloomberg.
With a grossly inflated ego, Artie Ziff is a conceited, obnoxious, arrogant, deranged and manipulative narcissist. In contrast to Homer, he has staggering I.Q. and charisma, but this gave him the selfish sense of self-entitlement that, paired with his uncontrollable obsession with Marge, made him into a demented stalker, and a constant thorn in the Simpson family's side. He is understood to be remorseless when he wants something, and work himself half to death to get it. Being a genius, he got wealthy, powerful, and earned respect, but this didn't satisfy his lust for Marge. Unlike Homer, Artie only liked Marge for her aesthetic appeal, and didn't respect her opinions, as he constantly groped Marge against her will. This selfishness cost him his only love, unless you count Artie Ziff's narcissistic love of himself.
Boom! Too close for comfort.
NOT presidential material.
https://simpsons.fandom.com/wiki/Artie_Ziff
6
I predict Bloomberg will approach tomorrow night by coming off as magnanimous. He will let everyone attack him and he will react with kindness. In other words he will take the wind out of their sails. That’s the only way he can win.
4
Now that Mr. Bloomberg has qualified for the next Democratic debate, he will be one of the main targets and an attraction as well.
The fact that Mr. Bloomberg is a billionaire, is like he has committed a crime. Because, that is what his critics are using against him - that he is trying to buy the electorate?
Mr. Bloomberg is a successful businessman. A success attributable to his strong leadership qualities. So, what is wrong with that? Why do we think his proven business leadership cannot be applied to the job of POTUS? He may even do better than running his own business.
4
@ Citizen
Because Sanders wants to run a campaign based on class envy which is political suicide. People don’t hate billionaires. They want to be billionaires.
7
Those who are cheering on Bloomberg need to step back and realize how much money he's spent "buying" support from Democratic leadership. According to this piece in the NYT:
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/15/us/politics/bloomberg-donations-takeaways.html
He's given away over $10 billion to various philanthropic and political causes.
"...he has built a national — and in some cases, international — network of causes, candidates and organizations that he supports."
"He has been endorsed by dozens of Democratic politicians who have benefited from his spending...members of Congress... mayors, from cities like Houston, San Francisco, San Jose and Washington."
"So far, most organizations and politicians that have received Mr. Bloomberg’s money have not endorsed his candidacy, but a number of them acknowledged that they are keenly sensitive to his interests and take pains not to alienate him needlessly."
BUT...
"His campaign has already proved that many party stalwarts will hold back criticism of stances and statements that typically trouble Democrats, including Mr. Bloomberg’s support for stop-and-frisk policing, charter schools and big banks, as well as his past skepticism about the #MeToo movement and crude comments on women."
In short, because he is by far the biggest donor, and therefore the person to whom many are beholden, he essentially owns the Democratic Party. And given his history of authoritarian tendencies, democracy isn't his priority.
Mike wants to be king.
11
@Kingfish52
This. This is is perhaps even more important than the advertising. He's neutralized the DNC and progressive organisations by bankrolling them. Who can refuse a fat donation?
The problem is now, when he calls in his credits: "I need a favor though...".
4
Democrats fully deserve this !!
4
This 2020 race is starting to remind me of being patient and not being risky in the game of ping pong.
I can usually size-up my opponent during warm-up and volley. If I notice them hitting into the net or overshooting due to "show-off" mentality, I know I will likely win. So, if played MR.T., I would likely see this behavior (his advisors can slow him down but they can't stop his behavior).
Pelosi has asked the Democratic candidates to be a lot more civil as the next 90 days unfold. She is telling them to play the game with style, not show and flair. Because the bigger game is at stake after this May, even April. Being reckless now, will provide clues for future play and even bring advantage to Mr. T.
I reserve my best play when I have a 4-5 point lead, I.e. 17-13. That's when I can double-down on spins and slams. But until then, I am patient and focus on the serve, the volleys and the corners. And so should our candidates.
2
Fellow Democrats, what is more important, trying to slightly improve our chances of defeating Trump in a general election? Or supporting an oligarch who, yes, is on our team, but who has bought his way into the top of the Democratic political machine? We cannot complain about money in politics and elevate Mike Bloomberg to the throne at the same time. We just can't.
9
Father of One
Money is already “in”politics. Bloomberg is not doing anything illegal. This all needs to be corrected, but right now, I want trump out if the WH and I think Bloomberg can do it. I would really like to see Klobuchar ad VP.
8
But Bloomberg's money is his own.
It's money from donors who expect payback that is the problem. Bloomberg will be beholding to no one.
5
@Father of One
"an oligarch who, yes, is on our team, but who has bought his way"
He's not on our team. He's counting on us being on his team. After all, hasn't he shelled out enough yet to buy us?
2
Helluva headline when the actual news is that three major polls came out today that have Bernie Sanders extending his breakaway lead to +9, +12, and +12 over the next candidate.
The Bernie Blackout is real, and the revolution will not only not be Televised, it will be counter-programmed by the NYTimes and the rest of the Billionaire-owned Main Stream Media. Who else could think replacing one racists, sexist, power hungry Billionaire with another makes sense except for the companies that have had their best performance ever covering a racists, sexist, power hungry Billionaire?
7
What happens if Bloomberg catches all the bullets from tomorrow night and throws them back at everyone else? Certainly they all have flaws.
The Democrats will benefit from tomorrow’s slugfest. But Trump should grab a bag of popcorn and enjoy the fireworks. Because whatever happens he can use in non stop ads for the general election.
5
The rise of Bloomberg is proof that Democrats can be just as bad as Republicans if given the chance.
12
@Ben if it weren’t for Trump’s accidental rise to power, the House would still be Republican
2
Trump and Bloomberg. It seems that the rest of the country cannot resist the sight of a billionaire. It's like a rare sighting to them, so they must run out and catch a peek.
They must marvel at these rare creatures with awe, and wonder how does one become one of them? It's all so fascinating! The rich aroma of money! It's a privilege just to shine in their glow.
5
@cl
Battle of the Billionaires (or maybe a billionaire and a wannabee billionaire).
Just another reality TV show.
1
I find it hard to believe that Bloomberg would consider Hillary as his running mate. He apparently doesn't realize that Hillary is a major reason that Trump got elected in the first place.Good luck on that one Bloomberg.
9
@ Richard Smiley
That’s called tone deaf.
5
@Richard Smiley he’ll probably pick Klobuchar or Warren as VP
1
During the 2016 election, staunch Republicans who were alienated by the boorish billionaire their party had chosen became known as Never-Trumpers. They refuse to abandon their moral principles to vote for Trump.
I hope it doesn’t come to Bloomberg capturing the nomination, but if it does, I will be a Never-Bloomberger. I refuse to abandon my principles to vote for Bloomberg. If that means four more years of Trump, so be it. It won’t matter anyway. The billionaire elite will have won. They will get what they want either way.
5
@Ben. My dog would be better than Trump. Yes, slightly better is far preferable to 4 more years of Trump.
3
It looks like the Democratic establishment is again rigging the rules to benefit a centrist over Bernie Sanders. Do they want alienate Progressives again like they did in 2016?
9
Once the media finishes disappearing the one most feared by Wall St and billionaires (a.k.a. Warren), Bloomberg will be as good a choice as any.
4
There is the predictable, incremental path to get to Rome with skilled Bloomberg, and the risky, revolutionary way by inexperienced Sanders.
Which path should America take?
9
I'm not sure what is risky about Sanders. He made a lot of the changes he recommends in Vermont as mayor and then as a Senator he has written more amendments to bills than another senator. Bloomberg, well he was mayor with some good and some horried policies. I'd say he is less predictable.
4
Sarah
I think you are wrong about the legislative abilities of Sanders. He has been very unproductive as a senator.
6
Well look it up. He has not been ineffective as a senator.
4
I will always be a fan of the democratic socialist systems of the scandinavian kind. However the US is being led by a tyrant who has made democratic norms a thing vandalized where the press can only make impotent noises . To vote for Sanders now is like giving a dehydrated person in a desert prime steak instead of water. The country is pre civil war and to outsiders it seems the extent of danger is something people are getting numbed with and slowly used to. Make no mistake Trump will win if Sanders is chosen no matter how many young black and hispanic people vote for him. Trump is hugely popular and will threaten workers with the end of the boom and jobs successfully. Now is the time for Biden and Warren to step aside to give the centrist vote to Bloomberg.
12
@ken
What centrist vote?
2
I lived in New York City during the stop and frisk era and I think the mayor's position was totally defensible for the following reason. Violence begets violence and during this time law abiding blacks were arming because of the gun violence perpetrated by a few in their community. perhaps I was wrong but I saw stop and frisk as a "time out" for everyone who was inclined to carry. On the surface it clearly was racial profiling but it had the intended result. The Number of people carrying guns and gun violence declined dramatically.
And law abiding citizens had a better chance of walking through the neighborhood without being victimized
8
I’ll vote for any democrat (the Supreme Court is reason enough as RBG turns 87) but the fear I have about Bernie is that his moment has passed: can any of us imagine going through more years of chaos, overturning norms, losing our healthcare, etc., etc? Have any of the Bernie supporters checked in with Jeremy Corbin lately?
12
Bloomberg might be able to buy your vote. But he will never be able to buy mine.
8
The rise of Bloomberg is proof that Democrats can be just as bad as Republicans if given the chance.
6
If Bloomberg has a female or African American running mate and beats DT that would be wonderful for the country. We cannot endure 4 more years.
9
Bloomberg/Klobuchar 2020. Or maybe Stacy Abrams can be convinced to run for VP.
9
Headline:
"Ending Corruption in the U.S. Politics is All About Getting Big Money Out of Politics"
If Bloomberg wins, we will be telling all other billionaires and every oligarch the following headline:
"The United States Government is up for Sale to the Highest Bidder"
Bloomberg has shown that he has been willing to adopt racist policies and support the kind of stop and frisk type of policies that show deep down inside he is in the same camp as Trump when it comes to African Americans.
Anyone who has is absolutely self-centered on wealth, hoarding, manipulating, subverting, using money to get his way and who feigns progressive causes but more likely is simply attempting to make sure an average American, who actually cares about average Americans and does the right thing by average Americans doesn't end up in the White House.
Let's get big money out of the White House and Keep it out. Anyone who believes and understands the how and why of the above imperative of freedom knows why Bloomberg is as big a threat to liberty, freedom and a government for the people and by the people.
Bloomberg is so rich, he qualifies as an Oligarch and like Trump, he has proven that he has both massagist and racist tendencies but those problems pale in comparison to the fact that it is time to take our stand against the vast corrupting influence of hyper-concentrated wealth in what remains of our democratic republic.
The corruption in the U.S. is horrible. Electing Bloomberg = more.
5
If Bloomberg wins it will be because more people voted for him than the others. If he isn’t stuffing money in voters’ pockets he isn’t buying an election.
Bloomberg is funding his campaign with his own checkbook instead of spending half his day begging people for money to spend.
5
This is funny. Everything the left hates in a rich billionaire is buying the Democrat nomination. Bloomberg is practically buying his detractors in the media by hiring them as campaign advisors and donating money to their charities. Anything to reduce potential bad press. And he already owns a news organization. He bought a 3rd term as mayor of NYC where it’s limited to 2. Trump could have done this same thing, but instead did it the old fashioned way. He worked harder & smarter than his opponents. He beat Hillary spending just 1/3rd of what she did. But most importantly Trump can relate to common people, Mike can’t. Mike practically puts everyone down, then buys his way out. Democrats have gone from Harris to Biden to Warren to Mayor Pete to Sanders, and now Bloomberg. Do you really know what you want?
7
Difference between Bloomberg and Trump? Bloomberg put his billions where it counts. He donated BILLIONS of dollars to climate change, public schools, community health, etc. He founded and funds the country's largest gun safety group. He bankrolled the campaigns of an unprecedented number of female House candidates, most of whom won to give Democrats the House. He even funded moderate Republicans that support gun safety. What has Trump done with his (m)illons? Hoard it in a little room for himself?
17
Mike might be the best messianic choice following the mess Trump has created.
8
This just in,
Bloomberg lives in Bermuda. He visits the USA to check on his businesses.
7
This is such a travesty. I would feel much differently about Bloomberg if he went through the process. He is making a mockery of our electoral system. You should not be able to buy an election. If he becomes the nominee (he probably will- his ads are so effective I see reasonable dems in my neighborhood putting up signs for him! Even though he has done nothing but one sided ads- no interviews or debates or public funding) we will have a choice between a nasty despotic dictator and a friendly dictator. It will be an additional nail in the coffin of our American experiment (we have already lost the balance of powers).
8
What is good about the normal campaign process?
The typical politician spends huge amounts of time begging people for money to fund their campaign.
I didn’t say it was good. We need shorter campaign seasons and less money. But that is another discussion. What is good about purchasing the nomination without any public support?
1
Democrats aren’t just funny. They’re hilarious.
They are now supporting a billionaire former Republican who implemented an illegal, authoritarian, mostly racist police crackdown and who has a history of misogyny.
He is a cross between Nelson Rockefeller and Barry Goldwater with a little Richard Nixon sprinkled in for good measure.
Someone must be writing a sitcom about this.
15
I guess money can buy you everything.
6
My money is on Sanders and Warren for tomorrow night’s bout in Vegas. More specifically, I bet Bernie and Elizabeth will have Mike on the ropes by the end of round one and then deliver their knock out punch to the Democratic poser in round two. Let’s get ready to rumble!
9
You Bernie bros, the rest of have stopped listening to you. You are not winning anyone over with your Purity tests. The more you complain, the more your words disintegrate, leaving the sound of dogs barking.
8
I’m not a Bernie bro. They can be maddening in their self-righteousness. And Bernie has problems—his age, his health, his socialist (not just democratic socialist—Nicaragua, Cuba, Soviet Union, Venezuela socialist) past, his inability to work with others. I would still vote for him. I think he is a better choice than Biden, whom I would also vote for. But I like the three younger candidates better. I’ll vote for any of them. Trump is a serious threat to our nation and environment and must be stopped.
Qualifications established—the point is that I will, never ever vote for Bloomberg. A billionaire who cheats and rigs the system to get what he wants—no thanks. We already have one of those. Bloomberg is just the more successful version. Which makes him even more dangerous.
7
Leave the poor behind again at your own peril.
5
@Alex It is interesting how much I hear about Bernie Bros, but yet have never encountered them!! Is a Bernie Bro simply someone who supports Bernie? What is wrong with supporting great policies? No one is forcing Bernie on you if you don't love him - heck you have a ton of choices at the moment! So maybe you need to stop talking about a seemingly none existent phenomenon; something simply invented by the press and DNC.
5
Biden would not be at 15% if voters knew how strongly he pushed and led support to Bush/Cheney for war on Iraq:
https://www.democracynow.org/2020/2/18/worth_the_price_joe_biden_documentary
5
@Alan MacDonald
Yes. Cheney, Rumsfeld, Biden - the troika who took us to war.
1
Democrats will have their choice of billionaires for the foreseeable future. I like Tom Steyer even better than Bloomberg. But they will never have another Bernie Sanders, ever. Someone who has worked his whole life toward a vision of The American Dream for every child. No, not great wealth for every child but a good education, good healthcare, clean drinking water and air, safety in their neighborhoods, good paying jobs,and a home of their own. He's as honest as any politician can be and his heart is with the working class he came from. So, just remember when you run to another billionaire to "safety" and "electability," that you are also slamming the door on the hopes and dreams of millions of working people Bernie Sanders has heard all his life and given a voice to, finally.
9
I think it is necessary for Bloomberg to participate in the debates. He can't hide from voters when he's on stage, and word is he's not a very good debater. He has questions to answer.
10
What they say while running for office and what they do once elected are always two different things. They can say anything to appeal to voters and do the complete opposite. Don't forget that Bloomberg was 8 years younger when he completed his twelve year term he bamboozled the NYC Council to let him have an extra one yet spent loads of time hiding from NYers and doing what retirees like him and Trump do, golfing and going to warmer climes. Bloomberg and Trump are Brothers in how they would only serve their own interests. Once again we listen. I hear nothing.
13
@This just in
"Bamboozled" is a nice way of putting it. He essentially bribed City Council by saying that if they suspended term limits for him, they could do the same for themselves. Bribery is his forte,as some at the NY Times must understand well. It's very hard to print much that's negative about a politician who kept your paper afloat with million-dollar ad buys from his company that he falsely claimed not to be involved in running, while he was mayor.
8
I like Mayor Pete, a smart young moderate, we need a new generation. However, Bloomberg would be my second choice as I think he has the best chance to defeat Trump. He was proven to be not only successful in business, but successful in running a major city like New York.
Bloomberg also knows Trump's vulnerability. Trump was a bankrupt businessman who inherited his wealth while Bloomberg is a successful self made billionaire whose wealth makes Trump look like a loser. His age works against him, but if Bernie is the nominee, he won't pick up the middle and Trump wins again.
8
Bloomberg is the personification of the establishment and the system that left many behind with no chance ever to catch up. I seriously don't understand the tired argument that he is most qualified to beat Trump. The majority of those who voted for Trump won't vote for Bloomberg. Many of them feel left behind in the new economy and the only thing they felt they could do is vote for someone who will bring the system down even if that won't benefit them, something akin to a revenge vote. From that perspective, Bernie is our only hope to beat Trump.
14
@Rilke
I do not think Sanders can beat trump. Here in North GA Sanders would not even come close but Bloomberg could. You never see signs for democrats around here but many for trump. But this last week I have seen signs on the roads around here promoting Bloomberg and have many say the like him.
I will vote whoever wins the nomination so I ask you will you support the nominee if it is not Sanders?
7
@Rilke I think people see the fact that he was elected twice as a Republican Mayor in NYC, one of the most liberal cities in the U.S. He then was re-elected to a third term. Although people believe he is buying his way into the Dem primary, it's not how much money a candidate spends but the number of votes he/she receives that determines the candidate.
6
@Fred
Is North Georgia seceding from the Union?
2
Did you hear that NYC paid Hillary Clinton $2,000,000 as a consultant for New Years Eve? They wanted an expert on dropping the ball at the last second.
16
Bloomberg bought his way into the Democrat Presidential Primary ... just let that sink in ...
In my opinion, the Oligarchs in America as well as the Corporate Democrats (and Republicans) are scared to death of a Sanders, Warren, or other Progressive Politician hitting a nerve with ordinary Americans.
This is the DNC's answer? A formerly flawed Republican turned Democrat as their "hope" to regain the WH!
14
@Gene So you'd rather not have him participate in the debates, despite polling at 19% after Joe failed to secure his lead status in the early states? Nobody's buying your vote. We are being presented with a choice.
2
@Marc
You're being presented with the _GOP_ choice.
Bloomberg couldn't beat Trump within the GOP (it's Trump's party now), so he turned his coat inside out to appear as a Democrat.
So obvious. Classic con. Such a pity so many fall for it.
It'll be an interesting reality show, I suppose: "Con Artist Combat!"
2
There should be a runoff in these party primaries. Basically we have the moderate vote split amongst 4 candidates. The Progressive vote has consolidated around Sanders.
If this continues, Sanders wins with 25 to 30 percent of vote. That’s how Trump won.
There should be a national runoff with the top two candidates if no candidate gets over 40 percent.
This primary system is another major flaw in our increasingly raggedy and flawed election process.
4
DNC takes the money and lectures the other party on citizens united...Such a fraud...won't hear that on CNN or MSNBC
13
In their unbounded biased-driven glee, the NYT couldn't wait to anoint Bloomberg as their new "champion", so they rushed out the paper with this headline "Bloomberg surges in polls!".
Well, those with a little more perspective and less bias can see the ACTUAL polls:
https://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2020/president/us/2020_democratic_presidential_nomination-6730.html
or even look at a NY Times poll:
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/us/elections/democratic-polls.html
or if they're truly open minded:
https://www.politico.com/news/2020/02/18/bernie-sanders-frontrunner-nationwide-poll-115753
which included this analysis:
Sen. Bernie Sanders solidified his frontrunner status on Tuesday in the race to win the Democratic Party's presidential nomination, building a double-digit lead over the rest of the field in a poll released ahead of Saturday's Nevada caucuses.
"It was Mike Bloomberg who seized many of the early headlines from the release of the NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll, which qualified the billionaire self-funder for his first appearance at a Democratic presidential debate. But the former New York mayor finished second in the poll behind Sanders, who finished 12 percentage points clear of second-place Bloomberg".
Jeez NYT, maybe your bias is clouding your ability to fairly report the news?
18
Bernie Bro Conspiracy Theory alert.
2
@Kingfish52
Hey, they first tried anointing Biden, then Klobuchar & Warren (endorsement, no less), then Buttigieg, all to no avail.
Bloomberg is their last hope (at least let's hope he's the last).
Pitiful. Blatant. Shameful.
2
If Democrats decide to nominate Mr. Bloomberg then we will have the spectacle of two conservative Republican billionaires running against each other. The difference will be that one is intelligent and one is not, which makes Mr. Bloomberg the greater danger since he will be able to make significant change through passing law with the help of centrist Democrats and Republicans to legalize schemes like stop and frisk. He will appoint conservative judges for eight years. Centrist Democrats are lining up at his door for easy money. Trump's foolishness will dissipate like a fart in the wind. He simply breaks the law to achieve his messy fantasies. Bloomberg will do it all legally and his visions of the new feudalism will endure.
9
Not mentioning Bernie Sanders the frontrunner and first place in national polls in the headline or byline is a dereliction of journalism.... all too predictable from the mainstream media. If you don’t think your readers notice this stuff you’re wrong.
14
@F. Jozef K.
Dear F. Josef K.
I think you may have been drinking too much of the Chateau Sanders vintage 2016 "whine". It can cloud your thinking. :)
2
I for one welcome an autocratic sexist billionaire white male. Time for a change !
13
Go Mike..Go !!...would love to have you in the White House....and all that you bring to it.
5
Here's the real truth about Bloomberg:
-Bloomberg had over 60 sexual assault/harassment allegations at his business
-Opposed the min wage...like ANY min wage
-Supported Isreal breaking the Geneva Convention and bombing schools and hospitals
-Fought bathroom breaks for employees
-Supported red lining
Kept up stop and frisk after courts said it was illegal and had a 3% success rate
Said so many horrible sexist/racist things his employees gave him a book of "Bloombergisms"
-Blamed blacks for the financial crash
-Endorsed Republicans as late as 2018 and funded their campaigns
-Is pro war in general and supported the war on terror
I can go on and on and on listing how horrid the man is and how he isn't a Democrat.
16
@Mike
You sounded like a Sanders supporter.
7
@Mike. Well that’s an argument for Bernie focusing on minimum wage, I suppose.
1
@Fred
Exactly. And?
What does that tell you, that such policies are anathema to Sanders supporters? They should be anathema to all Democrats. Shame.
3
where is the @metoo crowd??
good grief - such confusion
such brazen hypocrisy
9
Trump is a nasty piece of work and somebody like Bloomberg would easily go toe to toe. It would totally unnerve Trump.
5
@Howard McLaren
What are you basing this on? Have you seen Bloomberg in a debate or giving a speech? The man has negative charisma. Ask his female former employees about what a creep he is. He's corrupt as the day is long, a troll and impostor.
4
How come so many article about Bloomberg and no articles about the candidate who currently has the most delegates (Buttigieg, in case you couldn't recall). The NYT is starting to seem more like a hometown paper than "All the News That's Fit to Print."
9
See also "Michael Bloomberg and the Dangers of 'Any Blue will Do' politics".
https://prospect.org/politics/michael-bloomberg-candidacy-mirror-image-trump/
6
Let me make this clear. Michael Bloomberg did NOT qualify for the debate. Just like with his third term as mayor of New York, he cheated to have the rules changed. The DNC changed the rules to accommodate him. Note that they did to do that for others like Harris and Booker. I guess they weren’t able to give the DNC enough money.
Bloomberg is a Republican. For all those complaining that Sanders isn’t a Democrat, he is certainly holds Democratic values far more than Bloomberg.
Bloomberg is terrifying as a potential president. The presidency is now a dictatorship thanks to the GOP. We are fortunate that Trump is an incompetent moron who is incapable of planning or plotting anything efficiently and properly. It is because of his own idiocy that we know about all his crimes, financial, political, and otherwise. It is because of his own stupidity that we know he is a racist. Bloomberg, on the other hand, is a smart man. As a billionaire president with literally unlimited power and completely unrestrained by law or convention (thanks, GOP), he has the know-how to implement whatever he wants effectively and efficiently. We may never find out the damage he has done because he, unlike Trump, is smart enough and rich enough to implement policies and plans secretly. You couldn’t pay me enough to vote for Bloomberg or any Republican, no matter his or her current disguise, even if that means 4 more years of Trump.
12
@Michael
Typo: "You couldn’t pay me enough to vote for Bloomberg or any Republican."
Should be "...or any other Republican."
2
The guy is a monster...and certainly not a Democrat.
All the settlements for his disgusting comments to women and others should start tumbling out of the wood work any time now.
12
For anyone considering supporting this ignorant conservative, google Mike Bloomberg quotes. This elitist, racist, sexist, and homophobic man has said many things worse than even Trump. Remember, they used to be buddies. It shows.
10
Bloomberg is not a Democrat and does not support the ideals of the Democratic Party.
If the Democrats go for him they will have lost their moral compass the exact same way the Republicans did with Trump.
Bloomberg is an authoritarian white nationalist. He is a misogynistic racist. He will always put the rich first.
He is not a “ham sandwich” alternative to Trump but a rancid similarity.
As a Democrat, I will campaign against both him and Trump in the general election. If two rich guys buy their way in. Americans shouldn’t vote. The system is a sham, and the NYT is part of that sham.
Anti democratic, anti woman and anti minorities. Soft white dog whistle nationalism is no different in then end than Trumps variety.
A new southern strategy might be the direction the Times wishes to go but it is morally repugnant. And every day they don’t call it out they are the exactly the same newspaper that went after “welfare queens” and helps get us into the war in Iraq with bad, yes fake, reporting.
Get your paper in order. Get your morals in order.
12
Sanders and Bloomberg: Two Liberal Cliches
http://mydo.cx/MWZjNDMz
3
What a field.
Republican Mike
Bolshi Millionaire Bernie
Lady Whitebread
Baby Yoda Buttiegig
Baby Billionaire Steyer
Elizabeth Warren (I keep hearing MLK's "I have plan" speech)
Our defense against another four years of a mentally ill Trump and a fascist take over of the Executive branch, with the Quisling Senate destroying the judicial branch.
Lacks real inspiration.
1
You stand a real chance Mike, unless you pick Hillary as your running mate.
5
Just as he did with the office of mayor in NYC, Bloomberg uses his $billions to buy his way into the presidential debates. (And don't forget about the illegal third term that he also bought, in blatant defiance of NYC law!)
Whatever his "positions" (many now clearly those of convenience), Bloomberg is just as much of a democracy-disdaining autocrat as Trump is. Not as crude and not as personally corrupt and crooked, but just as much a person who disdains democracy and the "little people."
Bloomberg buys votes and elections. Somehow, that doesn't seem like the "reform" we need. And certainly not the sort of democracy the founders had in mind!
11
It’s looking like Democrats will be successful in the next election and will put another republican in the white house. We are all republicans now.
7
I’m happy to support him if he pledges to support legislation preventing the ultra-rich from buying future elections.
3
@Ben
What future elections? Who needs future elections?
If an unending Bloomberg term's good enough for NYC it's good enough for the good ol' US of A, no?
1
The DNC has no shame and will, again, be a contributor to the election of Trump.
As Bloomberg has said, if elected he will not be answerable to ANYBODY, especially the American people.
13
@JR
I think you have read too much in that.
1
I'll vote whomever the Democrats nominate. If Mr Bloomberg is that man, then so be it. But let's not make light of stop & frisk. It's a toxic policy that permanently damages the trust of the targeted young men and boys have of the police and government.
It's not as bad as putting migrant children in cages. So I get it that Trump is worse than Bloomberg. If I have to vote for Bloomberg to beat Trump, then so be it. But I'm not giving that him a pass on stop & frisk.
5
Since Republicans can no longer win the popular vote, just get the Democratic party to vote for Republicans! Genius!
9
Another "Let's not talk about who came in first, look who came in second!" article from the NYT.
8
The new political divide in America is the Paul Ryan Democrats and the Donald Trump Republican Fascists. What a choice!
5
It's amazing to me to see how many people can make definitive statements about the prospects of Sanders or Bloomberg after the election we had in 2016. The moneyed class clearly doesn't want Sanders and the main stream media acts largely as a calliope monkey for those interests. If Sanders loses the nomination or the election, it won't be his policies but rather the way they are portrayed in the media. Isn't the choice actually between someone who wants everyone to have medical coverage and another whose budget calls for cuts to medicare and medicaid - and whose DOJ is trying to have Obamacare declared unconstitutional?
9
If it comes between Bloomberg and Trump I would have no choice but to vote for the lesser evil. I have to put aside my personal grievances and understand that harm reduction in both the short term and the long term are more important then my personal beliefs. I won't like it, i'll hold my nose while doing it but so help me god we can't let this come to pass. In November i'll do my part and vote Trump. Ask yourself when it comes to fighting an enemy force, which one would you rather face, the Italian army or the German Army. Bloomberg would be Trump on steroids, plus there would be ZERO pushback from the Dems on each and every single one of his awful policies. Each white liberal is showing their true colors this election season, if you're not a wealthy white gentrifier you literally are being offered less than nothing. Anyone who supports Bloomberg should be expelled from the party and just be honest with yourself, be a Republican.
8
I have never voted for a Republican in my life, and I absolutely will not vote for a racist Republican oligarch for President. If the Democrats allow Bloomberg to buy the nomination, it will be the final nail in the party coffin.
If you're truly, "vote blue no matter who", fall in line behind Sanders and restore some dignity and principles to our democracy.
11
Sanders is not a Democrat.
8
Bloomberg is a bright man, and a capable one. He is a bit out of touch with ordinary people because of his life style, but he certainly will fight for climate change legislation and gun control. These are two really major problems that he may help solve. His money does give him power which he chooses to use basically for the right reasons. Lets see how he does in the debate.
7
We either need a Democratic party that actually stands for something or we need to move to a parliamentary system. Otherwise our sole organized party -- the Republicans -- will continue to win our elections, as they have recently at the national level and, over a somewhat longer period, at the state level.
6
My prediction for 2020 : Democrat ticket Bloomberg-Klobuchar has good chance to win.
6
@Harry Maybe Bloomberg-Buttigieg, so when Bloomy is done with his fourth presidential term, the Dems will have someone young enough to continue.
5
I can't wait to see Mr. Bloomberg go toe-to-toe with crazy Bernie Sanders.
Bernie is going to look like even MORE of a stark raving maniac than he already does.
12
Headline for this article should be "Bloomburg moves up in the polls and buys a seat at the table". Looks to me like NYT has ditched Warren and Klobuchar for their home town pal !
12
For Bloomberg to expend 300 million dollars on brainwashing Television, himself a Television man, should alarm everyone as to his cynical view of people's intelligence as he overwhelmed the public with flashy video to indelibly brainwash them to a 19 percent approval rating. He duped so many using the key to their brains, the visual cortex. He is a Television man who wants to replace a television man. Why don't people get that? People aren't stupid so you know how convincing the visual medium is. I watch very little TV. that's how I know to tell you.
7
Nominating Bloomberg, the antithesis of Sander's and Warren's economic message, would risk morally gutting the Democratic Party. Maybe most progressives would still vote for him (as would I), but it would be so antithetical, so hypocritical to the progressive message, that it would do outlasting harm to the party. As someone tapped into the moral conscience of young Americans, moral hypocrisy is the most disdained (look at the rising number of millennial leaving organized religion in protest of its morally hypocritical stances). How can a former Sanders or Warren supporter (over 40% of the Democratic Party), with good conscience, support a multi-billionaire, when the whole progressive movement has been about uplifting the marginalized and economically disadvantaged? Can anybody trust Michael Bloomberg when he talks about justice? After grassroots funded campaigns have taken off, it's clear that the billionaire donors have decided to run for office themselves (Howard Shultz included), after finally realizing that they are losing their grip on the system. And on the topic of moral hypocrisy, where is Pete Buttigieg in all of this? I thought he wanted to represent progressive Christianity, the Jesus that stands with the marginalized and damns the rich? He has since been swallowed by his donors and with the same moral hypocrisy that lost him the support of millennial.
9
For sale, american republic, decent economy, very unequal society, extreme polluter, infrastructure going to hell. In order to qualify for sale, sorry election , one needs to be a billionaire, white, slightly racist, likes to demean woman and should not care for democracy. Polls, elections, like they matter, it's all about the money and being part of the billionaire's boy club. What a joke America has become...
13
I can never vote for Bloomberg.
It's not just stop and frisk. Or sexist comments. It's his whole entitled billionaire attitude.
I lived in NYC the whole 12 years of his highness' reign.
I'm NOT talking about if you're a rich white person from Manhattan, those people love him. If you were from Queens or other borough, he didn't give you one thought in 12 years...to hell with you.
Some of the things his highness did during his 12 year dictatorship
--illegal 3rd term after voters made it illegal for him to do so.
--ignored the 4 boroughs not Manhattan
--ignored those not rich and white
--supports fellow billionaires to the detriment of his electorate (example, extended queens blackout catastrophe shocking even other politicians, ask for details)
--does not support freedom of speech as he arrested those protesting legally more than once.
--In 2016 Bloomberg donated a ton of money to help Republicans keep their majority in the US Senate.
--long list I'll pause for now.
He's basically Trump-lite. No thank you.
19
@Andy
And he not only spoke at the 2004 RNC, but he hosted it and had the police perform mass arrests so the convention would not be marred by protests.
Pretty sure he is the only one to get me to vote for Trump, as it would be Tweedledum or Tweedledee at that point.
9
Been living in NYC 35 years and I thought he was great. Am not rich (work in nonprofit education, as does my spouse) but I loved him as a mayor. He has my vote.
5
@Andy If he is the candidate, please vote for him if only because of the SCOTUS. With all of Bloomberg's faults, which are many, I can't see him stacking the higher and lower courts like trump or another republican would. I am an old progressive, (I support Warren) and I have come to a realization that I may not see a big change before I die. However, I would like to see my son grow older with a fair SCOTUS, and we need to keep this in mind. I have lived by my conscience all of my life, but I don't think that I could face it if I had even a teeny weeny part in helping trump get 4 more years. I certainly do not want to see suffering get any worse in order for it all to get better. I'm not that indignant. Thanks for your help if you can give it. I do not live in NYC any longer, but I grew up there and lived in all 5 boroughs as a working class stiff so seeing trump as president has struck me in the heart a lot worse than Bloomberg ever could.
2
I don't know much about Bloomberg. I am waiting for the debate to see if he can hold up his end of the debates. He is using his own money (like trump supposedly did in 2016). trump is campaigning on American tax dollars flying around in Air Force One while he is collecting campaign funds that he isn't using. As long as his base lets him use our tax dollars & not the money they are sending to his re-elect campaign, we will continue to screw us over. Bloomberg may do the same thing but I want to see if he disrespects people with handicaps, disrespects Gold Star families, uses antisemitism to court voters, anti - immigration, anti - people of color, (everyone of trump's traits). You really can tell about a person by body language, voice tones & inflections. Let us see how he does.
5
Bloomberg gives billions a year to democratic causes. How much does Trump give?
Whether you like Sanders or not it seems as if no democrat can win if Sanders is not nominated in the face of a plurality of the votes. A lot of people including my wife will not vote for a centrist democrat. So there really is only a choice of Sanders or Trump. All the rest is noise. The democrats need to unite and back Sanders and his policies or come up with something better which they can't. So the democrats are going to have to suck it up. Bloomberg could win if he gets the plurality of delegates.....no question about it.......but the issue of money in politics will not be solved and we are headed for far worse times in the future.
13
@AS except, of course, the vast majority of Democrat voters want someone other than Sanders to be the nominee. Mr Sanders greatest achievement is garnering the biggest minority.
3
@Melbourne Town
He also has the most aggressive climate plan. Not that you should care about that of course, living in Australia.
7
@AS : maybe people like your wife need to grow up and vote for whoever is nominated to oppose Trump. That's what the majority of democrats seem determined to do. It would be terrible if Bernie supporters re-elected trump. Don't they understand that?
3
Bloomberg called Trump after he won the election. His advice to Trump was to surround himself with people smarter than him, to which Trump replied there was no one smarter than him.
We aren’t playing around here, folks. Our hair is on fire and we need a candidate who can win. Bloomberg has the money to win, and yes, it sucks that it’s all about the money in our election system, but that doesn’t change the fact that that’s what counts. Bloomberg won’t be begging and making promises that’ll cripple him later. He has a past of less than perfect policies, but who is perfect. You? What matters is what he does now, and if you look at what he’s been doing for the past several years with his money, unlike Trump, he hasn’t been buying large portraits of himself with donated funds!
10
Someone commented "Bloomberg is Trump-lite." I agree with this sentiment. Except he's richer, smarter and knows how to get his way more often (3rd term election, recent change to DNC policies enabling him to debate).
What's the point of having a Democratic president, if they violate similar moral code as that of a Republican one?
9
@Serral well, we will just respectfully disagree. I personally see a world of difference between Trump and Bloomberg. Trump is damaging our environment and democracy every day - even today with his pardoning antics. Bloomberg has been putting a lot of money into fighting climate change. He gives money in a million charitable places. He’s not perfect, but he has the money to fight Trump and Trump’s pocketed government that used to belong to the people. It’s imperative that he be removed.
Be careful what you wish for except Bloomberg probably didn't truly wish for this. Fact is by buying the election so far, Bloomberg has been able to establish his own narrative. Now that he has to participate on an equal stage with the other candidates, he has to perform on a more even playing field. However, the time probably had to com at some point, so it will be a telling moment Wednesday for Bloomberg.
7
A question for all of those opposing Bloomberg primarily because of the money issue: would you feel the same way about someone like Oprah doing the same thing? She's not entering the race, but she was being touted as someone people were supporting as a possible candidate, and she has similar resources which would most likely have been used in a similar manner. If that would be OK, why?
7
@Betty Boop, for a celebrity with no political experience, to run for the top political office in a city, state or nation is a bad idea. Schwartzenegger did this and the CAGOP may never recover. Trump did this and now the national GOP has nowhere to go when he's gone.
Oprah would likewise be a bad idea.
7
@GBrown
Except Bloomberg had also never run for office before, yet in NYC—over three elected terms—he not only helped steady the city's dire finances (he came into office only months after 9/11), but also ensured that the quality-of-life things ordinary city residents depend on every day (libraries, parks, zoos, etc.) were not only kept open, but expanded upon. Now, I don't agree with everything he did, but overall he was most definitely a good idea for NYC.
2
@Betty Boop, name recognition, a weak opponent and a lot of money were Bloomberg's advantage. Los Angeles did the same thing with Richard Riordan. He served out his mayoral terms, gave the governor's race a run, where he lost in the GOP primary, never to be heard from again. Just like the LAGOP.
Now that Bloomberg has political experience, he's not a novice, but Oprah is a novice, therefore a bad choice.
1
Why the other Democratic candidates won’t just say to Bernie Sanders that he won’t get 60 votes in the Senate and they will lose the House because there’s no way that down ballot candidates can defend all Sanders’s policies, I don’t know.
But I have a sneaky suspicion that the Bernie Sanders supporters are just as dangerous as Trump’s supporters. And anyone who saw the senate impeachment trial knows the power of Trump’s supporters.
It would be nice if just once a candidate stood up to voters and said “don’t vote for me then. But you don’t scare me.”
7
I am a Texas right-wing Republican voter, so it doesn't get much more conservative than that.
I never thought Trump stood a snowball's chance in 2016 but here we are.
Enter Bloomberg. When I look at the other Dem candidates, Bloomberg appears and is seemingly to be the only realistic candidate who now has a snowball's chance of defeating Trump.
He has the credentials, the background, and certainly the wealth to stand up to the junk yard dog named Donald in a debate.
Despite my very conservative political leanings, Bloomberg would be an acceptable alternative to Trump. Gotta be honest with you: I strongly support the Trump position on deporting illegal aliens and his handling of the economy, but the non-stop, never ending drama with the Twitters, et al, are just too much.
It is maximum overload.
Bloomberg could pull this off.
The rest of the wannabes can go home now.
10
Yes, let us listen to Republicans and nominate a Republican so we can have a Republican billionaire vs. Republican billionaire election. Sounds great.
3
Now we enter next stage of MB. Today he started to pander to the left with his Financial Transaction Tax. That is a large tax on many of us small traders who subsidize our pensions and SS benefits with some trades throughout the year. But even his .1% transaction tax on a minimal number of trades (less than 100) could cost us over $2,000 a year. That would destroy our capacity to earn a few extra thousand dollars per year. As a progressive democrat I would no longer be able to support any of the dem candidates. And there are many low middle class traders who feel the same way.
7
Well Bloomberg will get his time on stage, and you can be sure all the others will be aiming for him..
..--Will be interesting to see how he holds up under the barrage of attacks.. And he'll be forced to answer some tough questions.
....--He has done a lot to support Democratic causes, so he can not simply be dismissed.
6
@mike Agree. THIS is the debate we've been waiting for. I've been lukewarm for the past debates because no one really answered the question of HOW they would beat Trump and rally the Democratic party to take back the Senate.
1
When Bernie attacks Bloomberg for being rich, Bloomberg should ask Senator Sanders why he put so much effort into creating a back door for dark money into his campaign. Who does he think wrote the check for $100,000 and why won't he demand transparency? Does he support Common cause in their effort to clean up campaign finance mistakes?
4
"Last week in Virginia, Ms. Warren told supporters that Mr. Bloomberg should not be the Democratic Party’s nominee because of his past remarks linking the end of redlining, a discriminatory housing practice, to the financial crisis."
Not to mention, he suggested that the crisis was the fault of the government's pushing banks to lend to unqualified buyers (in Black neighborhoods). In fact it was bankers' greed that caused the crisis as they hid bad loans by packaging them as securities, sold them as if they had value, took the money and then when their pyramid scheme collapsed they took our money too.
7
We are paying through the nose for the best Medicare and private supplemental insurance. And yet, as I write this, my wife is on the phone, arguing with AARP-United Healthcare over their refusal to pay for a very expensive drug that probably costs the manufacturer little or nothing to produce.
If anything has me rooting for Bernie and his national healthcare plan, it is episodes like this. Vote for Mike Bloomberg if you want the corporatist status quo and you enjoy arguing with your health insurer.
11
What’s not to like?
Pro-science
Pro-climate change mitigation
Pro-gun control
Pro-women’s rights
Pro-choice
Pro-nutrition and health
Pro-rule-of-law
Pro-business with proper regulatory oversight
Is he a saint? No.
Do we need a saint right now? No.
What we need is a warrior with principles and machismo. What we need is deep financial resources to fight Trump, Putin, and other despotic leaders, foreign and domestic.
If Trump’s pardon of Blagojevich, Michael Milken, and undoubtedly soon to be Stone doesn’t scare the living daylights out of you then you have no pulse. We have descended into a bona fide banana republic. Democrats, get your act together and laser focus on Trump. I voted for Bloomberg in the California primary and I am thrilled to vote for him in November to right the great American Republic.
22
@MFM Doc, taking the Senate is also imperative.
4
Democrats will not take the Senate. Look at the map. Alabama will go back to the GOP. That gives them 54. The only other states even in contention are CO, AZ, and MAYBE Maine. Run a normal candidate and the GOP will hold 51 - 52 seats in 2021.
They will hold 54 or more if the DEMS run Sanders.
I was driving the other day through the California 50th district, a very red one. The side of the road signs were saying: "ISSA, Trump Republican!"
On the Democratic side, I guess the last brand was "Obama Democrat", quite successful I shall day. What the party sees as a desirable brand 10 years from now: "Bloomberg Democrat"... "Sanders Democrat" or ... replace first with the remaining names in the race? I believe that certain association, especially if proven a failure in the long run of historical experimentation, can be destructive for the party the same as traditional Republican identity was destroyed in the past 3 years.
What gives me hope is that I didn't see on the Democratic side profiles like Doug Collins or Devin Nunes or Gohmert (garlic needed here). At this point, beyond the Democratic nomination whatever that will be, the dignified Democratic House and Senate are what we should see as reprezentative for the party. The stakes for the president beyond winning this election, and removing Trump, are to solidify the party image for the next 8 years, as being the patriotic one, the savior of the Constitution, and on the side of the working American.
2
Whilst I hate the thought of a candidate buying the Presidency...again, if Mr Bloomberg is the most likely to eject Mr Trump from the White House then I am more than happy to set aside my dislike for 1 election. The most important thing in this election - more important than Medicare for all, more important than a Green New Deal or any other policy - is to defeat Mr Trump and save the US's democratic institutions which are facing arguably their greatest threat ever.
8
How is paying for your own ads “buying and election”?
@Jason H
See the civilized world, where you cannot spend billions to "pay for your own ads". Elections are not something to buy, including by advertising.
Money != voice. One person one vote.
2
In Ulysses, James Joyce had Stephen Dedalus say, "History is a nightmare from which I'm trying to awake." I feel the same way about the Trump era as well as the Democratic primaries and debates. If this is a prcoiess by which the electorate is supposed to winnow out the least qualified to select the best candidate, it has certainly failed.
3
Mr. Bloomberg is a smart man with a lot of money. He saw the disaster coming with the Democrats move to socialism and knew he had to run. I feel sorry for the crop Democratic candidates swepted aside because of his powerful money. The Sanders supporters are not going to accept another punch in the face by their party. Look for a shakeup.
2
@Pepperman
He saw his inability to run for Pres as a Republican - it's Trump's party now. That's what he saw.
So he turned his coat inside out to metamorphose into a -- presto, changeo -- Democrat.
TV magic. Same old same old.
2
I support Elizabeth Warren, but the thing I like about Bloomberg is that he's not afraid to throw everything Trump says about him back in Trump's face. One of the few things that brings down a bully is when someone fights back.
14
Democrats are about to blow the most winnable election in decades by nominating a 'Democratic' Socialist. I would take ANY Democrat over Bernie (but will vote for him if he is the nominee) but he will be crushed if he is the nominee.
Mike Bloomberg is a wealthy, competent technocrat that can win over moderates and independents in the Swing States. Bernie cannot. Plus, Bloomberg can go toe-to-toe with Trump when it comes to ads including TV, print, and social media. Don't blow this Democrats. Nominating Bernie is a guarantee of another 4 years of Trump...
6
Maybe "not the candidate that everyone wants but the candidate everybody needs" is the way to go... instead of this incessant posturing and infighting present in the Democratic ranks. The only two candidates I see, who would fill in that mantra, are Pete Buttigieg and Michael Bloomberg...
2
finally, a democratic debate worth watching.
5
Opps. There goes the DNC again putting their pick above the peoples pick,... just like they did with Hillary Clinton.
If this happens again this year, you can bet half the democratic voters will not show up to vote out of disgust.
This will most certainly guarantee Trump another win.
7
@BO Krause Why didn't Bernie clinch the nomination in 2016? It's because the "youth vote surge" is a fantasy. We won't even discuss the benefits of Mike Bloomberg if the younger generation - who are positioned to benefit the most from Bernie's policies - show up and vote. Then it would be a good indication that we can take back the Senate and actually get something done.
2
If Sanders is robbed of the nomination by a little rich guy I will vote for Trump again just like I did after the DNC robbed Bernie the first time. Go home and take your money with you shorty! We don't need you!
6
I was on the fence about voting in November. Now I will struggle to get to the polling station just to vote for anyone but Trump or Bloomberg. P.T. Barnum certainly was right when he said there's a sucker born every day.
6
I believe that Michael Bloomberg is the best choice for president and would be a smart, incorruptible and solutions-oriented president. I'm rooting for him, and if he is the party's nominee, I will happily vote for him.
10
Looks to me that things are shaping up for a brokered convention, There are three candidates with basically unlimited financial resources, Bloomberg, Steyer, and Sanders and they are all polling pretty well. There are also a few other candidates who look like they could remain important factors in the race. If it is a brokered convention Sanders has to win in the first round because the super delegates begin voting in the second round and they certainly will favor a more moderate candidate.
6
Steyer doesn’t have unlimited resources. Last year Bloomberg gave away twice Steyer’s net worth. Steyer will be out of the race by the end of the month.
Possibly his past, in some eyes, disqualifies him as a Democrat (surely, his endorsement of Bush light cannot be seen as anything but grievous), but, from what I have seen and heard of Mr. Bloomberg lately, there is much to recommend him. As for the past, show me anyone (anywhere on this planet) who is without fault or errors of judgement.
As for the present, he has been consistent and gutsy in taking on the NRA and, yes, Mr. Trump . . . while I am still leaning heavily towards Warren and Biden (second choice), I want to hear more from the former mayor . . .
9
@PS
Just a thought, would you have said "As for the past, show me anyone (anywhere on this planet) who is without fault or errors of judgement." if Bloomberg were running as a Republican?? Which he really is..
2
@SportsMedicine - Bloomberg is not a typical Democrat, but he is not a Republican either. His views are eclectic and straddle the two ideologies.
1
@PM
His "views" are opportunistic flavors of the month. He's a buyer and seller - of views, voters, elections. He has no ideology/principle.
1
There's a reason why Trump hasn't gone after Bernie like he has the others. He just replays the 80's video of Sanders extolling the virtues of the Soviet Union, and knows that will be all he needs.
17
Bingo. If Sanders were the Democratic nominee, he would lose in a landslide to Trump. The head-to-head polls now don’t show this because those being polled haven’t yet seen what Trump can do with Sanders’ pro-Soviet past.
I respectfully suggest that those drawn to Bernie’s progressive ideas give a strong second look to Warren, who generally supports most of the same things and has a track record of implementing her ideas. She could win, and hers would be a transformative presidency.
5
@ChiBlue except lying about her ancestry. Who in her right mind would do that? And she was a Republican until 1996. Bernie can inspire talking about the same things. Warren not so much. She would lose in general election vs Trump same as Bernie.
3
Well, Trump has not only past but also present, that could be used against him.
1
No surprise at his rise in the polls. There is some seriously crazy wrong things happening now and it seems to be accelerating. Character issue and past imperfections of Bloomberg are seen as immaterial here because it's time to fight fire with fire, so to speak.
3
@ClydeMallory
If Bloomberg were running as a Republican, would you view those past character issues and past imperfections as immaterial?
6
SportsMedicine
Yes, if his opponent were trump.
I would have voted for Bloomberg in 2016 if he was running on the Republican ticket.
I voted for McCain in the 2000 primary but Bush in the general.
Clark in the 2004 primary and Kerry in the general
(Bush lied to start a war)
Romney in the 2008 primary but Obama in the general. (McCain was too old)
Romney in the 2012 primary but Obama in the general. (I would have been happy with either but thought it was important to protect the ACA)
Kasich in 2016 primary but Clinton in the general
Some of us actually are independents.
If Bloomberg wins in November, he will join the ranks of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Monroe, Andrew Jackson, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy and George H.W. Bush, to name some of the better American presidents who were also extremely wealthy. And unlike that of the current president, Bloomberg's wealth was self-made.
15
Or he will join rank of Trump and GW Bush, the worst rich Presidents
2
Bloomie is spending more on ads than all the other candidates put together.
Now is the 10th Anniversary of Citizens United, where the supreme court removed all limits to big money in politics---using the supreme lie, worthy of a Trump---that big money is 'free speech' per 1st Amenment.
Thus our highest court used our own constitution to amplify the voice of plutocrats, and muffle that of the citizen majority---totally contradicting the basic American ideal.
See NYT editorial 1 Feb--- “More Money, More Problems for Democracy --- Countering private campaign funding with public funding is the most viable way to limit the political influence of the wealthy."
Most voters, and 2020 candidates want to reverse Citizens United. Many politicians do too. Bloomberg's run may well strengthen that trend---and get it discussed more in the media.
4
@Meredith thanks to the same law Bloomberg can also run.
1
Citizens United would have no effect on Bloomberg since he's spending his own money. That case involved a 501(c)(4).
2
@Meredith Ask 1199 SEIU, NEA, AFSCME, TEAMSTERS, UFCW, UAW, USW, AFT, IBEW, and others, if they want Citizens United reversed, and brakes put back on their political spending.
1
This is what worries me about Sanders and his supporters, they would rather see Trump re-elected than have Bernie not win the nomination. And please Bernie supporters don’t forget he is not a member of the party but just uses it when it’s to his advantage on the national stage where an independent has no chance.
14
@Chris
Totally illogical. If Sanders wanted Trump to win, all he would have to do is run as an independent. That is the reason he has chosen not to. It is the corporate DNC with their Wall St. friends who have lost their way and turned into Republicans. They are doing everything in their power to stop Sanders, who is the true descendant of FDR. I have no doubt that if he wins the nomination they will do everything in their power to reelect their tax-cuts-for-the rich friend Trump.
4
@Chris How many people care if Sanders is not a member of the Democratic Party? (Would you prefer he ran as a third party candidate?) Most Americans are unenrolled or independent voters.
6
Sanders isn't even a Democrat, so why should he be given a pass and Bloomberg questioned for having been a Republican? In this case, it might help the democratic cause to appeal to swing voters. The only swing voters Sanders appeals too are too old to be swingers anymore.
8
Why would the swing voters to vote for Dem billionaire when they can vote for Rep one? And if they do, they will not vote for Dems down the ballot. Sanders brings new voters who will vote for him and for Dems in the ballots.
2
Policy and character.
The DNC needs to select a nominee with scrupulous fairness, even if it means Sanders is the nominee. Turnout is what matters, not chasing moderate Republicans and swing voters. If it looks like primary voters are going to ultimately choose Sanders, the party and the commentariat need to accept that and not even give the appearance of undermining Sanders (or whomever comes into the convention strongest), lest people be turned off from the process and stay home come November.
7
Bernie supporters are getting very anxious now, again.
This looks like a repeat of 2018 when the party pushed him aside for Hillary.
Will they do the same now with a billionaire buying the election?
Bernie supporters will stay home and I don't blame them.
7
Why should they vote for the party that didn't give their candidate fair chance. If Bernie is not Dem, why do you demand his supporters to vote for Dems? Look at them as swing voters. They swing to Dem party or to the third party. You don't blame the swing voters, you need to attract them
2
You don't blame them??? Take a look at the numbers from the last election in just the states of Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin..Look at the thousands of Bernie supporters who went on to vote for trump in the general..And you don't blame them??? They're irresponsible, immature, self-righteous, privileged hypocrites. I most definitely blame them.
9
Yea, vote for the rich billionaire centrist. Oh, what's that, it's Bloomberg this time?
Well, last time worked out so well with the centrist, it's definitely worth another go. Right? I mean, he's RICH.
Bernie 2020
6
People, please don't nominate this guy. He's just another symptom of the sickness of this country. Selling your soul to compete with the GOP isn't winning.
We need a candidate who lists fixing the MANY broken things about our electoral system as their top priority. All of this billionaire nonsense is just a symptom of a system that's broken by design.
8
I don’t want a candidate that makes lists and talks. I want a nominee that can win in November.
Sanders will not win.
1
Theres been a lot of horrible stuff come out in the last week about the racist and misogynistic things Bloomberg has said in the not too distant past.
A lot of folks are giving him a pass on all of that, because of his billions, and he wants to get rid of Trump.
Think about this - if Bloomberg were running as a Republican, which he really is, you'd be attacking him for the exact same things you are giving him a pass for - because he is running against Trump.
You all know it. We all know it.
10
@SportsMedicine He also basically called farmers stupid. I'm not sure how well that's going to play in flyover country as it's a) insulting and b) shows no knowledge of farming whatsoever.
https://www.mrctv.org/blog/bloomberg-anybody-can-be-farmer-it-takes-lot-more-gray-matter-work-tech?fbclid=IwAR3mzJ8cY_VNDJdmCYpIBV5FAauDdSfdCPVk7dbtvzjuoRgyChRgmiBFbCk
4
As a tradesmen in Wisconsin that hangs out with other blue color guys, and I'm here to tell you that Bloomberg is a joke and don't count on our votes if that's your guy. He's just another business as usual corrupt politician, literally buying his way into the nomination. Don't count on winning over any trumpers, the disillusioned, or people who feel like the system is rigged by letting Bloomer buy his way into office. Good luck with that, establishment dems.
12
Jafon
So you are saying you and your blue collar friends would vote for the sociopathic russian puppet con man vulgarian in the WH instead of Bloomberg?
Wow.
Incredible.
1
I am all in for Michael Bloomberg, the former Mayor of New York !
Main goal is trump to be a one time President , Bloomberg will get things done immediately as soon as he is elected . And he has money and power to drag trump out of the White House together with his birther queen wife and the rest of the family.
Interesting what Mayor Pete said, if trump refuses to leave he could do chores.
Surge of Bernie Sanders is troubling , trump is drooling in his mouth to run against Bernie.
4
Do you really want to turn your country into an oligarchy, where leading posts are for sale?
Bloomberg has over the later years used a lot of money to support (read buy) organisations and politicians and thereby making them dependent on him for financing.
You are facing two risks.
The first is, that Bloombere may be a good man, but once the leadership of the country has been for sale, it will stay that way. You can't be partially virgin; either you are a virgin or you aren't.
The second is, that people give up on the democratic process and say it is meaningless, because it is rigged.
That can either give apathy, which means, that the voters stay home an give Trump another period, or it can give violent reactions from people, who fell they have nothing to loose.
It will certainly mean the death of the democratic party.
6
Bloomberg's arrogance matches Trumps'.
But Trump's behavior poisons the rule of law and the fabric of the country too.
Bullies in schools are now mocking and humiliating classmates, behavior modeled by Trump (link below).
The damage 4 more years of Trump can do is incalculable.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2020/local/school-bullying-trump-words/
6
Bullies have been mocking and humiliating classmates since long before Trump was born. That's what makes them bullies.
@Locke_ They are now using trumps exact words. Read the article. The link is there
3
Just now
In the past week, a lot of racist and misogynistic recordings of Bloomberg have been unearthed. It seems Democrats are giving him a pass on all of it, because thy are hoping his billions could buy enough votes to get rid of Trump.
But think about this....
What if Bloomberg were running as a Republican?
Democrats would be mercilessly attacking him for the EXACT same stuff they are now giving him a pass on. Can you honestly say that Democrats and their media cohorts would be giving him a pass on the horrific way he described the black community in that Stop and Frisk recording?
Would there be all this, yeah but his philanthropy??
Of course not. So what does that say about the party, and even their supporters?
8
With the knowledge that Bloomberg is paying for positive social media commentary, one has to wonder at the thousands of NYT comments, all repeating consistent themes of Bloomberg as “tough,”, “able to ‘beat’ Trump”, “I supported (insert candidate name here) but Bloomberg can win”.
This is not a democratic campaign. This is propaganda.
7
@Chickpea - I would happily vote for Bloomberg. And he didn't pay me to say this.
3
Chickpea
Well, that is exactly how trump won. The media covered trump and all of his rallies so intensely that the MAGA hat wearers could recite trump’s bullett points like automatons. I am not kidding! I watched and heard people being interviewed while waiting in line for a trump rally outside of the Mohegan Sun in Wilkes Barre, PA in 2016. It was frightening how effective the repetition of trump’s propaganda was in indoctrinating his base.
I knew then that HRC was going to lose to him.
Democrats need that same kind of propaganda machine, including using the MSM, repeating over and over and over again 3 or 4 simple statements, shorter than a statement, talking points, and pound them into the ground until November.
@PM
Didn't pay you. But fooled you?
Should've at least gotten paid for it.
1
Gamechanger!
Bloomberg is a hard core racist and anti white Christian middle class person. He thinks he is smarter than everyone. He clearly has a short person complex. I believe he is overly controlling and manipulative. The average American is not interested in this attitude. He is doing this for no other reason than himself. Wrong, wrong, wrong! He has nothing better to spend his money on.
1
Sanders is going to have the nomination “stolen” from him once again. Get some popcorn. This is going to get good.
9
White/Caucasian people are too eager to overlook Bloomberg's nasty racism, just they are/will overlook #45's racism. The "others" don't stand a chance....
9
@Jackson
I take that as sarcasm but just in case it isn’t, when Trump told three American lawmakers of color to “go back to where they came from” that was an example of racism. Bernie Sanders has ridiculed Trump for four years but Trump won’t dare say that to a 78 yr old Jewish guy. Hmmm. I wonder why?
3
@Jackson,
"Donald started his career, back in 1973, being sued by the Justice Department for racial discrimination — because he would not rent apartments in one of his developments to African-Americans, and he made sure that the people who worked for him understood that was the policy,"
https://www.npr.org/2016/09/29/495955920/donald-trump-plagued-by-decades-old-housing-discrimination-case
7
Jackson
Just off the top of my head:
Taking full page ad in NYT calling for the death penalty for 5 young black men, who were later exonerated.
Being sued by the Department of Justice for violating the Fair Housing Act and discriminating against people of color.
Claiming that there were good people marching in Charlottesville carrying tiki torches and wearing armbands.
I am not even trying here.
2
Michael Bloomberg has a history of sexism in his company. One woman told him she was pregnant and he told her to “kill it.” What a horrible thing to say. He was insinuating that she should have an abortion. She sued and it was settled out of court. He is a strong supporter of abortion and has given millions of dollars to both Planned Parenthood, the largest provider of abortion and Emily’s List, a political organization that supports candidates that favor abortion rights.
He is extremely liberal and proposes many progressive causes. He has given money to those pet projects and has donated to many political campaigns in the past. He is trying to buy his way into the race and it seems to be working at least in the short run. Once the people see the real Mike Bloomberg his surge in the polls will not last. He bought his third term as mayor much to the chagrin of many New Yorkers and he is doing the same with the presidential election. This time it will not work.
7
@KMW
You won't be voting for a Democrat under any circumstance, so why should you care if he is liberal?
4
It sounds like his philosophy on abortion mirrors that of all Democrats other than using the words “kill it.” I would say that when the act is considered murder it takes on an entirely new meaning.
@KMW
OK, here goes. Bernie told his pregnant secretary to “Kill it”.
And he did NOT support Planned Parenthood.
Sanders supporters can make up whatever they think will intimidate free thinking voters. Doesn’t work.
1
We don't need another billionaire running this country. Bloomberg is certainly appealing to wealthy centrists, but our current brand of capitalism isn't working for the majority of Americans. It is beyond reprehensible for anyone to buy his way into office, which Bloomberg basically did for his third mayoral term, and his apologies for stop and frisk are too little too late while his pro developer and pro charter school policies only made it harder for middle- and lower-class New Yorkers to thrive. While his temperament is certainly welcome compared to Trump, I don't believe his noblesse oblige would temper his crony capitalist tendencies.
16
@PTNYC
Trump is NOT a billionaire.
4
I lived in Bloomberg’s NYC and thought he did a great job. (I am an Asian-American woman so stop and frisk did not impact me and is something I learned about later.) I donate to one of the groups he started to support a cause I care about — gun control — and I’ve lauded his efforts to prevent climate change.
That said, I find it extremely depressing that in an election in which one of the leading candidates has called out the corrupting influence of money in politics that Bloomberg has bought his way into the top of the race.
As a woman, I find it extremely depressing that a man with a history of sexist remarks and actions has gained so much traction after the #metoo movement.
And as a voter and American, I find it extremely depressing that one of the drivers of his popularity is not any substantive policy proposals he’s made but the fact that he slid into the DMs of popular Instagram influencers.
For all the surface changes our society has undergone in recent years, clearly fundamental change will take quite a bit longer.
14
@L Fundamental change will take millions of years. See Darwin, C., Origin of the Species.
2
@L
Cheer up. Bloomberg will do a great job.
2
@L
It was perceived that Bloomberg did a great job because he merely extended all of Guiliani's policies.
Bloombergs own policies werent that great - like Stop and Frisk, or raising property taxes 18%.
4
Anyone who runs for elective office has to pay for it. That's the system.
Most candidates raise money from donors -- who want something in return at a later date.
Bloomberg is paying his own way. And this is bad, how?
13
@An independent in
He might as well buy votes directly. Would you take $200 to buy your vote?
Not really different from what he's doing. Money doesn't belong in elections, no matter how it was obtained.
Every civilized country knows this and prevents it. Only in America do we have a court that sanctifies private power as free speech.
Instead of *one person one vote* we have *one dollar one vote*. Sound fair to you? Then you're a true American, I guess.
5
At the end of the day, it will not matter who the Democrats nominate. The majority of voters realize that while Trump can act like a 10 year old at times, his policies are working. Proper border security, military preparedness, foreign policy that is working despite what his critics surmise, economic prosperity, energy independence, and unparalleled job creation will be hard to beat. If the Democrats actually got off their platform of slander and divisiveness, this country would already have a sound immigration policy, better health care options, lower drug costs, and infrastructure plans. Leave it to the Democrats to pass partisan bills in the House knowing they have no chance in the Senate. Compromise is what this country was founded on. That is how the Constitution came to be. Yet the hate for Trump started before he was sworn in and the coup was already being planned. That is why the Democrats don't compromise. They think if they do, it will legitimize Trump. Unwittingly, they already have.
7
@Duane Mathias
Democrats pass bills and McConnell refuses to bring them to the Senate. That’s the truth, unless you are an adherent of the Church of Fox.
10
@Duane Mathias
You have got to be kidding. Tell me what Trump accomplished on health care when he had the majority in all branches for two years.
I'll tell you: nothing but attempts to destroy the ACA.
9
@Buddydog
Passing bills with no chance of passing the Senate is just like the Senate passing bills with no chance of passing the House. They're called political stunts and are intended to virtue signal to the party bases.
2
Nothing...I repeat...NOTHING about Bloomberg represents Democratic values. If by some unfortunate, but successful financial transaction he wins the nomination, it will effectively hand the election to Trump. I find his campaign offensive and wonder about any Dem that thinks this Republican billionaire could be a choice by any stretch of the imagination. This is Onion material.
19
Did I miss where Sanders climbed nine points in the same poll to lead nationally by 10pts? Or that 538 has him odds on favorite to win the nomination. That no one else is even close. In his poll of polls Bloomberg has a 1 in 50 chance.
I laughed when the author said, "reflecting the intense focus" in place of the more accurate, spending over 400 million dollars!
Nothing about Sanders rally in WA with 20K ppl. Only abt the 2nd tier of highly unlikely candidates.
The NYT stoops lower and lower as this progresses.
16
@Mark
Dear Mark,
Mr. Sanders has been campaigning for this election since 2018. He just won, barely, the two whitest states in the nation. His polling in Nevada has him with 30% which is impressive.
But just as impressive is Bloomberg who has only recently entered the race and in a few months now is polling 19% nationally for the Democratic nomination.
Admittedly, polls are not the same thing as the actual winning of a caucus, primary or general election.
As to money...
Mr. Bloomberg has spent a lot of money just as have the other candidates. Mr. Bloomberg is spending his own money while Mr. Sanders is spending other people's money. I don't see any virtue in that.
By the way how much money has Mr. Sanders accumulated and spent so far. I don't have a figure but would guess he has spent 100 million or more and has probably twice that much in his war chest. I think I will look it up.
5
@Mark
Best stop reading the NYT because it will soon be Sanders going lower & lower. March 3rd to be exact.
4
@Mark
This article is about Bloomberg qualifying for the debates.
3
I cannot tell you how disappointed I was to learn of Bloomberg's misogyny. Yes, I know what everyone will say, that it does not compare to Trump's, but those who represent Democrats have to hold themselves to a higher standard, and I am afraid that Bloomberg cannot turn his back on a lifetime of demeaning women in the workplace. He comes from a long Wall Street tradition of treating women like things for the pleasure of men. Obviously these men are threatened by smart women, and, god forbid, smart women who are also extremely attractive, but that does not excuse decades of creating a hostile work environment. We all have lost the contributions of women who have been driven from the industry. No, not even on the off chance that Bloomberg can beat Trump, can I forgive him for his bad behavior.
7
Change is generally incremental. Yes, I would vote for Bloomberg over Trump despite the alleged history of sexism. You can’t alwAys get everything you want in one fell swoop.
1
HIs flood of meda ads raise his poll numbers? To me his ads are a big turn off, after what's come out about his past actions and statements. He's shown contempt for other people.
We have to rid our politics of such super- rich, super- arrogant types.
Bloomie will distort the truth and insult his oppenents. same as he's dissed non-whites and women. It's a clear pattern. He makes up his own reality, because Bloomie's got a King complex, same as the one he wants to replace.
If voters can be duped enough to be pro-Trump, they can be pro Bloomie too, from the opposite side. We see it all over--- some voters accept so many of his dictatorial tendencies, downplay his huge faults, and just rationalize them away.
Yes, it's happening again.
Seems many voters are naive and easily led to idealize a candidate who respects nobody. When he comes on the TV screen I grab the remote, same as I do with the current sociopath we got.
9
@Lupito ....True. But also Trump has a Napoleon Complex, if anyone does, and he's 6ft, 3.
@Lupito He's 5'8" -- average height.
I haven't done the heavy research to prove this but is it true in fact that Bloomberg didn't earn all his money himself? If he did, which I think is what happened, why is the media attacking him from every direction for being a billionaire? isn't that the American success story, especially in contradistinction to how the man in the White House now got his money?
3
@Times reader
"is it true in fact that Bloomberg didn't earn all his money himself?"
And there you have it. The most naive, but canonically American, view of money and capitalism.
He didn't *earn* any of "his" money himself. Except perhaps when he was a paperboy in grade school, if he was.
Capitalists get rich off the labor of others, not their own. They invest ("take risks" is how they like to put it); they don't "earn" anything.
3
@Times reader
Dear Time Reader and Drew,
Actually Mr. Bloomberg invented a highly useful system for monitoring financial transactions that has been adopted worldwide. He certainly has had help since then and has thousands of employees.
So, Mr. Bloomberg did indeed earn his way into his fortune and created thousands of jobs in the process.
Drew can open a nice bottle of "whine", but it seems like virtue signalling to decry someone who has been successful by using their talents.
6
Bloomberg did nothing more than ride Rudys coat tails. But hey, we can't be having those 32oz drinks, or salt on our fries now, can we? There is always that.
6
"A mass of energy."
What about a Bernie/Bloomberg ticket?
2
@Sydney
Bernie/Bloomberg?
You're front-running everyone; they'll need time to catch up.
2
@Sydney
Now that's not a pair I'd want draw to.
Umm, what? Because they’re both Jewish? Aside from that, what do they have in common?!
1
Bloomberg is doing the USA a great favor! Oh yes he is. Right now we're in a time when it is legal to use your fortune and fame to run for office. And fame is the most important part of that equation. Look what Ronald Reagan did by becoming a wholesome All American movie star and also a rich man before he strolled into the governor's office in California. Reagan used that precedent to become a two-term president of the United States and completely restructure our tax system and change the face of America (in favor of corporations and the rich) for a half-century. Reagan did all that based primarily on his fame as a movie star (which is priceless) and there's nothing in anyone's campaign finance reform plan, not even Bernie Sanders’ plan, that would do a thing to stop another Ronald Reagan from using fame totally unrelated to political accomplishment to become president. That's exactly what Trump has done. Trump was handed a fortune as a child, used it to make himself a TV star and used all that to become president of the United States. It's only fair and right that liberals in this country make use of their wealth and power to combat him. We don't have a 'governor' Brad Pitt to be our Reagan but we do have Michael Bloomberg. The most powerful nation on earth with the largest economy is being led presently, by an ego-maniacal nut-case.
12
Sad to see how everyone is focused on beating trump, and not what's best for America. Very sad when you see people rally behind politicians like they were some sort of superstars that should be praised and rallied upon. it seems people forgot to vote for what's the best for America, and not your favorite politician.
7
Beating Trump IS what’s best for America!
11
@Felix you say, " Very sad when you see people rally behind politicians like they were some sort of superstars that should be praised and rallied upon."
People have been doing this since the beginning of time. It's a human trait. Just be grateful when the person that people are rallying around isn't a madman.
5
Bloomberg would be a welcome drink of cool water (not a big gulp of soda...). Conservative (!) columnists (I-Douthat) warn that he would be a step back for the Democratic party from the wokedness of recent years, to which I'd say, welcome back, normalcy! It has been so distressing to see the candidates attacking each other over who is more racist than the other. Bloomberg is a realist with the clarity to see facts without the lens of racial exceptionalism. His stop and frisk program removed thousands of illegal handguns that were being used by the black community -- against the black community. If only he were willing to invest in expansion of social security, he would be totally competitive with the current frontrunners.
5
Bernie gets 31% in the latest national poll, solidifying his position as front runner and showing that his ceiling is much higher than most pundits give him credit for (remember when he had a hard 15% ceiling? Then 20, then 25%?).
And yet his name isn't in the headline. The two stories below this one are about how Bloomberg is more left than people think and how Warren is trying to get back in the mix.
This story is written fine, and Bloomberg's surge is newsworthy. But the editorial decisions (headlines and article placement) speak volumes...
12
I'll tell you who's surging - Bernie Sanders.
The corporate owned, main stream media would like us all to ignore the soaring popularity of Bernie Sanders.
The Sanders campaign has received more single donations from individuals than any prior campaign in U.S. history.
Be bold. Join in. Vote in a way that matters. Vote Bernie.
15
I think it would be best to wait and see how Bloomberg does on the debate stage tomorrow and later this month, if you're a Super Tuesday voter. He might do well or he might crash and burn.
This is the most important election in the history of America - we need to choose the best candidate who can stop the creeping fascism of the current Republican regime both in the WH and Senate. If we don't stop it, we will never have another chance in most of our lifetimes.
I will happily vote for any of these good people running for the Dem nomination over Trump but I'm going to base my decision from the head this time, not my heart.
7
@Sydney "This is the most important election in the history of America." Probably not.
1
@Sydney We need to make sure that the nation runs as efficiently as Chicago and the State of Illinois, right?
1
@MKR Maybe not for those who don't mind a fascist government, but for the rest of us, it is.
Hurray!!! Keep the momentum moving forward, Mike!
Regards,
A recovering Republican
9
Trump’s doppelgänger Bloomberg will be on stage Wednesday! It is a good thing the election is in 9 months. Otherwise we would still be having these meaningless debates for 6 more months. Wasted time, money and effort.
2
Listen folks, many of us have said we would vote for a rock if it could beat Donald Trump. Well here’s our rock.
8
IMHO, if Dems nominate Sanders, Trump's wildest wish will come true. Sanders will be crushed! Tom Friedman explained best on a Feb 12, Op ed--it is a must read:
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/11/opinion/bloomberg-president-2020.html?utm_source=Sheekey+Daily+Read&utm_campaign=580ee371bf-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2020_02_12_02_21_COPY_02&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_7319d2fc05-580ee371bf-186219293
5
Bloomberg has my vote.
10
Why is there so much resentment about Mayor Mike Bloomberg's
self made wealth? He is not tying to buy the presidency. He has pledged a substantial portion his fortune to defeat Donald Trump, the greatest threat to America in our history. Trump has lied, cheated, and grifted his entire life. He is an fraud taking credit for others achievements and blaming others for his overt incompetence. He corrupts everything he touches. Is it because he was seen on TV playing a successful businessman? He is a successful conman. Are Americans really that unwitting? Obviously the ones benefiting from this regime are coconspirators!
10
He's definitely trying to buy the election.
4
@james
Who isn’t ? Is your choice doing it without someone’s money ?
2
I want Bernie, after Super Tuesday, to choose a VP and I think it should be Amy Klobuchar. Choosing a more moderate VP from the Midwest could guarantee a win, and probably knock Bloomberg and Buttigieg out of the race. I'd love Klobuchar for president but I don't think that will happen so I'll happily accept her as VP. By choosing Klobuchar now, Bernie shows he can work with the moderate segment of the party, speak to women and reduce the anxiety of people who feel Bernie is too extreme, or too old. A minority woman might be even better to guarantee a win but Klobuchar has the experience so I have to go with her.
6
@CJ What if Klobuchar is still running? Wouldn't it be misogyny to pick her as VP? And autocratic (which shades of oligarchic?)
Jimmy Carter’s deregulation of the political governance (PACs) inadvertently gave Reagan the latitude to embark on “the erosion of effective financial regulation system”, with long-lasting implications, including the 2008 financial crisis.
Any Democrat running for President would serve with a genuine sense of purpose better than now. But as the lessons of history taught us, pragmatism and a strategic mindset must prevail over the idealism of issue champions with a high readiness for change and a low capability to build national and global allies for a sustainable progressive change. Both Bloomberg and Biden have the intellectual depth to deal with rising geopolitical tensions and the powerful stakeholders’ polarization over public health, gun control and climate change. They have the experience to craft bipartisan support and bring the nation and the world to an inflection point in four years, especially on climate change and combatting poverty.
Biden’s track record goes back to the post-SALTII de-facto deal he extracted from Gromyko, above and beyond what President Carter agreed to. Bloomberg has turned residual foes into allies as a mayor and around the world. During his tenure as New York’s mayor, anonymous donations to education, public health and other worthy causes, with no strings attached, were unprecedented.
A Bloomberg-Biden ticket has the greatest propensity to prevent voter alienation on the Democratic side; attract independents and soft Republican voters.
3
@Alain Paul Martin
Forget Biden, everyone else has.
If you want pragmatism and a strategic mindset - plus a bit of idealism - you need to think different (reframe the question, redefine terms, rethink winning, apply data to assumptions, game out iterative scenario sets, and sleep on it).
Bernie will get all the Bros who voted Trump last time (12%), plus all the Progressives, the Independents (the largest Party at 41% versus Dems and Repubs at 28% each), the young, people of color (19%), the working class, the women, and the 47% of non-voting eligible voters made apathetic by the namby-pamby Moderates.
Bloomie will get the rich (because of rich guilt), Wall Street (they won't believe he'll tax them), the Republicans (who love stop and frisk), more Independents, also the people of color (see latest polls, he's at 22%), many of the Trumpsters (subtracted from Trump so twice the vote count), and all the leftovers (the Moderates).
Bernie/Bloomie is the ticket - if you want to win.
3
@Alain Paul Martin
Bloomberg will never choose Biden to be his running mate. Absurd to claim Biden has "intellectual depth." He didn't have it before his decline, and he doesn't have it now.
Bloomberg will pick someone younger who still has energy: I suggest Michael Steele or Eric Swalwell.
4
@Alain Paul Martin
https://www.democracynow.org/2020/2/18/worth_the_price_joe_biden_documentary
Am I the only person who thinks the idea that Bloomberg is “buying” an election is inaccurate and unfair? He is using his personal resources - very transparently - to buy advertising. Buying an election implies - to me - behind the scenes bribes and transactions to gain influence and promote agendas. This is such a critical time for life on earth, in human and other forms. When I see Warren - whom I adore and trust - bitterly denouncing Bloomberg for bringing his wealth to joining the race, it makes me feel sad and panicky. I hope I would be unselfish and grown-up enough to be willing to step aside for a stronger competitor in this contest in which so much is at stake.
33
@printer
Which of his advertisements explained why the DNC should change the rules for him?
4
@printer "Buying an election implies behind the scenes bribes and transactions". That is what he's doing, though. He's bribing people for their endorsements. He has his paid money manager on TV talking about how great he is.
5
@printer "Buying an election implies behind the scenes bribes and transactions". That is what he's doing, though. He's bribing people for their endorsements. He has his paid money manager on TV talking about how great he is.
3
The headline should have read "Bloomberg Spends Millions on Advertising to Get Into the Debate."
As Trump and Bloomberg know, we are a media culture who are conditioned to believe what we see and hear. And we are totally conditioned to advertising.
Bloomberg's message is irrelevant. What he's doing is buying name recognition as one would do with any product they are marketing.
He's trying, and apparently succeeding in convincing the public that the billionaire Republican is really a Democrat.
On closer examination you will see that at least in his eyes, there's not much difference.
11
@Drspock
"Bloomberg Spends Millions on Advertising to Get Into the Debate."
Nah, other candidates are spending millions. Bloomberg is spending *hundreds* of millions. So far he's spent more than Clinton spent in 2015/2016 and he hasn't even appeared on a single ballot yet.
While the other Democrats fight among themselves over issues that they largely agree upon Mike Bloomberg continues to have a laser focus on beating Trump in 2020.
Perhaps that is what makes him an attractive alternative to many Democrats Independents and disgruntled moderate Republicans and can explain his rapid rise in the polls.
Mayor Bloomberg may not pass the Bernie Bro's Purity test but in 2020 with the possibility of another four years of Trump , most Democrats 'not the noisemakers who don't always vote' could care less.
There is only one policy issue right now that is important to me and that is a plan to beat Trump in the 2020 election.
16
Bloomberg was a highly effective mayor. He manages well, puts in first-rate teams and lets them do their jobs. He is also an innovator: during his reign he launched the 1 Million Trees program, to plant trees to help clean the air; added mini-parks all over the city, reduced traffic in those areas and many other initiatives.
Since leaving, his foundation has made tremendous inroads into social issues and programs. He is smart, self-made and is just what the country needs. Count my vote in.
26
Me, too! He has my vote.
4
@Concerned in NYC I am not a New Yorker, but born and bred midwestern from St. Louis. I see Bloomberg as a person who is brooks no nonsense, practical in application and innovation, seeks out highly intelligent people to gets the work done and also not intimidated by blowhard would-be bullies. He absolutely has my vote.
2
The author, Mr. Epstein, takes issue with Bloomberg for running as a Democrat even though he has a history of not being a Democrat. But he is completely silent on Sanders running as a Democrat even though he too isn’t a Democrat. Any wonder who Mr. Epstein is supporting?
16
Good - let's hear him in a debate situation. At this point, I almost don't care who the nominee is, as long as they can decisively beat Trump, lead in turning the Senate Democratic, keep the House, and prosecute all the Trumpist miscreants.
11
I know what I want, but not exactly who I want. But like so many, I know best what I don’t and who I don’t want. And that is Trump and a complicit senate. So if I have to plug my nose and grit my teeth and cast my vote for Bloomberg, so be it. I’d rather have a little of something than nothing at all.
13
But right now we are at the stage when we don't need to hold our noses and grit out teeth. We can vote for whom we actually like.
4
That fact that so many people don't care about a billionaire buying his way into this election is deeply concerning. The more this goes on and the more support Bloomberg gets, I am left thinking we will get the government that we deserve. If Bloomberg wins and the inequality gap continues to grow, if the Zuckerbergs, the Bezos, the Kochs, etc continue to increase their power and infuence, then we had it coming. If Bernie squeaks by a win and all the haters trash the poor guy's agenda because we just can't have anything being more equal without hurting all those millionaires & billionaires (they need their freedom!), then we had it coming. If Trump wins reelection, then we definitely had it coming. I'd love the narrative to switch into one where the people come together and prevail. I'm waiting but bracing myself for the potential of a lot of despair instead.
10
Just as Sanders supporters might be underestimating the degree to which many americans dislike him, Bloomberg supporters fail to understand just how toxic his nomination would be for a large number of Democratic voters. Yes, maybe you'd bring in some moderate Trump turncoats, but you're going to make millions of progressive voters want to give up on politics altogether. You cannot pretend to be the pro-democracy, anti-corruption party and then let an obscenely wealthy former Republican with authoritarian tendencies spend his way to the nomination. The oligarchy is not going to lead us out of these desperate times.
13
@Steve
Let's not assume that all billionaires are embedded into the billionaire class. If Bloomberg is a turncoat billionaire with a conscience, like Soros, he further proves Bernie's point about the status quo and strengthens the Progressive analysis.
1
@Steve P
Exactly. The hypocrisy of Bloomberg's enablers is stunning.
4
That’s great news for America!
Italy had a political issue in 1994 when a national media tycoon, Silvio Berlusconi, entered the political arena; there was though a law apportioning time on the TV “box” to competing parties.
Berlusconi won the election, and it took the country a total nine years to shed this “cumbersome” personality, who - think about it - in comparison to Trump, had a flowery language and was quite diplomatic. And Italy was changed by him, mostly in bad, apart a law prohibiting smoking in public places.
At the moment a much more “normal” coalition, made by the Five Stars Movement and the Democratic Party, rules the country, surrounded by a rabid right-wing opposition.
We can't though compare Bloomberg with the former Italian media tycoon. Mike, may be a stern, outspoken personality, but he hasn't got no help from wealthy persons to be then promoted afterwards as weird ambassadors in Ukraine.
Bloomberg is an decent American who will use his personal money to beat this incumbent global warming "Denial In Chief".
For him, there is a caveat though: even if the current Potus’ health status is totally unknown to Americans, Mike, as is the case of Bernie, must show his health record, for his voters to freely peruse in it before going to the ballot.
2
@Bruno
Both their health records are on public display: they suffer from the terminal disease of old age, but it does not slow them down.
Now you should believe my claims over the years that Television is a brainwashing tool.
5
time to take back the country from the hands of the gop and trump ..... the dark days of trump need to come to an end.....
9
I would vote for Bernie Sanders before I would ever vote for Mike Bloomberg. And that is saying a lot since I am a staunch Republican. Bernie Sanders has not bought his way into the campaign like Mike Bloomberg. He has campaigned in a lot of states unlike Mike Bloomberg. He is not a racist whereas Mike Bloomberg is definitely a racist. It is a sure bet that Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren will hound him over these things. He will not get out of this debate easily. Mike Bloomberg has a lot of explaining to do. He better be ready to answer some tough questions.
12
Bloomberg may not be the right person to lead democratic party but then who will tag Trump.Our country is in historic political mess.Although technologically we advanced but politically we have fallen in the true democratic spirit.Our winners are nor clear cut,the margins in the senate are hardly 2 or three votes.the favorable and unfavorable for all practical purposes are equal. we are zigzagging along line this way or that way with no clear cut direction. A decisive leader is needed now who can carry more than 60% of the people with him and not just with 50.5%. Naturally a clear cut plan for the progress of the country that will benefit them and bring respect for the country at the international level is needed. Pray for it to happen.
3
I hope he is preparing for the debate and I hope he does well.
19
Bloomberg can win and that’s all that matters at this point. It’s not pretty but it’s the best option now.
18
He can lose as well. I don't see any objective data that his chances to win are much greater than any other candidates in top tier.
9
I am not rich. I contribute what I can to political causes I support. Bloomberg is wealthy, I see nothing wrong if he contributes and does what he can for the political causes he believes in, including running for a Oval Office. ( “From each according to his ability” Burnie supporters!)
His support for environment, gun control, sensible economics policies, health care that can reach all align with mine. My vote is for him.
22
It appears, "The Wall" has rigged another election with Billionaire versus Billionaire.
We all definitely have to vote for others to end the Wall street stranglehold on the government. That means purging all Republicans and Trump as well as ignoring Bloomberg.
We cannot let "The Wall" street win again.
6
@PATRICK ,
So for staters, Trump isn't a billionaire and has never donated one thin dime to helping the effects of gun violence or climate change or putting underprivileged people through college. That is the difference among many other differences.
Job #1, get rid of Trump.
9
@Clearwater
Not with another Wall street tycoon in a rigged election.
1
@PATRICK
Billionaires are different, but some actually are good billionaires.
I went out with one whose father was a multi-billionaire. When she wanted to go shopping, she flew to Milan and they were waiting for her. For a residence she took the top floor of a famous hotel. For cars, she had them built for her.
But she was extremely nice and down to earth and had her head on straight, maybe because she could afford to be a good person.
1
While it might be hard to win the nomination without some support from the progressive wing, it's absolutely not necessary to get a single progressive vote to win the general-hence Trump. The calculation for centrist/moderate and conservative democrats in going for Bloomberg is then: for every Republican vote we'd pick up in the general, how many progressives would stay home? And the numbers in NY and CA are irrelevant, Trump will never win there. It's the possibility of winning the Midwest, PA, FL and even getting close in TX that's compelling (except they like their guns too much). This is why he surged from 4% to 20% as Biden tanked. 16% can do the math that quickly.
5
Basically, Bloomberg is sucking supports from the other moderates. I guess it could 91st least consolidate moderate voters. Seems like the supporters of moderates don't mind to vote for the Wall Street after all. That is exactly what progressives were talking about all along. I guess you can experiment again, and see how many Reps will switch the side, but don't blame progressives for the loss of general election.
2
None of this agonizing over the choice for democrat nominee will in the end matter as Trump will win by a country mile over any of them. Bloomberg is now the flavor of the week as all the others but Sanders are extremely weak against Trump. Bloomberg's star will crash with extensive repeating of his disparaging comments on minorities, women, and farmers. This will serve to severely depress turnout among these groups. The strongest candidate Sanders will also suffer fatally when his past radical statements praising the Soviet Union, Cuba and Venezuela as well as his lack of any real accomplishments in the Senate are hammered by Trump and oddly also by the democrat establishment and their handmaidens the MSM.
4
I am not so sure, after all Trump has his share of remarks praising Putin.
2
It's comical how unrelenting the Times, the Post, CNN, and MSNBC--those pillars of the neoliberal, Wall St. fat cat Democratic Establishment--are in not missing a single chance to spin any development at all in Bloomberg's favor and against Bernie, just the way they all did for the Wall St. darling of 2016, Hillary. Too bad this time blacks are being wised up and are rushing to Bernie in droves, thereby torpedoing the usual Establishment strategy of conning them to vote to make the rich richer and themselves and other ordinary or below Americans poorer, the same way the Kochs and the rest have conned white Republicans in the lower classes for decades. The biggest showing in this poll, of course, was not that Bloomberg had surged but that Bernie is pulling away from the whole field, with a 12-point lead over Bloomberg, and with Buttigieg and Klobuchar fading quickly into oblivion. It's obviously going to be the working-class's hero Bernie against the billionaire's hero Bloomberg. Let's see whether the working class or the billionaires have more votes.
10
@Fred White
You’re confusing Comments here with media. Real people don’t like Sanders, believe it or not.
@Fred White
Current Quinnipiac polling has Bloomberg at 22% versus Bernie's 19% with the black vote (Biden is at 27%). That's the power of money in this race.
Each of the Democratic candidates, by the way, leads Trump in general election matchups by between 4 and 9 percentage points.
@Fourteen14
"Each of the Democratic candidates, by the way, leads Trump in general election matchups by between 4 and 9 percentage points."
Those are national polls which don't really correspond to electability. Who cares how many more millions of voters the Democrat will get in CA or NY? You need to look at the swing states.
LOL. The same poll has Sanders opening up a double-digit lead over his nearest rival, but the Times chooses to highlight Bloomberg’s numbers in the lede. It’s been gobsmacking to see the “liberal” media go out of its way to downplay or undermine Sanders’s support, while they push a billionaire plutocrat.
9
Be reminded that Democrats were perfectly ok letting Bernie Sanders run using the machinery of the Democrat Party. Sanders is not even, to this day, a Democrat. He can hardly contain himself criticizing and tearing down Democrats. To object to Bloomberg coming into the race is hypocritical in the extreme. Just because Bernie likes making up Bernie rules ( such as "no billionaires allowed!" doesn't mean they need to be taken seriously. I am sure there is a left of center candidate who could win the election- maybe Sherrod Brown. But he isn't running. Bloomberg is the best of the pack right now. He would be a great president. Warren and Sanders are screech owls who make a Greek chorus for Democrats. Pete Buttigeig is too young. Biden is a gaffe factory damaged fatally by Trumps preemptive slander.
13
Seems too me is much bigger hypocrisy to criticize Sanders for not being a Democrat, while supporting Bloomie who changes parties as gloves depending on his own ambitions.
8
Do you want Donald Trump in office for four more years? If not, please think twice before criticizing Bloomberg, because the more you do, the more you are working toward an incumbent victory.
9
@blondiegoodlooks
Do you want a president who represents the vast majority of the country? If so, please think twice about supporting Bloomberg and his 0.1% supporters.
8
@david gallardo
Agreed. Let’s beat up Bloomberg so that Democrats are left with no option at all.
2
@blondiegoodlooks
Another fear-based rationale for voting for a lame and fatally flawed candidate instead of for the most robust candidate in the race--clearly it's Bernie.
We can't possibly win based on fear and pointing the finger of blame at would-be spoilers. As Democrats, we need to be bold, positive and proactive in our faith that we can get through this Trump nightmare by coalescing around the one candidate who credibly pledges to bring fairness and justice back into the picture. Again, that is Bernie.
4
Bloomberg is the only one who every independent will vote for. Ttump will be toast if Bloomberg is the nominee.
8
@David Jacobson
You're in love with the idea of Bloomberg, but clearly must not know much about the man himself, or his record as the self-serving, corrupt mayor of NYC, for two legal terms, plus the third term he essentially bribed City Council to get.
3
@David Jacobson He can certainly win PA. Bernie cannot unless he recants a number of his positions.
When I read the NY Times, I often feel like an unwelcome intruder. That's because I disagree with many of the essays of pundits, which in my view are often based upon faulty assumptions. It amazes me how quickly readers conform to the suggested opinions. And this seems inconsistent with a functioning democracy which should encourage freedom of speech and should encourage diversity of opinion.
It seems to me that Democrats have marched to the left. Once I was a liberal myself. Now I'm on the right of the Democratic Party, perhaps better regarded as an independent. I'm 76 years old, and my views have been roughly constant. It's the Democrats who have changed.
And yes, I value maintaining the best of the past. Our democracy has survived for about 230 years. That's a long time. How did it do it? By protecting freedoms enshrined in the Bill of Rights, and expanding those freedoms.
So I worry about Sanders. Yes, I want universal health care for all American citizens. But I think its unrealistic to offer such health care to an unending stream of illegal immigrants.
And I think that we should stop illegal immigration. Humanely of course. And coupled with aid to Latin America so that living conditions there can improve.
So I welcome the entry of Bloomberg. His views are more moderate, he has a good chance of winning in 2020.
Let's see how he does in the debates.
Of course I will vote for Sanders over Trump. But I worry that many independents might not.
13
I don't get it why Americans are so obsessed with winning. Suppose (and only suppose) you win this by nominating Bloomberg/Buttigieg/etc. Don't forget that Trump was brought to you after eight years of Obama and all of us are lucky he is pretty much a clown with no ideology. Can you guarantee after 4 or 8 years of your favorite old style centrist you don't end up with a genuine fascist? America does not need a centrist winner, it needs a new vision that might even lose temporarily but prevail in the long run.
473
@Kamal At the rate that Trump and the GOP are destroying democratic values, what will America look like in another four years? Is there really that luxury of time?
I have a lot of respect for Obama and it appears he is supportive of Michael Bloomberg. Can he be that wrong? Maybe now is not the time for ideological elections but one based on strategically eliminating the existential threat in order to guarantee future elections based on the 'new vision'.
147
@Kamal the fact is that the progressive vision is winning the polls and elections despite the banks, insurance companies, corporate owned media, and our own Democratic Party throwing everything against it. As Americans living in the richest country in the world we have no idea what affordable health care even looks like but I suspect we’re about to find out. Bloomberg is just another distraction on the road to finally taking care of ourselves as a nation and a people.
60
@Kamal not sure you have a full picture of how our quirky system works. *if* the senate does not flip this time around, and Trump squeaks by again, even more irreparable harm will be done. it is critical both for this country and the world that the presidency changes hands or the senate does this cycle, and due to the demographics involved the former is an easier win (not easy, but easier)
105
I lived in NYC all through the Bloomberg years and they were fantastic. Yes I’m a privileged white guy so there. If that counts me out in some people’s mind then fine.
He was not in the papers every day. You barely heard about him. Why? Because he was doing the work that needed to be done. He’s not a media hog like Trump. He’s running for president now so of course he’s all over currently.
The city was safe, it grew economically, he initiated some amazing public works projects (some that came to fruition, some that didn’t) he sold unused land to developers for astronomical prices and created epic free parks with endowments. Green space within 2-3 blocks for everyone, 1 million trees initiative.
He’s smart, talks straight, does the work, listens to advisors, surrounds himself with good people, he’s real and he knows how to deal with Trumps garbage talk. That’s why Trump was attacking him before he was a serious candidate.
I’m unapologetic. My vote would go to Mike.
1632
@Peter Bloomberg’s run is only possible because of the Robert’s Supreme Court allowing big money to take over our elections. If Bloomberg wins the nomination I’ll support him if he doesn’t when the nomination I’ll appreciate the money he pitches in.
71
@Javaforce, I don't believe the Citizens United decision applies in Bloomberg's case because his campaign is self funded.
126
@Peter : Hi Peter: I am also a NYC native and agree with you 100 percent. Did Bloomberg make a couple of mistakes...yes..and he has taken responsibility for his errors in judgment, apologized and understands the lessons he has learned. Unlike Trump, a hideously bombastic NYC narcissist who believes bankruptcy is a business plan, Mike Bloomberg is a NYC straight shooter, works very hard, made his money the old fashioned way...he earned it but doesn't flaunt it. The fact that Bloomberg has stated his money will be directed to whomever the Democratic party nominates - speaks to his integrity and full disclosure. I just hope people in the West and Midwest of this country read NYC natives experiences with Mike Bloomberg as our 12 year Mayor and consider him over Trump- who is not who we are as New Yorkers - and probably why he moved to Florida - he has never fit in here.
202
So this is what the Dems have become - the party of the highest bidder.
Those of us who voted for Trump in ‘16 and who will do so again in ‘20 saw this a long time ago.
Just ask yourself, who does open borders help? Who does unrestricted “free trade” help? Who does multiculturalism help? Who does non stop interventionism and “peacekeeping” help?
None of this helps core, middle class citizens, whose families have been here for hundreds of years. Doubt this? Just look at their sinking mortality and shrinking income rates. Look at how we flocked to Trump and are sticking with him.
Sure, some foreign elites and corporate leaders no-doubt benefit from Democratic dominance, along with aggrieved minority voters who don’t mind being bought off if the price is right.
But there’s just no way a majority of Americans who are actually proud of their families’ contributions to the United States are going to go along with the Democratic Party’s agenda. And as normal Americans drop away, it creates an opening for a hostile takeover by a true blue plutocrat technocrat.
Bloomberg is more perfect for the Party than Bernie. He’s simply putting the party’s real center front and center. The party of the left IS the party of big business, big media, open borders and endless wars. We pay for it, they get rich off of it.
I think voting for Trump and against Bloomberg is going to be even more fun than voting against Hillary was. It’ll definitely be more fun than voting against Bernie.
8
“Normal” Americans — you know, the ones that have been here for “hundreds of years”.
Dude, it’s OK. You can just say “white people”.
White supremacy is such a burden.
Bloomberg brings the best mix of political and executive experience to the stage. Mayors must make decisions every day. Senators vote and fund raise.
1343
Seems to me Bernie's experience is better. He was a mayor, and a Senator.
159
@Midwest Josh Good thing Sanders has experience as a mayor as well.
71
That's why all of our great presidents have been mayors.
18
When the Democratic candidates said in their first debate that they would support whoever the nominee is, Bloomberg hadn't yet butted in with his money.
All Bloomberg has to do is buy the nomination like Clinton did in 2016, and it will be clear sailing for a third party, and then perhaps a fourth party, to pick up one of the other candidates.
So is this a Trump campaign strategy, having his old buddy Bloomberg intervene? I'm a Democrat, but I won't support Bloomberg. There are times when it's worth fighting for principles. The Democrats should never again be represented by a Republican in disguise.
7
@Fern Clinton didn't buy the nomination. She's a lifelong democrat who also supported down ticket candidates - unlike Saint Bernie.
2
At this point, with Bloomberg’s ability to buy the election, can we trust that he didn’t buy himself a few polls.
He will buy him a country now and make Israel the 51st state.
Not good.
3
The best thing about this foul, racist billionaire of a Trump-variant, is how he brings out the white privilege in all of the nominal "liberals" and "democrats" out there.
Just like what Trump did with all of those rabid white nationalists and xenophobes--brought them out into the light of day, which is exactly where we want them. Careful, just like them, once you're out in the light of day, there's no more hiding.
Love,
The True Left
3
@SD
Yes, your threat is frightening. As you know, Old Bernie's bros have made public the addresses of opponents of your hero, made it necessary for them to hire private security, etc., etc.
Terrifying.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/27/us/politics/bernie-sanders-internet-supporters-2020.html
4
@Pecan
Minus simple, bungling, ham-handed assumptions, you would not have said a single thing.
I said the True Left--what's Bernie have to do with it? He's just another politician trying to get elected as president.
The far left Dems must be apoplectic with the very real choice of either voting for a hated billionaire or staying home. Oh my!
2
And then there’s Bernie screaming and hollering, flailing his arms around, yelling “would a billionaire raise the minimum wage?” Like could a billionaire possibly care about a minimal wage worker?
The answer - as a past mayor of New York - yes, I believe a billionaire could care about a minimum wage earner, because, by golly, there are probably plenty of New Yorkers that fit that bill - and yes, Bloomberg did and does care about them. And other minimum wage citizens, too. Throughout the country.
If Bernie would just calm down, he might be easier to listen to. But frankly, the screaming and hollering is just too much!
Bloomberg - just stay calm. Please.
28
@MIMA
You missed the part about Bloomberg being against raising the minimum wage and about blaming the the Great Recession on the end of red-lining, a racist practice that kept POC from home-ownership. Yep, don't blame the banks for making fraudulent loans; blame the victims.
Nice man you moderates are drooling over.
5
When was working hard and being successful like Mike Bloomberg become a sin in America as portrayed by Sanders and Warren? Bloomberg proved to be an outstanding mayor who was very innovative as well. He's not perfect, but who is? He apologizes for mistakes and has been a very generous benefactor for numerous worthy causes. I can't think of a person more worthy of being President (except for George Washington, of course).
1072
And he can probably handle Trump in a debate, put him in his place. The thing that bothers me is I have heard talk of him having Hillary as a running mate. That I absolutely could not abide. lhe has to stop at some point.
41
@Accordion "Stop and frisk" was a violation of constitutional rights and racist.
Bloomberg is saying whatever to get elected. He will betray the voters that support him.
113
Mike Bloomberg is better than Lincoln? Hardly.
63
AKJersey,
Most politicians can be bought cheaply, just look at how many Congress people become millionaires in office.
For many people, not all, and certainly not those with character, they can be bought; they say money can buy love; not my love.
1
It doesn't matter who the democratic candidate is. We have progressives threatening to not support moderate Democrats. We have moderates threatening not to support progressive candidates.
Progressives are complaining about being ignored, moderates are complaining about too much change.
Neither is willing to compromise. Regardless of what candidate the article is covering, there is always a fraction refusing to vote for said candidate.
Cue another 4 years of Trump.
4
I simply want trump eliminated. Bloomberg appears to be the best bet to accomplish that from where I sit. Not to mention he'd make trump suffer on the way out, which is an added bonus.
3
News flash to New Yorkers indulging in the fantasy that "it takes a New Yorker to beat a New Yorker":
Most of us out in the hinterlands don't want to see two New Yorkers on the top line of the ballot again, any more than we want to see the Yankees back in the World Series.
Just because one snake-oil salesman from New York managed to swindle 40% of the population doesn't mean that the rest of us are hungering for a better-dressed bamboozler to come along. 19% sounds about right as a ceiling on Bloomberg's appeal.
4
It amazes me how Bloomberg has been determined as the person who can “Get It Done” just off his high-spending and ads only...he hasn’t even debated yet, but is the best person for the Presidency?
4
We have the most corrupt republican president imaginable. The democratic party is displaying democracy in action. The "squabbling" and disagreement amongst the candidates is democracy in action. I just hope that the press, micro-dissecting every candidate for every word they ever uttered, does not destroy the process.
And by the way, ALL of the potential candidates would make a very good president; clearly better than the crook we have now.
3
If we must have Bloomberg, put him at the bottom of a Bernie/Bloomberg ticket.
Bernie was the top choice of people of color (except for Biden), but Bloomberg has surprisingly pulled ahead. That's the power of money. Bloomberg's at 22% and Bernie's 19% with POC.
If Bloomie (may we start calling him that?) does not self-destruct on Wednesday night his money will buy this election. It already has and he's just warming up. Bloomberg's media money is washing out the alt-right fake news.
Nationally, according to the latest February Quinnipiac poll, every Democrat challenger beats Trump, with Bernie, Biden, and Bloomberg on top at 51% to Trump's 43%.
That's a comfortable spread. Bernie/Bloomie will send Trump to jail and take the Senate, might send them to jail too.
If the blacks are okay with Bloomberg, I'm okay.
Note that Bernie will get all the Bros who voted Trump last time, and all the Progressives, the Independents (the largest Party at 41% versus Dems and Repubs at 28% each), the young, people of color, the working class, the women, and the 47% of non-voting eligible voters made apathetic by the Moderates.
Bloomie will get the rich (because of rich guilt), Wall Street (they won't believe he'll tax them), the Republicans (who love stop and frisk), more Independents, many (maybe most) Trumpsters, and all the leftover Moderates.
Can't lose. Let's hit Trump with a Bernie/Bloomie landslide; Trump may not get a single vote. I'd vote for that.
1
@Fourteen14
Bloomberg would never accept the second seat. If he's spending hundreds of millions of his own money he's going to be the one calling the shots.
@Fourteen14
I think that might be exactly what we have to do.
Mike Bloomberg is everything Trump wanted to be when he grew up. Bloomberg is a self-made multi billionaire who has used his money for the good in America. Trump inherited his money, lost it several times, did everything to avoid paying taxes on his inheritance and any profit he may have made, has defaulted on his loans where no bank but the Big D would deal with him, has laundered Russian money through the Big D Bank and stiffed lawyers and workers on their bills, has run a crooked school and charity too. Gee, who’s the better guy here?
5
@Wally Wolfd
Who cares? Seriously. At the end of the day Trump is still richer than all but a handful of people in the world and far more than you or me. And all of this has been available to the public for decades, some of it in his own books.
You're not going going to convince anyone to change their opinion based on that. You just end up looking petty.
Before you can operate and fix the damaged body, you have to rid the body of infection and stabilize it.
At this moment in our history, I see Bloomberg as the infectious disease doctor, who is called in in this emergency situation to rid the body politic of the contagious, destructive Trump scourge that is nearly epidemic and causes people to become highly feverish, delusional, and severely weakened in mind and body.
It will take time to transition from severe illness to healing and good health and return the body to stability, rational thought, and balance.
Only then, can the intelligent progressive surgery team move in for 8 years or more to improve the body politic, so that it can become functional and sane again, with quality health care for all, directly address environmental conditions that are making living things sick, and control surging inequality and the quality of daily life for people and the earth.
1
Imagine how many charities and nonprofits could have benefited if Bloomberg instead donated what he's spending to run for President to organizations in need...
3
Yes. We need another of the aristocracy in power. What could go wrong?
5
OMG. Anyone who thinks Bloomberg was the best mayor should see the movie "Parasite" for insight into the insidious and hollow civility of the wealthy.
What are some of the accomplishments of this mayor: homelessness rose to an all time high even though Bloomberg was allocating $100'ds of millions of taxpayer revenue for 421-a tax exemption benefits legislated for affordable housing,to the likes of Hudson Yards while directing the Dept. of Finance to ignore the legal requirements that 421-a designated all apartments to be rent stabilized. So developers ran rent stabilized buildings as if they were market rate while collecting tax benefits, LITC, who failed to meet the minimum bond requirement of developer financial participation, built shoddy buildings that didn't even pass the minimum safety obligations, had black mold seeping through the walls yet Goldman Saks would deem such projects as investor worthy.
While people were being illegally evicted in droves, Bloomberg admonished NYer's for not being more thankful to Russian oligarchs and hope that more move to the city.
Not even talking about the bogus education reform where none of the 3 chancellors serving under the mayor met the minimum job requirements, or City Time, a $720 mill. vehicle for unprecedented fraud, the further deterioration of the rule of law, the enrichment & collusion of the corparacy but hey he was a nice "mayor."
If Blomberg is the best then we are the "barbarians" at the gate.
4
The United States, where we take pride in having the best government that money can buy.
2
Love Bloomberg! The American dream story in the flesh. Go Mike!
1
Ask some of the 'Occupy Wall Street' folks, about Mr Bloomberg.
Instead of listening. He crushed them.
Nice guy.
4
This country LOVES its billionaires.
A Role model for the next President please ask yourself who would be the role Model you would recommend to your children? Donald Trump or Michael Bloomberg? This is not a question about Republicans or Democrats it is about values, decency, track record and business acumen.
1
@Daniel Korb
If these two scoundrels are the only role models you can think of, then I hope you dont talk politics with your kids!
4
I’m sorry, maybe it’s just me, but I just have no appetite for electing another billionaire/ 1%er to the presidency. Aren’t we tired of this? Why does society always hold such fascination for people with wealth?
Bloomberg has a treasure trove of controversial actions and statements, some they haven’t even come out with yet, that Republicans are dancing to the general with. And after this last Resurfaced 2011 interview where he disparages and generalized Hispanic and Black man... sorry, I just don’t see how that will ever work. And if anyone is going to tell minorities that they have to just hold their nose and vote for Bloomberg rather than let Trump win again, then I have a White House to sell you.
2
And trump did not have treasure trove of critical evidence and statements against him when he ran in 2016? Not only that, trump is a terrible business man who declared bankruptcy 5 times because of terrible business decisions. He did not pay his contractors or figured out ways to reneg on paying them. He has objectified women including his own daughter and has sexually assaulted women, unfaithful to all 3 of his wives, one child out of wedlock and maybe more which may be one of the many reasons he does not want anyone to see his tax returns. Did I mention his lying? It says a lot about the people who voted for him that they accepted his track record and voted for him anyway.
I think I’d rather have a rich businessman who has a good track record of paying his employees and has not filed for bankruptcy or is a grifter, liar or a cheat.
1
No democrats seemed to mind Bloomberg's money when it helped turn Virginia blue.
3
It's not that Bloomberg is so good, quite to the contrary, he bought voters brains with 300 million dollars of visual brainwashing. He's still the guy that abused "Occupy Wall Street" demonstrators with his so called "Private Army", the NYPD. I'll vote definitely now, for anyone but the Billionaires.
2
Your headlines rarely say “billionaire” for Trump. With Bloomberg you make it a big issue.
This just sad. So, to boot out the boorishish, ostensibly Republican, loose cannon insurgent (don’t forget Jeb Bush was the anointed), simple minded Dems are going to hand the keys directly to a Wall Street oligarch. The financial services industry used to proffer fig leaf candidates like Bill Clinton (whose rampant deregulation set the table for the ‘07 meltdown). Now, thanks to years of non-stop MSM “crisis in the Republic”, “Russiagate”, “he’s tearing up the Constitution” disinformation, the sort of bunk that only flew with not-to-bright FOX News addicts, the banks can just run for the Oval Office right out in the open. Listen people, defeating Trump is NOT “job one”. He’s not, and has never been, the candidate of the “vested interests”, indeed, the GOP is just hanging on to his coattails for dear life, hoping to keep their place at the trough. It might surprise many that DJT’s much maligned Justice Dept has sought indictments and gotten guilty pleas from Goldman execs in the 1MBD Malaysian bond fraud, something Eric Holder never managed, never even TRIED to do. Open your eyes people. The world is not good guys v. bad guys, and the sky’s not falling.
1
In terms of policy and demographic appeal, Bloomberg is Biden minus Biden’s warmth and experience at the federal level but plus about 60 billion dollars. Is this a winning formula? I honestly don’t know.
1
Mummies are running for the office.
This election cycle is even worse than 2016. We just need to nominate a competent person who won't actively work to gut the functioning parts of our Government and cares somewhat about at least the appearance of operating in a legal manner.
The problem with the Bernie fanatics and the Trumpers is that they expect the President to save them from their current personal problems. The President makes decisions that affect the path of the country, but rarely do they have much of an effect on your actual life right now. Voting for Bernie because you have too much in student loans is as stupid as voting for Trump because your coal mine is shutting down. There are bigger reasons why you are in the predicament you are in and nothing is going to change because of who is President. Even worse, Bernie and Trump have no solutions to the root cause of those problems, they just promise to wipe them away. Lost your manufacturing job? I'll tell the plant to reopen! Have too much medical debt? It's gone now! These are not solutions. These are pipe dreams. They are good at throwing you some meat to keep quiet while nothing actually gets fixed.
Voting for Bloomberg is an even worse premise than those two. It's just voting for somebody because you think they can beat Trump. But why? What has Bloomberg done to show he is competent or capable of leading the country? What are his ambitions or goals? We have absolutely no clue. Nominating him is a horrible idea.
2
@Ken Parcell If you have no clue, it's because you have not bothered to read his positions. They are concisely stated at his campaign website.
OK Dems. Are you gonna adhere to purity tests or worse, be like Bernie Bros and have temper tantrums? Or do you want to beat Trump and move our nation forward? Bloomberg 2020.
1
Bloomberg is a republican not a democrat. I would vote for anyone besides trump but do we have to choose between an ok plutocrat or a really bad authoritarian plutocrat? This is really depressing for anyone not a millionaire.
3
I'm absolutely not all in for Bloomberg at this point, even though it seems I have a somewhat better opinion of his mayoralty than do most New Yorkers, according to polls. However, please keep repeating this yourself" "The perfect is the enemy of the good." I remember with anger how this very newspaper's editorials demanded Al Franken's resignation over a prank in bad taste when he was a professional comedian: totally ridiculous, resulting in the loss of a fine Senator. Feel free to impose a purity test in very local elections, but not for Federal offices. If you are in a swing state, just make sure you vote in November, hold your nose if you have to.
It's astonishing and troubling that Bloomberg has essential purchased his place in the poll. It's anti-democratic and egomaniacal. And by entering so late and avoiding the early primaries and caucuses, Bloomberg has also avoided being vetted publicly. This is the only reason I'm glad he will be in the debate on Wednesday: he simply must be required to explain and answer for his policies (whatever they may be) and also address the role of money—his vast sums—in this or any race. And he must answer for his history of sexism, racism, crass and invasive behavior with women, and his flip from being a Republican.
I also have to ask this of the New York Times: Why are there TEN articles about Bloomberg today, and none except part of an opinion piece about Pete Buttigieg? Buttigieg is the LEADER in delegates! He has been #1 or #2 in Iowa and New Hampshire. He is working harder than the other candidates, with more appearances on television, at town halls, in interviews, and at rallies than any other person. In the week leading up to the Iowa caucus he was the featured speaker at more than 50 events. He was on SIX Sunday morning news shows a couple of weeks ago, and on FIVE a week ago. Extraordinary.
The New York Times' inexplicable bias against him is baffling and quite unfair as well. News about Buttigieg is "Fit to Print" too.
2
I think Bloomberg is an extremely flawed candidate. Racist comments, basically trying to buy the election, etc.
If he is nominated I will hold my nose and vote for him. Not voting or voting for a third party candidate is unconscionable, it’s the same as voting for trump. Trump is a dictator and needs to go. That’s job one!
Vote blue no matter who!!
1
The same polls that said Biden was the front runner? Lol
@Rbnp
Yup. Same ones that had HRC walking away in 2016...
In a campaign of money vs. money, Bloomberg looks to be the winner. Those $25 contributions Bernie receives won't be enough to push back on the fake news that he is a commie.
Like it or not, Bloomberg has the cash to give Trump a taste of hiis own medicine.
While the NYT reports this poll result largely in terms of Bloomberg’s surge, Newsweek’s headline is about Sanders’ 9% jump to the top. Normally, one highlights the winner, unless you have a specific agenda....
3
The populace has been instructed to lie to pollsters
1
Democrats are running scared - panic in the streets! "Step right up! Sell your soul right here! Sell your soul!"
How low can you go? The Democratic Party wants to pick a Republican to run against a Republican. No one else can beat that big bully Trump.
But - it will be a cosmetic change. Get your lipstick out.
"Take a bow for the new revolution
Smile and grin at the change all around…
Then I'll get on my knees and pray
We don't get fooled again”
Oh yes we will - fooled again and again and again…
“Meet the new boss, same as the old boss"
4
I want to know why there are 5 stories about Bloomberg and none about Buttigieg?? Bloomberg isnt even on the ballot in the next two states, while Pete is leading in the delegate count....and technically winning the numbers game in the actual election. New York Times, you need to do better. You are helping propel this guy to frontrunner status. Smells like 2016 all over again.
1
Billionaires, socialists, left-wing extremists, Islamic extremists ... anyone else crazy enough to think they can beat Trump in November?
1
* Bloomberg purchases media favor, rise in polls, and place on debate stage bringing further shame on MSM and the DNC... Fixed it.
1
Do the smart thing dems and vote a moderate. I like Bernie but Trump will beat him unfortunately. We need to get the suburban mom's who are moderate and hate Trump.
No Bloomberg. Any one other than Bloomberg. With his history, if the democratic party and the media is promoting him, then it is a disgrace. Blacks, browns, women , farmers should not vote for Bloomberg.
2
@Anitha What did Bloomberg do to farmers?
Great. So let's replace an authoritarian racist misogynist billionaire with a right of center racist misogynist billionaire who can't decide which party he is in.
1
“Bloomberg comes in a distant second in one poll and the DNC has changed the rules in order to allow him to appear on the debate stage.”
there, i fixed the headline for you.
3
If one looks deep enough every candidate is flawed and in many ways All of us are hypocrites. No perfect candidate exists for people of conscience as one perfect strongman-tribal candidate can exist for fascists and the frightened looking for the boogeyman. My criteria is what has a candidate accomplished and are his/her mistakes one of the mind or the heart. And if Money didn't matter in our political system then Mayor Mike's spending wouldn't be an issue and neither would Mayor Pete's schmoozing in the wine cave. Money does matter and we made it so. Want to see what a Bernie presidency looks like? Look at New York City under De Blasio. A Warren Whitehouse? Opportunistic and Pedantic. Mayor Pete? A steep learning curve fora very smart guy, but likely to step on an IED. A Bloomberg Whitehouse? The trains would run on time and clean. (Once we have trains). That Stop and Frisk program was working when the interdiction teams were NYPD's best and most competent. S n F failed when it became a numbers game and the squad went from 25 excellent self motivated and aware Police Officers who knew the ground and the violent gun users to over 100 Jump-Out stat hounds and their supervisors with promotions based on pure numbers and Not effectiveness. An expansion under Big Guili and continued then dismantled by Bloomberg. A tragedy totally avoidable if the NYPD had placed the rewards on effectiveness and not Stats.
We are all republicans now.
1
“My god, someone has to stop Bernie! He’s not even a REAL Democrat, even though he caucuses with us 100% of the time!”
How about Mike Bloomberg? He was a Republican for his entire political career, but on the upside he’s a billionaire and a Wall Street apologist.
“Perfect!”
1
While the New York Times and the media assume everything Trump says is racist, Bloomberg actually makes racist remarks. Why isn't the left cancelling him like they would do to any conservative? Hypocrisy much?
1
Until Mr. Bloomberg apologizes for his white privilege he should not be taken seriously. Thank you.
1
This story is evidence New York Times reporting ought not be trusted in the lead-up to the 2020 election.
1) This is horse-race reporting, not journalism. 2) This story buries the lead that another candidate, not Bloomberg who is blatantly promoted here, has reached above 30% support for the first time of any candidate, and that indeed his support is surging nationally.
For a more honest, sober and less partisan understanding of today's election news, turn to NPR or the Hill.
https://www.npr.org/2020/02/18/806703427/npr-pbs-newshour-marist-poll-sanders-leads-bloomberg-qualifies-for-debate
or
https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/483408-sanders-opens-12-point-lead-nationally-poll
1
I hope one of the moderators in the debate ask Mr. Bloomberg if he plans to go along with Bibi Netinyahoo's plan to expand Jewish settlements in the West Bank, or is he willing to listen to the Palestinians ? Just asking!
If he picks Hillay Clinton as his running mate, it's a lock.
...to lose.
The Democrat Party now has a new foundation of ideology.......
Its not equality, fairness, or social justice. Thats so 2019.
We now subscribe to the "Golden Rule"........
He who has the gold, makes the rules.
Why can't the Democrats see that ANY of the candidates, whether it be Bloomberg or Sanders, would be better than Trump, who is a consumate liar, cheat, makes money off the taxpayers and so do his children, etc. An amoral man who is so inept, so inexperienced, so crooked. Bloomberg made his money the old fashioned way. Trump inherited it from his crooked father. Don't we want anyone else but Trump for the next 4 years???? He is ruining the country every day.
I expect that Bloomberg will be welcomed to Las Vegas by Sheldon Adelson .... two peas in a pod.
1
I am a lifelong Democrat. I lived and ran a successful elite, niche-type business I had co-founded in Manhattan in January, 1991; it flourishes to this day. I worked in the city under 5 mayor's terms: Koch, Dinkins, Giuliani, Bloomberg and di Blasio. Koch was in office for far too long. Dinkins did absolutely nothing. Giuliani turned Times Square into Disneyworld. de Blasio is a total idiot. As you notice,I left Michael Bloomberg out. I voted for him. By far, he was the best. This was true in spite of: Being a Republican. He cleaned up Giuliani's mess. He consolidated many departments (eliminating waste), and implemented more efficient ways to run the city. In a sentence, basically got the city on the right track. He paid himself $1 per year and took the subway to work. Now you can say the latter 2 things (his pay and travel) were for show. Perhaps. I think he is far more intelligent than all the other 4 combined. In fact, I would vote for Bloomberg with Amy Klobichar as VP. They wouldbe the smartest. The only thing I don't like is their stance on marijuana This is true for me, even though I haven't smoked weed or drank any alcohol in over 34 years. Wjhatever people think about his money, please don';t hold it against him. He earned it the hard way, and truly knows what running he country undertakes. Being mayor of the greatest city in the world isn't easy. Give him a chance.
3
Wow! Some of Bloomberg's abhorrent sexist, racist, elitist, & smug video and press quotes are shocking! I am now having second thoughts on someone I've always said would be a great President! If he takes on Hillary I'm done!
1
Why does Bloomberg get the front page headline, instead of Sander who finished 1st in this poll with 31%?
2
Let's demand Mike put away the trillions to buy the presidency. OK Mike time to crowdfund for everything at five bucks per person. How's it going so far?
How come there is no NYT report about how craven and corrupt the DNC was to eliminate the small donor requirement for the debate stage to enable Bloomberg?
1
Can money buy anything? Is the sky blue?
1
In the debate Bloomberg needs to answer for his active or supporting roles in human rights abuse, both with in NYC and in Palestine.
2
Bloomberg is a guaranteed loss!!!! He’s going nowhere! Trump will have him for breakfast and many people who want real change will stay at home again!! Elected Dems refuse to get the message!!! They’ll lose, again, if they don’t stand with working people!!!
3
@Fread Trump gets up too late for breakfast.
#VoteBlueNoMatterWho
...except Bloomberg.
Not voting for a Republican plutocrat who defended brazenly racist policies. No way.
1
The US is finally officially an oligarchy!! First was Trump. Now Steyer, Bloomberg etc etc. I wonder how many more billionaires are getting ideas!? I bet every billionaire is thinking, “next time ...” you can bet Jeff Bezos is thinking “I can buy it too!!” Warren Buffet is thinking “I wish I was younger, I’d buy it for myself, too!!” Bill Gates too is thinking “I have good ideas, ...” All billionaires are thinking “I am not giving my cash to anymore of those skimming politicians when I can have some fun myself!!” There’s probably some even setting up campaign machines now for four years from now!!
2
*MSM ignores Bloomberg racist remarks and positions in hope to sink Bernies continued rise in polls... Fixed it.
1
I am waiting for the day when the NYT editorial board will switch its endorsement from Warren/Klobuchar to Bloomberg. It’s just a matter of time before the paper finds its saviour from the “socialist” Sanders in Michael Bloomberg. Judging by many of the comments here, I see that buying your way into an election via advertising and strategic donations can work - on some people.
2
No one is going to beat Trump!!
Dear NYTimes,
You need to stop playing around with this election coverage. If you keep publishing these articles like “Bernie won but only cause...” and “Warren is so far behind...” and “Klobuchar is actually gaining ground...” I’m going to have to cancel my subscription.
Biden got more headlines for coming in 5th than either of the more progressive candidates, one of whom actually won New Hampshire! It is painfully clear that you are bending to pressure to talk about moderates lacking strong policies instead of movements with clear goals and successes. You are actively hurting the cause of working people in this country by doing this. You had an editor on the Daily recently talking about how he would have edited stories differently in 2016 and then there’s the same editorializing that he tried to downplay happening all over again.
I have been proud to pay for, and do my small part in supporting, journalism that I felt was benefiting our country (with the exception of your trash op-ed section). I’m now increasingly embarrassed by it. Bloomberg is not going to beat Trump. He's not focused on building support and a movement. He wants to buy the election.
3
Without restitution for the black and brown victims of Bloomberg's racist frisking policy, his 19 percent support suggests the Democratic Party hierarchy has a racism problem. They need to clean house.
1
Since Donald Trump is an abject failure as president, and has done nothing other then play golf on the taxpayers’ dime while riding on the wave of the economy he fell down the stairs into, he’s gonna have to think up a demeaning nickname for Bloomberg since that’s his only marketable skill and it pleases his knuckledragging base. It’s gonna be tough, as Bloomberg actually made his money. Donald Trump inherited his and scammed the rest.
Get ready for a surge of anti-Semitism from Trump and his supporters.
3
The best argument not to vote Bloomberg: Republicans will take control of Congress.
So, Democratic strategists tell us how Democrats need to take back the Senate and keep the House in order to get any policy through. If Republicans keep the Senate, we haven't a prayer.
Also, we are told how we need to choose Bloomberg because he will bring out Republican moderates to vote for him. Maybe he will. Maybe they'll abandon Trump and his tax cuts and deregulation and vote for this new Bloomberg who promises higher taxes on the wealthy and Wall Street regulation.
But who do you think those Republican moderates will vote for downticket? They'll vote for Republicans in the House and Senate.
Between Trump and Bloomberg you'll activate every Republican voter in the nation, from the populists to the establishment, and Democratic turnout will be depressed. The chance of a blue Congress will plummet, and the chance of a fully red Congress will rise.
5
While Ranked Choice Voting in the primaries and caucuses, would probably eliminate my progressive preferences--Sanders and Warren received 43% together while the moderate Dems 51%--it has numerous benefits. Aside from rewarding the candidate who is most likely to garner the most votes in a general election, it also forces Dems & sometimes independents to consider voting out of their purity zone. Further, RCV inhibits Ad Hominem and promotes coalition building, thereby representing more voters.
2
As a lifetime progressive, who has admired Bernie Sanders since before he was widely known, I am supporting Bloomberg. We have Godzilla in the White House, and he will be far worse if elected to a second term. And Bernie has no chance of beating him. The progressive wing of the Democratic party does not even garner the support of much more than 40% of Democrats. How does that translate into victory in what fundamentally remains a majority centrist/right-wing country? I am amazed by the number of commentators here who mistake their aspirations for reality, their inability to appreciate the vast differences between Trump and Bloomberg, who was a major force in the Democrats winning back the House in 2018, the consequences for the Supreme Court if Trump is elected, and I could go on and on. Let's not let the perfect be the enemy of the good, and Bloomberg has the means and the will to do a lot of good. He's already doing it on guns and climate, two of the major crises of our time. We need a Godzilla on our side.
42
Ask your boss, Mike Bloomberg, if he’s expecting to run for more than two terms
2
@Blackdog71 Bloomberg was also a major force in 2016 for Republicans to maintain control of the Senate through his financial support of Sen Toomey (R). So great that the Godzilla on "our side" helped to get us Bret Kavanaugh.
1
Thanks for summing it up so we’ll. What enabled Trump’s razor-thin victory in 2016 wasn’t so much the support of his die-hards as it was his ability to capture the “swing voters.” And he could do this again if a Bernie candidacy sets enough swing voters adrift.
Sanders will be 79 in September 2020, an old man, who suffered a heart attack last year; his leftist policies make him unelectable in the USA.
Sanders has a surprisingly large support, partially (I suspect) by many Republicans who would LOVE to see him as the Democratic nominee.
If the Democrats select him (a Trump dream), we will have to suffer another 4 years under the increasingly "king like" Trump and his assistants in undermining the constitution, Barr for start.
7
Bloomberg is only one year younger than Sanders.
1
@PaulDirac
Bernie scares Trump. He said so himself on tape - said his only fear in 2016 was Bernie as Hillary's running mate. His reason was that his base would choose Bernie over him since Bernie, he said, was as tough on trade as he was.
@PaulDirac Bloomberg and Sanders are both 78.
3
You’ve gotta laugh...
I appreciate ex-mayor Bloomberg, in particular his philanthropic activity, but I don’t understand what good can come from a potential presidential race between two men from New York City’s one percent. It just seems completely tonedeaf.
I have no doubt about Bloomberg’s character, qualifications, or ability. But I doubt he has the vision required to meet the times. Domestically, the American left is finally demanding the social democracy that Europe has enjoyed for decades, while an ascendant far right is promoting a scattered and incoherent nationalism based in xenophobia and the privileging of Christianity above all other religions with one hand, while dismantling our meager social safety net (and, more broadly, our political and legal institutions) with the other. Internationally, there seems to be a desire to decrease our international footprint (and the corresponding bill) from both parties.
This requires more than just another politician. This requires a firm and steady hand, with the vision and authenticity to bring Americans together and forge a brighter future for ALL Americans.
(Bernie 2020)
8
If Bloomberg were to devote several weeks to an RFK-style poverty tour through the Midwestern rust belt--if he were to make meaningful face-to-face connections and was able to resonate with ordinary Americans--I would wholeheartedly support his candidacy.
It is more difficult to support someone who seems to be in such a hermetically-sealed wealth bubble that he has become incapable of relating to everyday struggles.
He is an incredibly sharp guy, obviously--if he is able to fully humanize himself on American tv and iPhone screens, he will have my full support.
8
@MSPWEHO All it'll take for you to support him is to pull some publicity stunt? Why do so many people only care about the theatrics and not the policy?
@MSPWEHO Bloomberg is out there campaigning.
In the era of the Founding Fathers, people paid for our Democracy with their blood.
Today, you can buy our Democracy with your TV ads.
Bloomberg's strategy is to Freedom of Speech, as automatic car washes are to cleanliness.
Money grease, instead of elbow grease. That's very Billionaire.
11
Bloomberg has basically been a DINO since he switched parties after endorsing GWB. This is the same guy who didn't believe in regulating Wall Street before running for president. The same person who believed stop and frisk was okay until 2019. No thanks, there are better options with better extenuating circumstances (not buying their way into an election/campaign) and until those options are literally dead and gone, Bloomberg will NEVER get my vote.
4
What does "mike" stand for? Are there tens of millions of Americans who can articulate his principals and policies, and say "he stands for the things I believe in--he stands up for me"?
No.
Ask the same question about Bernie (and Liz), and the answer is a resounding "Yes". This election will be won by passion, not caution. Pray to whatever you pray to that the passion is on our side, because every god and devil knows it's on the other side.
7
"This election will be won by passion, not caution."
@Dan Coleman, excellent comment! Who can beat Trump means less to me than who has integrity and a vision.
I frankly feel it is more important to sweep the GOP out of power in the Senate; it's McConnell who needs the reins of power stripped. Bloomberg's millions contributing to that end would be his greatest accomplishment, and I'm sure he could choose his cabinet post or ambassadorship if the GOP is pushed out of the White House as well.
Come on Mikey, do it for the team!
I will never vote for Bloomberg, because his past statements and actions indicate to me that he wants to dramatically restrict the individual rights of Americans. Billionaires live in their own world and are rarely affected by laws that restrict personal liberties. Billionaires never get stopped and frisked on the street, ever. They can own whatever guns they want, because they’re so insulated from the police and can buy land anywhere to keep their guns. And most of them don’t need to own guns for protection, because they have bodyguards. It doesn’t matter if there are size restrictions on sodas, because they can afford as many little sodas as they desire. Liberals who are considering Bloomberg should wake up. He doesn’t have their best interests in mind.
6
The fact that Bloomberg has been able to hit back and get under Trump’s skin is one of the reasons Democrats are giving him a serious look. He is a real billionaire, unlike the phony one squatting in the White House and self-made. That is a rags to riches story unlike Trump’s trust fund, inherited fortune (which he threw away long ago).
Like all candidates Bloomberg’s got plenty to complain about. However, the U.S. is in crisis mode right now. We cannot afford our slide toward authoritarianism and fascism, which is where we are heading with another Trump term.
I am a progressive but also a pragmatic. We need all hands on deck to solve this crisis. That means nominating a candidate who can attract moderate Republicans and Independents, not just Democrats. Bloomberg may be the one to do that.
14
@Doris2001 Why do you think he has gotten under Trump’s skin? If there’s one thing I’ve learned over the years it’s that DJT can laugh off anything. And you can see this in his pre election life as well.
It’s over...he will be the candidate either first or third party? It’s the dems opportunity to lose.
2
I'll vote for him, but Bloomberg has a tin ear when it comes to the poor and underserved. He left us with a city full of apartments for which the extremely wealthy from all over the world paid a fortune, many of them empty. This raised the prices for all apartments. He did little to alleviate homelessness and his choices regarding crime disregarded the effect his policies had on the people who were stopped and frisked. He will favor the wealthy. If there were nobody else, he'd do, but he's supported by the same cadre or wealthy corporations that supported Hillary and will temper all efforts to alleviate poverty. I'm grateful to him for blasting the heck out of Trump with his ads though, and he says he'll continue doing that no matter who is elected.
2
So would Boomer have qualified with the rules changes that Bloomberg bought from the DNC?
Is anyone going to check his policy. Some of which appear they may be worse than Trumps?
If Bloomberg is the Democratic nominee the Democratic Party will fall victim to the same win-at-all-costs, throw-billions-at-the-system “strategy” that has destroyed the Republican Party. Bloomberg does not, and could not possibly ever, represent middle-and working-class interests. He will be the end of the Democratic Party, just as Trump has ended the Republican Party.
4
I do not care what any of these candidates did five or ten years ago. I care about what they plan to do moving forward, and about getting Trump out of the White House.
12
Warren and Biden need to step aside so that a moderate front runner can emerge and voters can decide between him/her and Sanders. Nothing is being rigged for Bloomberg, he has money and resources to get himself in front of the electorate and they are the ones who will ultimately decide. The campaign infrastructure Bloomberg spent money to build will benefit whomever the nominee is so Berners stop whining that the sky is falling and trust your fellow citizens and voters to engage with the field of candidates and elect a nominee.
8
The results of this poll seem dubious given Mayor Pete's strong showing in Iowa and New Hampshire.
1
Last Friday on Bill Maher, guest Van Jones said we must trust the voter.
Jones' comment got me thinking about why others, particularly Sanders voters, don't trust my analytical skills. I have studied all the candidates' proposals in detail. I have reached my own conclusions and I trust my own instincts.
If Bloomberg is surging, that is the polled voter's decision. I am giving Bloomberg serious consideration and I have not been "bought." My first choice is Klobuchar, but I will vote blue no matter who.
Finally, Bloomberg is a billionaire due to the skewed priorities of legislators, not because he is evil. Whereas, Trump is actual evil in the flesh, poised toward fascism and destroying his enemies whatever the cost. There is no comparison.
11
This is proof positive that money can buy anything, even the idealists of the Democrat party. The same party that blames the wealthy for not paying their fair share and exploiting the working class, seems to be ready, willing and able to embrace a multi-billionaire with a long history for anti-Democrat values and statements. The hypocrisy is getting deeper and deeper among Democrats.
5
As an Independent voter, I am happy to see Bloomberg enter the fray. Voting for someone who "used" to be a Republican doesn't scare me at all but voting for Bernie scares me to death. Personally, I will do a write-in vote rather than vote for him. I know that will give the election to tRUMP, but sometimes the devil you know is better than the one you don't. Let's hear from Bloomberg.
4
@Lupito -- "Independent" to me means just that--Independent of any party. Here in MA we have had several very good Republican governors--and I have voted for them. I also worked hard in '08 to get Obama elected. That's my definition of an Independent.
It's difficult for me to understand how so many people have allowed themselves to be brainwashed by Bloomberg's advertising blitz. Not only does he have a long record as both a racist and a sexist, it's obscene for someone to literally buy an election in a democracy. I've heard some Bloomberg supporters say, "We need his money to combat Trump and the huge sums he's raised." What if we thought of it a different way: We need a movement, such as the one behind Sanders, to beat back Trump's movement. I'm not a Bernie Bro (Sis?), and I actually favor Warren over Sanders. That said, Bernie's got momentum behind him now. If the DNC and the corporate media got behind him, Bernie could win. I personally believe the DNC et al KNOW Bernie is "electable," and that's what scared the bejeezus out of them. The powers that be, probably including Bloomberg, know he can't beat Trump. First, he lacks the cult of personality that has enthralled Trump's minions. Second, the 25-30 percent of the Democratic electorate who now support Bernie will most assuredly NOT vote for Bloomberg in the general election. I'm beginning to suspect that the Bloomberg Blitzkrieg is being imposed on the electorate to spoil Bernie and/or Warren's chances, not so Bloomberg can actually win. Bottom line: The DNC et al fear a Bernie victory more than a Trump victory.
8
Principles and values guide. Voters get to decide. Today’s political headline is already old news. There is no end to it.
2
I can understand the frustration of some who think Sanders first place in the poll should be the headline not Bloomberg's rise. But rather than being some vast anti Bernie conspiracy-- I know, I know, if we poor schlubs could just see the light-- this angle is typical media love of a horse race and tracking rise/fall of candidates. If I wrote the headline it'd be: Biden's Collapse Continues.
2
1 - Saying something along the lines of "what's wrong if minorities get arrested more in the name of stopping drugs" (His comments about having more cops in minority towns because crime is higher, leading to more low crime arrests in those areas).
2 - Healthcare to senior citizens should be sopped/limited.
3 - It's easy being a farmer, doesn't require much skill.
4 - Black & Latinos within a certain age group don't know how to look for a job and how to behave in a professional workplace.
These are the last 4 video clips of Mr Bloomberg that I can remember. I'm sure there's more. Isn't the DNC worried about this? When you think about it, everything the Left says about Trump, this guy actually and explicitly says/does it.
4
When Trump's supporters thought that the guy they watched on "The Apprentice" was the real Donald Trump, "sophisticated" people scoffed at their gullibility, but an avalanche of gauzy Bloomberg ads has hypnotized those same skeptics. Bloomberg and his billion dollar machine believe that everyone and everything is for sale - and a nation of rubes are proving him right.
4
Saying that Bernie is merely an FDR type Democrat is as irrelevant as saying that Lincoln was a Republican. Totally Irrelevant. The 1930s were nearly a century ago; what worked then won’t work now. Bloomberg is the only realistic choice.
4
@Amm That's....a completely invalid point. The Lincoln example is irrelevant because what it means to be a "Republican" has since changed. What it means to be an "FDR Democrat" hasn't changed.
1
@Amm That's....a completely invalid point. The Lincoln example is irrelevant because what it means to be a "Republican" has since changed. What it means to be an "FDR Democrat" hasn't changed.
@Amm. Disagree. The fruits of the New Deal are very much with us and were built upon by LBJ. Soc Sec. minimum wage, infrastructure projects, safety regulations, banking regulations, Medicare, Medicaid, and more.
What's positively damaging has been a GOP hell-bent on returning us to laissez-faire capitalism and Trump adding outdated Mercantilism and Anti-Immigration sentiment to the mix.
May I ask what precisely about FDRs policies you dislike other than them being "almost a 100 years old"? Bettet yet, what are you FOR. If "something new" is part of your answer, please concrete examples.
Might I add in passing that all the paradigm breaking gig economy jobs offer low pay with no benefits or security, which is very very Pre-FDR. The GOP and the libertarian oligarchs in the new economy would have us return to the 1880s.
So it turns out that money does buy access and votes. Who knew?
He puts his money where his mouth is. I love his dedication to the greater good of society.
7
So this is how democracy ends. A billionaire , media mogul, allied with a handful of plutocrats, uses the latest media/social media techniques to buy the public and "manufacture consent". If he succeeds , there will be other wealthy elites who will believe that by virtue of their wealth, they are entitled to run the country. So whose next..Elon Musk? Larry Ellison? Marc Benioff? (Sorry Harvey Weinstein. Its too late for you) A list of emperors almost sure to include a Caligula or two.
6
What an underdog story!
I will go with Bernie or Elizabeth. If they somehow get shut out, then I am in with Bloomberg. The other Dems are not up to dumping Trump and then going on to clean up Trump's soiled mess. Klobuchar is not a leader with vision. Buttigieg is not experienced enough. Biden is past his prime.
3
I hope one of the moderators and/or other candidates ask Bloomberg about his views on China, its leadership, his apparent fealty to them and their threat to the U.S. This man is arrogant and it would be interesting to see him slither out of his own words and accusations against his company, not to mention the racially insensitive (being charitable) comments about the NYPD tactics.
1
@Sam
Erm, you mean Trump's reality to China? Or should I say, saber rattling while fawning over Xi Jinping. Maybe someone should ask Trump what his love of dictators means for our land.
America has become a joke. The entire world is laughing at us. It’s because we allow our elections to be bought. Our democracy is for sale to the highest bidder. Bloomberg perverted the entire Democratic process and has bought his way in. No other occidental country would allow this. What perversion.
And here is what Trump will do: He will rub Bloomberg in the Democrats face that Billionaires like Bloomberg have been anointed to represent our party and that we Democrats have become as amoral as himself. This argument will denigrate Democrats and will not vote or go for a Green Party alternative. Or worst yet to vote for the evil (Trump) they (Dems) already know. The fix will be in.
Just to let all you dudes in on the skinny, Hate radio, Trump and the GOP are rejoicing over the DNC and Tom Perez changing the rules for Bloomberg not only because of Bloombergs horrid history and record that is abhorrent to Democrats (especially women and minorities) but because millions of honest Democratic voters will split their votes and bolt from the Democratic Party if Bloomberg buys the nomination. Buying votes my be par for the course if your a Republican but not if your a Democrat and the GOP knows this.
So we sell our souls for money to a billionaire,
and a mayor no less, while we have four seasoned, federally experienced choices already: That’s minus boy-corporatist Mayor Pete. Old man Republican Mayor Mike is a train-wreck for Democrats. Fire Tom Perez before it too late.
5
The headline should be Bernie is at least 10 points ahead & growing & Bloomberg qualifies. But of course now the Times & most of their columnists are pushing Bloomberg
4
If the only desirable candidate, Elizabeth Warren, continues to be looked over and does not become the nominee then it is obvious or election system is disfunctional and irreparable. Bloomberg is the only man I will vote for. I trust his intentions of buying the US Presidency as the only way for a Democrat president to be able to assert real change with conservative voters.
If Bernie Sanders secures the nomination I will not vote for him. Another 4 years of Trump might be the only way to secure real change with the way non-conservative voters obtain their information and make voting decisions...
Look at Warren as a serious candidate and the only democrat that can stand up effectively to the GOP!
1
The working and middle class lost representation when the Clintons built up a "New Democrats" party, running to the right of "Moderate Republicans." Essentially, we have had two versions of the Republican party for decades, now and it shows in the inadequate way the Democrats have addressed "income inequality."
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 to voters in Nevada: "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."
"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."
Either way, the Oligarchy sees Trump vs Bloomberg as a win-win, same way they saw Trump vs Clinton.
4
Evidently, most people, especially men, think that the only characteristic needed to beat Trump is wealth. At the time Trump was elected, he was promising the kind of things that Bernie Sanders promises: benefits for the working class. Obviously there is a big difference in character between Sanders and Trump. Moreover, Trump did not deliver on those promises the way Sanders could have. Even in 2009, when ACA was being developed more that half if Americans supported a public option(which Congress didn't deliver). Since then health care costs have escalated tremendously, so even more of us want Medicare for All.
My choice is Elizabeth Warren, who has a combination of a progressive agenda and a reasonable approach to achieving it. Unfortunately, it may be what our government needs, but it is not what the voters think they want.
5
@Kathy B: Sanders has become the macho Democratic response to Trump.
I grew up in NY area. It is part of why I am still utterly baffled that apparently a lot of Americans take Trump seriously, as if their was an earnest or principled bone in his body. My goodness, I would rather have the dude who used to do the Crazy Eddie tv commercials back in the 70's as president.
Part of me still loves a certain unique character of NY. This character is not always present. But sometimes it comes through.
I just want a president who aspires to something beyond his crass lust for wealth and attention.
I want somebody whom I can have at least some faith, is interested, as a moral principle, to do justice.
Justice is not tidy, it is not pure, it has to get through to get out. But it is a form of perseverance.
Bloomberg, I feel, has that burden on his mind. Trump is the most superficial man to ever occupy the WH. He has no burdens on his mind except his own demons.
If Bloomberg can convince me he feels bound to do justice if elected, by that step alone, he is light years away from the embarrassing empty pate currently beguiling so many.
And let this be a wake up call. Character counts, as P. Noonan once said.
207
@pjc Bloomberg only has to convince you if you give a cheat a chance - you have a principled person in Bernie, who almost certainly will govern justly. I didn't say profitably, but I'm not looking for a CEO. Why not take a chance on Bernie if your MO is justice and principles?
6
@pjc So by your standards, Bloomberg should be out.
Read the recent articles. 64 Sexual harassment allegations, his 50th anniversary gift of a book of quotes said by Bloomberg (offensive, misogynist comments towards women). His comments about stop and frisk.
Need I go on?
Or are you choosing to ignore those?
5
@pjc I'm guessing that if you're giving Bloomberg that much benefit of the doubt, you must have left the New York area prior to his three mayoral terms of rampant corruption and graft, excusing police brutality, jetting off to Bermuda at every opportunity including right before a deadly blizzard (or was it Epstein's island on some of those occasions?), giveaways to cronies in the real estate industry, and general oppression of working-class New Yorkers. Am I correct about that?
2
I lived in New York City for the entirety of Bloomberg’s tenure as mayor, through stop and frisk, rabid gentrification, surveillance of my Muslim neighbors, and scores of reports of Bloomberg’s demeaning comments about women.
But now I’m visiting my mom, who lives in a media market where Bloomberg’s ads are blanketing the airwaves, and I gotta say, they’re great. They put the focus on Mike’s surrogates and the good works his money has powered, so I nearly forgot how uninspiring he is and how much harm he’s done.
But I remember now.
We don’t beat the Republicans by nominating a Republican.
15
@shnnn We beat them by getting out and voting for the Democratic candidate, whoever that is.
4
@shnnn
You beat fascists by nominating a non-fascist.
This is not about policy, it's about the rule of law. If we are lucky we can talk about policy again in 2022.
My concern for the USA is that the next President will be dealing with the wreckage left by Trump, and that it will be a time to re-group, recover, and breath, not a time for the uber-progressives to charge forth.
Yes Stop-and-Frisk is important, but more important to me, now, is that Bloomberg owes his exalted position to his own smarts, not to something daddy gave him, and when the next huge challenge hits America (that recession we've all been waiting?), I may be a good idea to have him in the driver's seat.
14
Hard to believe - knowing everything we do about Trump - that any of the Democratic contenders would lose to him in November, but we didn't think that four years ago either.
Sanders as you say has the clearest, most hopeful message and by far the best reputation for honesty and the least amount of political baggage. It would be great to watch him undo the damage done by Trump and usher in a new era of fairness, respect and egalitarianism in America.
I do agree however that he should tone down the rhetoric. Talk about what you intend to do - not what label you're working under. Labels scare people - in this case unnecessarily, but Bernie needs to respect the fact that people are skittish about vocabulary they've come to associate with autocratic socialism.
2
I dont understand that Bloomberg is trying to “buy” the nomination. Every candidate has to spend a huge amount of money to advertise and campaign. Those with more spend. Only difference is Bloomberg is spending his own money instead of other people’s money.
15
@KJ When you're raising money from other people, you're raising money based on earned support. Bloomberg's style is just dumping millions of dollars on people to buy their support and endorsements. Further, Bloomberg has so much personal wealth that he could spend 2x the entire 2016 Clinton campaign without breaking a sweat.
If he really wanted to help the country, he could dump $2B into Democratic Senate races across the country, but that's not what he's doing.
I have read comments that say we need a centrist, e.g. Mike or Amy or Pete.
I have also read comments about ‘rags to riches’ being a sin, against the haters of Mike, a self-made man as opposed to Trumps inherited wealth.
All good arguments. But...
Americans need reasonable and affordable healthcare. The only way to do this is through Medicare for All. Ask a senior. Except Bernie, none of the candidates will approach this.
Americans need jobs. The only way to do this is through investment and R&D.
America needs to end useless foreign interventions; regime change wars. Bring our troops home. Assume a lethal defensive posture and let the remainder of the world be policed by somebody else. Only Tulsi and Elizabeth have advocated this.
America needs to plan for strategic implementation of Artificial Intelligence and Automation instead of just hacking jobs.
America needs to reduce student debt. The only way to limit inequality is through education and opportunity. Again...only Elizabeth understands this.
America needs to give a smart woman the reigns of power for a change. The anthesis of a rich, self-serving man. Again, Elizabeth.
America needs Elizabeth Warren.
7
@PC,
Elizabeth Warren's Medicare for All plan suffers the smae fatal flaws as Bernie Sanders' plan--namely the math doesn't work out and forcing people to give up their insurance and enroll in a plan that might or might not be better than what they have now is not terribly popular (for understandable reasons).
1
@PC Several of your "only Elizabeth" points apply to Bernie too.
@Jake , agreed but Elizabeth is my first choice.
I thought the American Revolution was about no longer being ruled, controlled, and abused by the wealthy.
It is indeed time for a second revolution to actually finish the work of the first.
Warren is my first choice, Bernie second, because I believe in real equality of opportunity.
10
How many terms will Bloomberg expect if elected? One, two or in his case, 3 or 4 presidential terms?
10
When I looked at the poll, the actual news seemed to be Bernie Sanders's 12% lead over all the other candidates.
But the DNC, with the full rhetorical support of corporate media, seem bent on finding some former Republican who will help duplicate the glory of 2016, when 1.7 million people went to the polls, voted for local and congressional candidates, and simply refused to vote for either presidential candidate out of what can only be attributed to disgust.
If you're looking for a demographic sliver to blame for Clinton's abject loss, there it is.
6
I'm not comfortable with the narrative that only Bloomberg can beat Trump. No ones seems to be imagining what the Democratic ticket could/will look like, beyond the nominee for president.
Imagine, it's Sanders. And, say he picks Stacey Abrams as his VP nominee. And, in addition, BEFORE the general election, he announces many of his cabinet picks. So, hypothetically, let's say it included Amy Klobuchar (State?) Cory Booker (Homeland Security?), Pete Buttigieg (OMB, or VA?), Kamala Harris (AG?), Andrew Yang (Commerce?), Tom Steyer (Interior?), John Hickenlooper (EPA?), Julian Castro (Transportation?), Beto O'Rourke (Labor?), etc., etc. -- all named in advance of the general election.
Whoever turns out to be the Dem nominee can do this (e.g., Sanders or Buttigieg or Klobuchar or...). If they do, I'd have a really hard time imagining such a ticket losing to Trump. Bloomberg looks less attractive, by comparison, when you consider the possibilities.
5
@fact or friction
YES! I agree with you 100%. Stop the fighting, stop the ego, and let's put a team together that can do something really good. We can quibble about who leads the ticket, personally I don't think Sanders would be the best choice, but I'd love to see him in a role where his passion for reform could be used. Let's do this together.
I lived in NYC during the Bloomberg years and still do. To be he was a fantastic mayor and should be held up as a gold standard. He left the city safer, cleaner, and a better place to live. He make huge strides with the homeless issue and ensured there was enough beds for these people should they choose to use them. He rode the subway life every other citizen. He continued to live in his own apartment and did not move into Gracie Mansion like the current mayor.
Despite all his money, Mike to totally grounded and is a matter of fact guy. What you see is what you get. He would make a amazing president.
11
What would Democrats prefer-- winning with a successful mayor of New York or losing with a former mayor of Burlington, VT, who has accomplished little in all his years in the Senate?
13
@Korean War Veteran What would Democrats prefer--losing to a Republican Trump or losing to a Republican Bloomberg?
Sanders, Biden, et al are exercised by the Bloomberg juggernaut trying to buy the nomination. I get it. But they should heed the adage "the enemy of my enemy is my friend" All the Democratic hopefuls share a common enemy: Donald Trump. Should Bloomberg become the nominee the entire party must rally behind him or Donald Trump will occupy the White House until January 20, 2025.
7
If Bloomberg stands in that stage tomorrow and says. “As president, I will spend millions to deny every obstructionist Republican Senator re-election,” his support would double overnight.
11
@Octavia
and if he were to actually say that he could be effectively pre-impeached before he is elected!
@Sam On what possible grounds? The GOP gutted campaign finance reform. Wouldn’t it be funny to see them squeal the loudest?
Let's see about some aspects of the presidential business in USA:
Right now, a billionaire, out of some sort of hobby and fueled with massively spending his own money is vying to become a president. Some success, not because of him but because of what is perceived as faults in others. And with the message that money can sort of buy anything.
A small town mayor, virtually and literally unknown, smooth talker and barely anything more, completely unproven.
I will not even mention the current president.
Media frenzy, full speed for two years, ultra-speed for the last 6 months.
Isn't it silly that that is how Americans select their president?
2
Bloomberg is a fiscal Republican. Being better than Trump doesn't qualify him to be president or to being the Democratic candidate. He will not get Sanders' supporters if he becomes the Democratic nominee. Bernie or bust!
3
That Bernie or nothing attitude will guarantee that Trump is re-elected. Trump is counting on those die-hard Bernie supporters staying home and pouting instead of voting against him, trump. Think about it, that’s why Trump has been sort of easy on Bernie.
Being rich is not a disqualification, it only gets me when they use their office to give themselves tax cuts and other perks that bothers me. That includes Bernie (he is a millionaire) who has gotten wealthy as a senator just like most of the senate. I will give the democrats credit for mostly voting against the tax cuts. It’s going to take some deep pockets to beat trump and at least Bloomberg will not be beholden to anyone if he manages to pull it off. Also, Bloomberg has pledged to support whomever the democratic candidate is with his vote and his bank roll. Bernie is also votes against gun regulations, this country needs some gun regulating.
Has anyone noticed that if you use your iPad or apple phone, trump is handled as a verb, not as a noun, and does not automatically capitalize the word. Wonderful, I never put president in front of his verb name.
@Pranav Nonsense. He's calling for big tax hikes on the wealthy and a financial transaction tax.
There are talkers and then there are doers. Sanders v Bloomberg it will be.
1
Not to sound flippant but I would pay to see Bernie endorse Bloomberg if he happens to be the nominee.
5
@Greenfield He will do it. He said he will support the Democratic candidate and he did it for Clinton despite her being mean and petty. He will even campaign for Bloomberg too. And he will vote for Bloomberg's proposals in the Senate just like he did for Obamacare, even if it's not entirely what he wants. That's just the kind of guy he is.
Glad that's amusing to you.
1
I think if Bernie's parents knew Mike's parents they would be friends. They both raised good kids. Our country is lucky to have both of them running. Time to ask not what your country can do for you but what you are doing for your country to defeat Donald Trump. As we all must get to work.
6
@Harris silver These two would never be friends. Bloomberg would be (and has been) friends with Trump, not Bernie. You really think Bernie would be friends with a guy telling his female employees to abort their babies because they're inconvenient to him?
I must admit surprised to see Bloomberg this high in the polls, but will admit he has the financial influence to get widespread attention.
But I don't want someone with his credentials as someone who dismisses that an average citizen as being incompetent of defending themselves, that farming is simply digging a hole and watering seeds, who tries to exert control over everyday lives with soda tax and stop and frisk (which he had intentions in leaked audio of making minorities leave their guns at home).
This is not the kind of man I would want to see on the presidential vote ticket.
1
"The poll surveyed 527 Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents by phone Feb. 13-16"
Not putting much credibility to a phone poll. Who answers their phone from an unknown caller these days?
3
D,
Just look at the margin of error- ( or minus 5) that is not the best poll which means perhaps a 10 point swing in either direction; show me a poll with a standard deviation of or minus 3 and perhaps I might be more inclined to believe it.
No kidding. I block all those calls that I do not recognize, who knows one of them may have been a poll call. We also have no land line, one of the few boomers who don’t have one.
@Sarah , Yeah I think most polls are older folks with land lines and no caller ID. I'm a boomer too with no land line.
Wake me up when Goldilocks finds perfection. We'll probably be watching Trump's second inaugural by then.
6
Excellent. Voters need to have exposure beyond saturated advertising.
It borders on comical how the editorial and local cheer-leading tenor towards Bloomberg in the NYT seems characterized by myopic optimism. Nevertheless, since I am not a New Yorker, I'm going to temporarily check my disbelief at the door and see if what I can't imagine materializing will materialize.
That said.. being from Pennsylvania... it seems sort of obvious to me why my state, as well as many of the not so sexy-in-the-city primary voters of the coming weeks, should be capable of going for someone like Trump and not Bloomberg. I expect to see a lot lot of elasticity in his poll numbers after the first debate and Nevada.
Some people can rise and sink and rise again. But when it's pretty much understood that one's position is based on the spending of hundreds of millions of dollars, Bloomberg will be an also-ran at the first hint of stagnation - i.e., if limitless money cannot even prop it up, it's a dud.
2
It's offensive to watch the DNC and Democrats looking to Bloomberg as their savior. He's just another version of Trump, but more subtle.
As Mayor of NYC, he ordered the NYPD to surveille Muslims, then demanded this information be suppressed in a biography about him.
His NY "stop and frisk" policy targeted minority neighborhoods, because, he said, "That's where all the crime is." Statistically, this did not prove true. White people were 50% more likely to be carrying a weapon, and 30% more likely to have contraband than their minority counterparts, but Bloomberg did not back down from his racist stance.
Bloomberg uses his philanthropy to buy influence. Recipients of his giving will not criticize him for fear of losing funding.
Bloomberg controls with his money, not with warmth and charm. His attitude toward women is like Trump's. When seeing a good looking woman, he says, "I'd do her." He changes political parties when it suits his ambitions.
He became a billionaire as part of Wall St., which caused the 2008 worldwide recession and from which people are still recovering. He remains unscathed, enjoys Trump's tax break for the rich, and write-offs for his donations.
His super wealth puts in doubt any link to average Americans. Control, not compassion or fairplay, is his watchword.
As President, he must cut his business and philanthropic ties. What personal characteristics, beliefs and logic will drive support for his agenda?
These criteria are unknown.
6
What this article fails to mention is the recent DNC decision to change the rules to debate - eliminating the donor threshold.
5
So much for Biden! And Warren! And Mayor Pete! I DO think Bloomberg can get it done. He's not a tactful guy but so what. We're SO impressed by politicians who know the right thing to say but get nothing done! Stop & Frisk may have offended people, but the end results were very positive. And I've heard a number of black men who were stopped say it was fine with them. They understood the statistical reasons and the goals. I believe Dems who are afraid to speak out are really secretly applauding Bloomberg and they are moving to his side.
3
We will see how Bloomberg does in the debate tomorrow. If he does satisfactorily, then he should be the Democratic nominee. He has weaknesses such as stop and frisk and sexist comments for which he has apologized. Yes, this 'redlining' misconception is odd. This can be fixed by consulting with competent economists such as Mr Paul Krugman. These weakness are not a problem for independent and moderate Republican voters. Mr Bloomberg has a track record of hiring competent people and listening to their advice(not like the clueless one in the white house). Yes, current polls show anyone with a pulse can beat Trump now. Beware, Trump, the Republican party machine and billions of dollars can take almost anyone out. Only Bloomberg and maybe Steyer can go toe-to-toe with Trump and the Republican party's onslaught of attacks. Sanders and Warren's strict ideology of socialism and 'medicare for all' won't work for moderates in Midwest swing states. Unfortunately US not ready for a sexual orientation that is not straight. Biden is fading in polls, and has no drive or fire in the belly. He will appear weak next to Trump. Bottom line, Trump has to be defeated. Democrats have to have a nominee who is electable in an electoral college. Don't throw the Bloomberg baby out with the bathwater. The Democratic congress can rein in his improprieties. Another four years of the illegitimate president(elected with significant Russian help) and we will be a banana republic or a Putin-like aristocracy.
5
He will, more than likely, be a "competent trump:" he manipulated the law to have a 3rd term; he subjected people of color and Muslims to un-Constitutional policies; he's not funded by Wall Street, he IS Wall Street; he uses his billions effectively to purchase the best "democracy" and purchase the most self-beneficial capitalism that money can buy; he's far sharper and more articulate in his scathing tweets.
Why are "moderates" obsessed with a white male "establishment" candidate? If you want trump, vote for trump. But trump-lite, trump competent, are not Democratic Party values.
6
@Gustav Aschenbach In lieu of an incompetent authoritarian with an (R) next to his name, apparently Democrats would rather have a competent authoritarian with a (D) next to his name. Apparently only the letter matters.
1
If Bloomberg wins the nomination and then goes on to become President it will be the end of politics as we knew it. It will make crystal clear that winning the Oval Office will have nothing to do with your policy but how many checks you can write. We will have sold out to the Oligarchs and we the people will never get the power back.
6
I'm convinced that Bloomberg is the only candidate with the moxie, money and experience to beat Donald Trump. I can't get over Bloomberg's "throw them up against the wall" policy of detaining and frisking young inner city youth, most of them minority and nearly none stopped for having committed a crime. However, when you compare Bloomberg's offenses against the non-stop parade of uglies from Trump, it's no contest. Big business and wall street are far more apt to trust the former NYC mayor and financial-industry titan than the bully president who exposes his own ignorance, prejudices, lies, explosive temper and corrupt drives with almost every tweet and deed. Bloomberg made the real billions while Trump stumbled through bankruptcies and his daddy's ill-placed millions. Bloomberg has strived to deal with social ills ranging from healthcare to obesity in inventive ways and is a massive philanthropist of great causes. He also has the sharp tongue and necessary killer instincts to uproot our poisonous ruler. I care greatly about some core issues that have tripped up Bloomberg, who's record is far from ideal. But this is not a time for ideal. We have ourselves a president who would be king, and against that we need a giant slayer. I see only one candidate up for the job; he will do good for this sick and bleeding nation.
2
"Robinson Meyer, a writer for The Atlantic, coined the term "Bernie bro" in an October 17, 2015 article to describe a phenomenon in which young, white, progressive men were accused of "hectoring their friends" to support Sanders." Wikipidea.
I'll take Bloomberg over Sanders any day. I'm a socialist but cannot stand the Bernie Bro culture, nor the fact Bernie didn't stand down to Hillary after she won the primary. His lack of support for the Democrat nominee cost this country a Democrat president who was outrageously qualified because he and his supporters lent support to the republican chime that Hillary was "crooked", which was a giant lie.
5
Defeating Bloomberg is more important the defeating Trump.
The precedent set by Monopoly Men buying the election will bring walled cities, underground bunkers, and space colonies, which will be paid for by tax payers, to ferret the super rich from the rabble and a dying planet. This precedent will be far more damaging to the Republic than another term of Trump. At least Peter Thiel and Elon Musk (who believes we live in a computer simulation) are disqualified as foreign-born eccentric billionaires.
You can have plutocracy or democracy, but you cannot have both, said the wise Justice Louis D. Brandeis.
Fortunately, Bloomberg will be dispatched and humiliated at the debates by his insincere, intelligence-insulting farce of empty attempted atonement for the sadistic, greedy, and racist, authoritarian police state that he has persistently touted during the charade that has been his political life.
Good advanced riddance.
6
The overhead rhetoric from the land of Yellow Vests doesn’t really help either.
2
@Xöpher So how bad would it be if Bloomberg dispatched billionaires to the moon?
@Xöpher "ferret," unintentional portmanteau of "ferry/spirit" for members of the weasel genus
Why are most of the candidates more than 70 years of old?
2
@Markku Social media.
Mr. Bloomberg is certainly a political opportunist—
Switching parties as needed.
And, we must not forget, fervently supporting George W Bush, the second worst president in United States history.
4
The last Democratic President was upscale, biracial, and a graduate of Harvard Law School. Now we are looking at a multi-billionaire. Democrats don't want to be led by real Democrats. They favor people who are one of a kind and representative of nothing. And they complain that the Democratic agenda is not being enacted. What are they thinking?
1
Please. No. This is starting to feel like the Twilight Zone. So, let's elect a billionaire with a history of suspicions of racism and sexism, a man who is attempting to buy the election. Democracy? Yeah, right.
Trump is a symptom and not a cause. Democrats/liberals/DNC need to own that the election results of 2016 are their responsibility and largely of their own making. There were systemic problems before Trump. Trying to return to what resulted in Trump solves nothing. Bloomberg would only deepen the nightmarish surrealism we've been living through. Is the idea to try to out-Trump Trump?
But maybe if the NYT's pick Amy Klobuchar can garner a strong sixth place in Nevada, the news cycle will change again. She will be especially formidable, especially since she now knows who the president of Mexico is.
2
Bloomberg is more dangerous that Trump.
If law-and-order dems think they can shove a billionaire Republican down the party’s throat, they’re horribly mistaken. We might as well have Mike Pence or George W Bush run on the Democratic ticket, too, since one can imagine ways in which they’re better than Trump. They’re all old authoritarian white guys who love the police state and have no patience for civil libertarians or democracy generally.
6
Assuming Bloomberg chooses a running mate wisely and doesn't alienate the left end of the party so much that people stay home or someone mounts a third-party challenge, I believe he can beat Trump. Bloomberg knows how to handle a bully like Trump, and I think he intimidates Trump, the outer borough guy who will always have an inferiority complex around a guy who truly made in big in Manhattan.
4
Bloomberg has never apologized for his support of the disastrous invasion of Iraq. Not fit to be Commander-in Chief.
5
Yes, without Bloomberg, there would have been no invasion of Iraq. Thanks for being the first and only person to bring this up.
The New York Times is hard at work manufacturing consent as they help construct Bloomberg's carpeting of the airwaves with his ads as an awesome feat. Meanwhile they minimize, seek to deflate and disappear everything that is truly thrilling about the Bernie campaign: his lead in the polls, surveys showing how many Americans have a favorable opinion of him, the amazing grassroots, multi-racial movement around him. The New York Times will happily welcome an authoritarian if he will protect an obscene global economic system and the brutal national security state that helps advance it. This is a system that is going to kill human life on this planet. For anyone at all concerned about the environment a vote for Bloomberg is a death sentence for our children.
Bernie will win just by virtue of mobilizing the youth vote. ...they will be defiant in the face of Trumpaganda. The centrist gamble blew up in the Dems’ faces..... Hillary had too much baggage. It’s his turn now. I would be surprised if it went any worse then the last time.
It’s anyone but Sanders for the New York Times editorial board and old-school Dems.
Sanders has millions of small donation supporters, Bloomberg has billions of his own money supporting him... which sounds like the best candidate in a democracy?
6
Mike's star is rapidly rising. It's very interesting to watch John Stossel's and Maxim Lott's electionbettingodds.com. The site is updated every minute and a significant contributor to the algorithm is Betfair.com .....based in Britain where it is legal to place bets on elections.
People are putting their money on the line. Only Bernie currently outpaces Mike as the Democratic primary winner. Right now, they are within a percentage point beating Trump - although Trump is by far the current favorite.
1
Are there any other candidates in this race? You have 8 stories on your politics page about him. Nothing on current delegate leader.
Bloomberg thinks its easy as pie to farm. Maybe this isn't making the rounds on the New York Times, but his comments on farming will come across as mockery in the Midwest, which the Democrats must win back to win the election.
1
Yes! I will vote for him. Hope he chooses Buttigieg as VP.
1
Imagine again a world where the POTUS is not front and center of all media platforms, creating controversy and tweeting daily. Instead he’s actually working and you never hear from him/her unless it’s absolutely necessary. Woosa!
3
The fact that the Democratic establishment is fawning over Bloomberg is a disgrace. This guy has a history of racist policies, sexist comments, and insulting working class people. How can we attack Trump for doing the same things and excuse Bloomberg?
1
2020 is shaping up to be the best election money can buy. This is disgusting.
3
It's not for nothing that Bloomberg is only candidate who seems to be able to unapologetically counterpunch Trump's demeaning insults / ruthless Tweets and remain undiminished. Stupid as it is, because we are operating in the gladiatorial arena Trump bathes in, winning in 2020 will rely on effectively neutralizing Trump's "nuclear" weapon: the vile language he uses to demean, belittle and ultimately weaken his foes by poisoning our perceptions about them.
3
There goes liberal elites led by the favorite paper trying to impose their candidates on the country, again! They didn’t get the message in 2016! Unfortunately, the country may have to give it to them again: stop imposing your candidates. Have genuine candidates or Trump wins again!!!
1
Our billionaire is better than your "psudo" billionaire. How about we have both release their tax returns so president "13,000 lies" can put up or shut up!
3
Blue no matter who.
8
Bloomberg isn't blue. He's red with some blue paint on top.
2
As we speak, you can bet that Bloomberg is leaning on all of Buttigieg and Klobuchar's big donors. He's probably friends with half of them. Once they stop supporting, those 2 will have to drop out, clearing a head to head match up with Bernie.
Once again - the Golden Rule.
3
Why is this headline not Bernie is 12 points ahead in the Nevada caucus polls??
10
Just shows how rotten and corrupt the nomination system is. And, oh yeah, as long as Dems can beat Trump with Bloomberg, the contender can be a racist and a misogynist, as long as he’s a tad less so than Trump. In that case, everything is forgiven. Charles Blow’s take on Bloomberg from the NYT should be read by all.
9
Bloomberg’s atrociously vile comments to women in his employ—
Are disqualifying.
10
@srwdm Hmmmmm. If Bloomberg is the nominee, will you really vote for "...they will let you do anything" Trump?
Please give some more thought to your line in the sand.
@mdgalbraith
Trump isn't on record saying his female employees should line up to perform sex acts on the feted male employee.
Trump doesn't have 5+ NDAs with undisclosed settlements for workplace harassment and unequal treatment of women.
Trump had one NDA with a woman. She broke that NDA to reveal that he has shortcomings in bed. Not that he raped her or sexually harassed her or anything of the kind.
If you're going to pretend to care about women and appropriate behavior in the workplace, please get some credibility first.
1
Mayor Bloomberg has been picking up endorsements quickly, including from African-American politicians:
Cong. Bobby Rush (IL)
Cong. Lucy McBath (GA)
Cong. Gregory Meeks (NY)
Former Mayor Michael Nutter (Philadelphia)
6
I will never vote for Bloomberg for one very simple reason: he is a Republican, and I do not vote for Republicans. I have never once voted R in any election, local or national.
If the Democratic Party wants to thank me for my unwavering support by nominating a Republican when we have a field of at least 4 or 5 viable Democrats, they can forget about getting my vote again in 2020.
12
Vote for a Republican to get rid of Trump or is Trump also a Republican ?
@Greg
You do realize Bloomberg only became a Republican to run for mayor of New York. He is a now back to being a Democrat-- what he was most of his life.
1
@Lyle Davis
You need to be a Republican to be mayor of NYC? The city that voted 9:1 for Hillary over Trump? That NYC?
Somebody should have mentioned this to deBlasio!
1
But new rules announced by the Democratic National Committee opened the door to his participation, as they enabled candidates to qualify for the Las Vegas debate, as well as the one that will take place on Feb. 25 in Charleston, S.C., without meeting a donor threshold. That long statement is the real issue with this story. Sad and maddening that it's really all about money. Real change is never going to happen until money and corruption gets out of the political process and it becomes a level playing field. Frustrating that the Democratic leadership allowed this to happen and in fact instigated it.
15
Can we expect new rules to allow a third and fourth term as President?
2
@BklynGal How can it be a level field? Should we all have equal access to try out for NBA, be Pop Singer, be top Chef...?
@BklynGal - When will you learn? The Democrat Party is the most corrupt political party on earth.
Bloomberg would be far from my first choice, but if he self finances his whole run the Democrats’ donors will be able to spend all their dollars on the senate races and regain the senate. Now with the talk of Romney going independent the senate maybe closer to flipping than ever.
16
If the stakes were not so dire I’d wish for Bernie to be nominated so progressives can get off their high horses and see how many of their ideas do not in fact have broad support.
Of course they would cry foul play whatever happened. But maybe enough of the establishment would notice and stop giving them so much air time and accommodation.
15
Sarah, there is no way Sanders’ supporters will vote for Bloomberg, even I, a moderate, can not swallow that pill.
3
@JRS
Guess you do not mind Trump then.
I don't mean to suggest Sanders' supporters will vote for Bloomberg. They won't. They don't mind Trump either at the end of the day.
I'm reading the comments and see quite a few Bernie supporters claiming that if Bloomberg wins the nomination, they will vote their conscience for a third-party candidate, which is ok, you should vote your conscience. But let's be realistic, can Sanders pull in the moderate republicans, the independent voters, and suburban white women? Is he going to capture the votes in key states like Texas, Ohio, and Pennsylvania? I will vote Democrat for the ticket, no matter who is the nominee because if I vote for someone else, I'm giving my vote to Trump.
21
They did this with Bush and now Trump. I suppose they’re pleased with how that’s worked out.
1
Why are so few people concerned about the distinct possibility that 78 year old Sanders could have another heart attack? Statistically, one out of five people who have had one heart attack will have another. And that doesn’t take into account the unique physical and mental stress that presidential candidates face daily. Were Sanders to have another heart attack as the nominee it would hand the presidency to Trump. That’s not a risk I am willing to take.
21
@J. You're aware that Bloomberg is merely a single year younger than Bernie, right? Why is no one asking about HIS medical records?
1
Rightly or naively, one thing that a majority of voters used to take for granted was the legitimacy of the federal government. This does not seem as important as policy levers or the mythical "voting against your economic interests" - until it does. Much like our digital privacy, we may realize it matters only once it is permanently damaged.
Following Trump with someone who has bought their election as he avoided the scrutiny of campaigning (not to mention abusive policing and ignoring term limits as a mayor) may cause approximately as much damage as a second Trump term. It is difficult to think of any group who would see a Bloomberg government as legitimate.
Here are two examples of important policy areas where this is an especially transparent problem: gun control and climate change. The short term effect of gun control is usually to sell a lot of new guns. It only even possibly works if the laws outlast an administration. Most climate policies are similar - MPG rules have long lead times and can be reversed, blocked pipelines can be unblocked, and many other restrictions can be manipulated. While there is always the risk that one party will always act in bad faith, they have to get a functional majority to undo such policies. Without a shared sense of legitimacy, such a majority is nearly certain.
Bloomberg is a lazy choice on a critical decision. This is often a formula for disaster. Why is ANYONE ok with this?
4
@Alan
Typical false equivalency.
1
I don't agree with the criticism of Bloomberg that he "is buying his way onto the debate stage."
You can buy airtime, hire more campaign staff, and get more yard signs and bumper stickers, but you can't "buy" 19% support. Getting your message out there is one thing. Having 19% of democratic voters support you requires their active participation. They weren't "bought."
Campaign finance problems aside, let's please respect peoples' choices.
22
Agree in the US everybody is „buying“ votes if you want to call like that Bloomberg at least is not depending on somebody else’s money so he is not owning something to his donors. Who donated ti Trump to“buy“ his election Nobody is asking that. Why did Trump leave the Paris treaty lower environmental standards and so on ?In who’s interest did and does he act? But yes very important Bloomberg is buying votes with his money....
2
So Bloomberg saves democracy by buying the nomination and then the election. How does that work?
9
@Winthrop Sneldrake He then becomes President and you get to complain for 4 more years.
If all you care about is defeating Trump , no doubt Bloomberg could work, but as a demonstration that the presidency can be bought, and that one way or another, after 2020 we will be ruled by big money, he and Trump are disasters.
4
It always costs tens of millions of dollars to run for President. If you're not stealing it you're within your right. It's been said Bloomberg 's influence turned the House majority to Democratic... anyone sending that money back? Anyone crying foul on the Democratic side. Bernie is flauted the term Socialist so that it makes it impossible for a swing voter to change their mind...too bad. A business saavy President with a conscience would be Bloomberg.
1
The US repelled its own manufacturing sector by a whole host of means ranging from failure to convert to the Metric system to making health care one of the top management headaches in the country. Now it is a petro-economy like Saudi Arabia and Venezuela.
3
In the last primary race, Bernie got a lot of people on the far right as well as the left. Why is everyone so concerned he can't beat Trump? Lots of Republicans don't want to vote for Trump but don't see another option. Why give them another mega rich guy and expect them to vote differently. As a Democrat, I don't want that either. I want real change, I want to see the general populus represented instead of the uber wealthy. If that's radical then laugh me out, but I'm betting that I'm not alone.
9
Completely missed in this headline: Sanders has more than a 10-point lead on Bloomberg! The centrist bias continues, so desperate for a "moderate" than we're seriously considering another billionaire with little political experience who has wish-washed on political identity to take advantage of the moment. Bloomberg has no principles except he wants to be president, and he will do anything/pay anything to get it.
8
Bloomberg turned NY around after 911. Was regarded as an excellent mayor and statesman. Mayors make real, hard decisions daily... not a few votes here and there. It's probably the toughest city to run on the planet... did so for 12 years. I love Bernie's heart but real change needs to be designed, not merely hoped.
9
I have said I will vote for the Dem nominee in the general election. BUT come on are we really considering a candidate that is only a democrat because it was politically convenient? Are we really considering turning the Democratic party over to the Republicans that don't agree with the current Radical Right that Trump represents? That is what Bloomberg represents a landing place for Republicans who are never Trumpers.
3
From your mouth to G-s's ears, let's hope so
@Ed
Bernie is also only a Democrat when it is politically convenient. Then he goes back to being an Independent, just like he did after the 2016 election.
The business class that Bloomberg belongs to publicly hate Trumpism but privately enjoy benifitting from it. Bloomberg's overall strategy as I see it, is to first, split the vote in the primaries to weaken Bernie Sanders, and if he doesn't get the nomination, to run as a third-party candidate like Ross Perot, and split the anti-Trump vote. It would be a win-won for him: he could improve his brand by coming out against Trump, while avoiding the regulation and scrutiny oligarchs like him would face under a Sanders presidency.
1
Best government money can buy.
Doesn't have to be this way.
3
Clayton,
It’s the government money can buy. Not sure about the best.
So, we agree.
1
Some among the candidates seem to think they have a right to candidacy that others do not. Baloney. Do not try to tell me for whom I can or cannot vote. Let us, the voters, decide, not you self-entitled candidates or pollsters or media with those faux "debates" they stage.
Some among the long-term candidates accuse Mr. Bloomberg of "buying the election," or "buying the presidency." How does that work? By his heavy advertising? By his political organizing and astute base building? By his philanthropy? There seems to be a disconnect between the activities he funds, however much money he pours into them, and the fact that to be elected he still must get people -- individuals -- to vote for him. Give individual voters a little bit of credit for making their own informed choices, if you dare.
What are Democrats really afraid of? They like to talk about inclusion. Well, then, this Democrat wants them to walk the walk.
7
But new rules announced by the Democratic National Committee opened the door to his participation, as they enabled candidates to qualify for the Las Vegas debate, as well as the one that will take place on Feb. 25 in Charleston, S.C., without meeting a donor threshold.
Bloomberg's money always gets people to change the rules.
Bring Gabbard, Yang, Harris, Booker and Castro back into the the debate. To the DNC the color of green is the only color other than white that will be allowed on the stage.
5
So briefly put, the two candidates with the most money to spend who have spent the most are currently leading in the Democratic primary.
I get that there’s a diff between getting your money from your own private fortune, and getting your money from smallish donors—but what I don’t get is how you separate “good,” money from, “bad,” money after than.
Seems to me that if the prob’s money in politics, well, money’s money. Also seems that there’s no inherent reason it’s better to be pandering to small donors than to large ones: in both cases, money talks.
1
Run Mike Run! The alternatives are Trump or Sanders, two different sides of the same angry and aggrieved coin. Bring us back to the middle and decency. You have my vote.
12
In Pennsylvania, we will never forget the 2016 Senate election where Bloomberg's $12 million contribution to the ultra-right-wing corporate Republican hedge fund trader Pat Toomey proved essential in his narrow 1.5% victory over Democrat Katie McGinty. Bloomberg's support gave Toomey a $31 to $16 million advantage which proved instrumental in him outmaneuvering McGinty.
That one vote Senate advantage is part of the reason Americans almost lost the Affordable Care Act, if not for the heroics of John McCain. That one vote is why Trump could break laws without fear of repercussions.
Bloomberg says he funded Trump hardliner Pat Toomey because in 2013 Toomey was one of the few Republicans who supported national gun control law changes after the Sandy Hook elementary school massacre.
This is a prime example of how easily manipulable is Bloomberg's ego. Toomey always needs to do at least one liberal thing every 6 years in Pennsylvania or risk losing his Senate race. Bloomberg went all fanatical on supporting Toomey, but it wasn't worth it. Sane gun laws are important, but that vote was lost anyway in Congress and Bloomberg responds by showering money on Toomey and thus giving him the Pennsylvania victory?
Posted on my wall I have Toomey's personal letter to me, written in florid Orwelling prose, enumerating a litany of reasons eliding the obvious facts for convicting Trump of the High Crime of manipulating our elections.
Bloomberg, Toomey, Out. Sanders in.
4
Bloomberg has the money to compete with Trump and supports most moderate liberal points of view. So stay focused. We have to beat Trump! Bloomberg is probably the best positioned candidate to do so, despite his failings.
6
Warren would be a good choice as Bloomberg’s VP, although if the DNC expects the VP to be run as his successor, Buttigieg would be the choice to be young enough to run after Bloomberg’s presumed third or fourth term.
3
I don't expect to be blown away by Mr. Bloomberg's debate performance. The guy, it seems, is not a man of big words. He says he is a doer and a problem solver.
Some politicians can deliver sharp rethoric and soaring oratory that can bring mist to your eyes but Mr. Bloomberg doesn't have that gift. His talent lies in his ability to drive results ( if his company is any indication). His acumen is extraordinary and his discipline, admirable. What will get people to vote for him is his pragmatic approach to problem solving.
Between an orator and a problem solver, I would pick the latter.
6
"Michael Bloomberg Surges in Poll and Qualifies for Democratic Debate in Las Vegas"
Translation:
"Bernie Sanders (31%) leapfrogs the cratering Joe Biden in new national poll. Sanders now has a whopping 12 point lead over Michael Bloomberg (19%) who has bought his way to a distant 2nd place with his $300 million TV propaganda blitz."
6
Bloomberg has given $2.3 billion to charities and progressive causes since 2008. In that same period, Donald Trump has not only not donated anything to charity, he's used funds donated to his personal charity exclusively on himself.
So this idea that Bloomberg is "just another billionaire" like Donald Trump is as disingenuous as it is patently false.
The fact that we have so many billionaires in this country is not the fault of those billionaires, just as it's not FedEx's fault that they pay nothing in taxes, it's the fault of GOP tax policies - and the GOP alone.
When I heard that Bloomberg was running, my first thought was, "Now here's a guy that can take Donald Trump out at the knees". I think he is the only candidate that can completely destroy Trump at the polls. And destroyed he must be, for two reasons. 1) To save what's left of this country and 2) To mitigate the inevitable Trump accusation that the whole election was "rigged" against him.
No matter how much he loses by, Trump will not except the results - this is a given. However, it's going to be a much harder slog if he loses by 10+ percentage points. And from my vantage point, Bloomberg is the only Democratic candidate who could possibly deliver that kind of knockout punch.
More than any other candidate, Bloomberg has the capacity to pull in the largest percentage of the votes that will ultimately decide the next election - and those are crossover votes. D's voting for D's just isn't going to cut it.
11
@Chicago Guy
By that standard, the Koch brothers and the Sackler family are more Democrats than Bloomberg is.
I believe the next Presidential election will hinge on whether enough Republican voters in battleground states have grown weary of the divisive daily circus that is the Trump administration to offset his delusional base. Those folks won’t vote unless the Democrats offer an alternative that is not too distasteful for them from the get-go. That pretty much eliminates Sanders, Warren, Buttigieg (sadly), and Steyer.
Left with Amy Klobuchar and a fading Joe Biden, I’m ready to welcome Bloomberg to the mix.
10
Medicare for All is the death knell for dems in this election. We need a moderate candidate like Mike, Amy, or Pete. Please sit this one out, Bernie, otherwise it’s four more years of Trump.
8
Being able to buy your way into an election is corruption in the system. We can't support this.
3
So is Bloomberg running to save the DNC from Bernie of us from Trump? This election has two battle fronts. Status quo corporate Dems or Trump are beginning to not look that much threateningly different anymore.
2
@John Doe I don't think the DNC wholeheartedly supports Bloomberg, as he would just do what he wants if he wins and ignore them entirely.
What they really want is a brokered convention where they can steer the party towards their nominee with their machinations.
He's go what it takes to beat Trump.
More importantly he's got what it takes to be an effective President!
9
Quick Points...
If Dems run Sanders-- they lose
Bloomberg can appeal to moderates and independents., He comes with far less baggage than Biden.
... and despite what Bernie may claim--it should not be a crime to be successful.
...Beat Trump before he finishes destroying this democracy.
7
@WAL ..and he is the best candidate to get votes from disgruntled republicans.
1
I don't trust anyone that cuts to the front of the line. Money can create a fine narrative in ads. He cannot win over the important electoral state swing voters who dislike Trump.
2
Biden only has 9 million dollars left after a dismal showing in Iowa and NH. Durham's report and other Ukraine /Hunter stuff will put an end to Joe's run and it will open the door for Bloomberg as a moderate.
2
Bloomberg is running to protect his business interests in China. He has no interest in being president.
3
So I wonder just how many of these comments are from Republicans posing as Democrats wanting to destroy the candidate Trump fears the most.
4
Just imagine if Tulsi Gabbard or Cory Booker had the deep pockets to self fund their campaigns. They'd still be in the mix too. And the DNC facilitates this, with their inane debate rules, that supposedly were rigid and fixed .... until they changed them to accomodate Bloomberg. It's realy nauseating that the DNC is so anti-democratic and so far removed from its egailitarian roots.
2
Michael Bloomberg's rise in this Democratic Primary disgusts me. Hillary Clinton vs. Donald Trump was never a choice between "the lesser of two evils." Bloomberg vs. Trump will be.
I love Mike Bloomberg! He is the best candidate to beat Trump and the President knows it!
He is socially liberal and supports business.
He will help the less fortunate and make the middle class better off. He will make American business stronger so more people have good paying jobs. He will cut the deficits that neither party seems to care about. He has a different tool box of skills than the typcial politician which should prove valuable given how complext the job is.
The NYT should jump on the bandwagon as this train is gaining steam! Bloomberg in 2020!
7
It will take a real billionaire to beat a fake billionaire.
12
@AR
I guess that's why, in 2016, the person who spent $768 million on their campaign beat the guy who spent $398 million, right?
Anyone but Trump. Trump's behavior it is very childish. His emotions are ignoble and indicate the lack of higher qualities of mind or spirit. They consist of threats, name calling, revenge, angry, or, simplistic vocal utterances and tweets, demeaning and insulting attacks on others with different opinions. In other words, Trump is primitive in thought and utterance.
The thousands that adore him are also very primitive thinkers. Such is their lot. Duke University Neurology Department did a 2005 study of behavior in Rhesus Monkeys reveling much about Trumps following and all of us. These types of folks, the tribe, the followers, are emotive and undereducated. They form the lowest common denominator of society and cannot change. They are what they are.
If our Government had invested heavily in American families well being and education, by demanding excellence in parenting, health and education, these types of people would not exist. They would readily see that 'The Emperor has no clothes'.
However, they currently see through primitive, emotional, tribal eyes, not the eyes of critical thinkers. This happens in narrow minded democracies. A demagogue will arise, sooner, or, later.
That's where we are and that's exactly where we deserve to be for allowing our government for forsake their duty to the foundation of our civilization, the family unit, at all income levels. The Republicans prefer a dumbed down citizenry, it's easier to manipulate and control.
3
Why should be even go to the debate to be insulted by Losers Inc.
Better to carry on with the momentum he has, keep hitting Trump and looking Presidential. ( No need to say thanks for the advice Mike)
1- Stop the bickering and slams against your fellow Democrats, you like little kids -PULL TOGETHER AS A TEAM - forget long past issues that are not relevant today.
2- Support your comrades' ideals and concepts independent of the methods to achieve them
3- FORGET TRUMP, ignore him ... and frustrate the heck out of him
4- focus on the meat and potato issues of the great majority of people - Environment, Education, Health, Infrastructure, forget manufacturing and concentrate on innovation of new technology, wealth distribution, collaborate with big industry to get THEM to help solve our social problems, get rid of homelessness! - we do not need it and can easily eradicate it, clean water, good environmental power, public transportation, and good public toilets, and eradication of the need for people to use drugs, help people of the World, get out of war situations,apply military budget for the common good not killing machines, etc. DJM
3
See kids... money CAN buy you an election!!! Seems like it anyway. Maybe I am jumping the gun. It will look bad if he gets the nomination.
2
Well done NY Times. Three first page election stories about candidates and one will figure that the prominent candidate will figure among them. Of course not, is Bernie.
1
A year of campaigning, debating and fundraising and its all in the dumpster once our big daddy savior sweeps in on a magic money carpet. Nauseatingly undemocratic - and unDemocratic as well.
1
The last thing America needs is a greedy billionaire to protect us from the greedy billionaires.
1
Don't care who the D candidate is. He or she will have my vote, as will all other Ds on the ballot. Straight ticket blue this November for this voter. Easy.
4
It's interesting that the Times with its series about privacy issues surrounding technology, and its opinion writer Charlie Warzel who often focuses on these issues, have yet to report on the fact that if Mike Bloomberg were to become the next president, ubiquitous surveillance would become a way of life.
This article in Politico is really chilling:
https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2020/01/18/michael-bloomberg-likes-to-watch-100626
Of course, the Times would do anything to distract from Sanders and his agenda, whether through distortions of his message or just simply ignoring him; like the rest of the media they simply cannot stand the idea that he might win the nomination as well as the presidency.
But living in a China-like surveillance state? Is it worth it to risk that?
4
Did he buy the poll?
4
Once Bloomberg actually has to speak and not hide behind a pile of money and commercials, his numbers will drop. Trump must be licking his chops to face Bloomberg. Another globalist coastal elitist who looks down his nose at the working class. Bernie would be a much more formidable opponent against Trump.
2
Wow, money really can buy everything.
1
For me to be totally on board with Mike Bloomberg, I hope someone asks him in a debate "Who is your ideal Supreme Court justice?...
He has 4 answers that would be correct....If he answers RBG, Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor, or Elena Kagan then I'd support him....
2
@Kona030 What if says Brandeis or Cardozo?
It is obviously a huge moral difference between Donald Trump and Michael Bloomberg. To put both into the billionaire corner would be foolish.
3
I’m sure people in the rust belt, which Clinton lost badly, will surely vote in droves for a NYC oligarch who tried to ban soda.
4
In the end warts and all, anybody on the Dem side is better than the horrible person presently in the WH. The alternatives are horrendous and anybody, yes anybody on the Dem side would do a better job for us, the country and the world. So please just go blue!
2
If Bloomberg were honest he'd run as a republican against Trump
1
Good thinking.
But Putin will never allow it within his party — he needs a morally and financially bankrupt con man to launder his ill gotten wealth. Donald is his perfect minion.
19 percent in polls: purchased by Bloomberg. Designed to psych out other candidates!
The listing of the candidates who will debate was strange. All of the men were noted individually with their own semi-colon dividing them. But the two women were lumped together with an 'and' as if ____________. You fill in the blanks. Just an observation that hit some sort of cord in me.
Maybe Bloomberg could bring fellow billionaire Sheldon Adelson of Las Vegas along to the debate on Wednesday—
Since they both fervently supported George W Bush, the second worst president in United States history.
3
Bernie is the only Democrat who can beat Trump.
4
@Steve,
Forgiving all student loans and forcibly eliminating private health insurance aren't that popular outside progressive circles. Throw in Bernie's old statements about his trips to communist countries, especially the former Soviet Union, and Trump wins by a wide margin.
Good, glad he qualifies. There are so many humanistic and civil rights issues, wants and needs, that pertain to everyone. I think Bloomberg, having looked at politics from both sides now, and then some, may really be able to hone in to our common ground.
Given four more years our country's going to totally fall apart if Individual One remains. We need clean air. We need clean water. We need our infrastructures everywhere repaired. We need better roads, we need better healthcare, we need a better country for all citizens!!! I'm most definitely going to give Bloomberg a chance, but of course I will vote for whichever Drmocratic candidate wins. United we stand. Divided, the United States of America falls IF the Republicon wins.
3
How is the headline of this article about Bloomberg’s surge? The story is Sanders’s solidification and increasing lead in the polls. NYTimes genuflecting yet again to the centrist, bothsides, problem solvers mirage, and doing what they can to take down our best hope of defeating trumpism and America’s slide into dystopian corporate plutocracy.
1
Sanders has a 12 point lead.
Why isn't that in the headline?
(...as if anyone had to ask.)
9
So much drama and entertainment. Who will buy their way in next? Hillary? Michelle? Oprah? I can't wait for the next episode.
The Democratic Clown Car Primary keeps giving and giving.
4
@BearBoy
Plot twist: Trump will hand over the reigns to Bezos.
I'm an African American Bloomberg girl!!!. Having lived and worked in NYC I know how difficult it was to manage that city. And as Frank Sinatra says, "If you can make it there, you can make it anywhere". I don't give Mike a pass, so he will have to score well during the debates with voters around the country. It's up to you, Mike. Get us home!!!!!!!!!!
3
I will vote for Bernie if he's the nominee, but fear it will be a repeat of 1972 when left-leaning George McGovern lost to Richard Nixon in the biggest landslide in U.S. history. Despite Watergate, Nixon got 18 million more votes, 60 percent of the total, and carried 49 states.
The majority of the Democrats are moderates, not progressives. Bernie is leading now only because the moderate vote is being split at least 4 ways. When the field narrows, Bloomberg could well overtake Bernie. And then, I fear, Bernie's supporters will behave as they did in the 2016 election and hand Trump another victory.
Consider, also, Bernie's record of non-accomplishment as first a U.S. representative and now a U.S. senator. Bloomberg is flawed, to be sure. But he did more good in his 12 years as New York's mayor than Bernie has done in nearly 30 years in the U.S. Congress. In short, Bernie is strong on rhetoric, but weak on results.
10
I had all intentions of voting for Klobuchar in the Primary, but now, I would rather have Bernie win the Primary, vote for him in the general also, rather than have Bloomberg usurp our country.
15
My English ancestors were settlers in this country, my African ancestors were enslaved and this nation was built on the backs of their. Struggles; no, Bloomberg can not buy this country; I will fight for this country with the knowledge that both my black and my white ancestors fought every battle to save us from despots.
1
@JRS You mean you would rather have Trump win?
Ah, another headline on Bloomberg says "he will reign in Wall Street". Sure, the guy who handed NYC to wealthy developers he hangs out with ,lock stock and barrel is going to 'reign in' his filthy rich pals. Sure.
18
@CacaMera
Agreed. And spending a few of his billions to run actually preserves far more of his billions than if Warren or Sanders wins. All about preserving wealth at the top.
2
@CacaMera Actually, I think you said it. Bloomberg "will reign in Wall Street." The City will be very pleased if he's elected.
He's the only one who can beat Trump. That's the bottom line. Give moderate Republicans an alternative. They'd take it in a heartbeat!
Zephyr Teachout's book Corruption in America should be mandatory reading for all Americans. Enough of this!
He is buying the DNC and all MSM!
13
Go Bloomberg! We need you to take Trump out of the Whitehouse!
7
@GCAustin
Yes..who cares if he is buying all of your votes, or if his policies could be dangerous and harmful to our country?
All that matter is he can beat Trump (he won't)
For this reason (and many other positives the Left refuses to acknowledge) our President will be reelected.
If Bloomberg was soooo strong, he would not need to have Hillary as a running mate - another example of his pandering to the Dems.
1
Bernie also surged in this poll but the NYT chose to put all the focus on Bloomberg in the headline. In fact that same poll shows Sanders beating Bloomberg by 12 points. Bernie's surge isn't mentioned until the 7th paragraph with this drab line "Mr. Sanders’s support has also increased..." It's clear the media are fighting hard against Sanders but there's nothing the mainstream press can do to convince me to vote for a racist billionaire...
18
@Martin Vandepas
Because they don't want Sanders to win. Even though Bloomberg is more Republican than Democrat in most of his policies, they'd rather have him than Bernie.
2
Yep. That’s the fair and balanced NYT at it again, the same folks who skewed things in this exact way 2014-15. That worked out well, didn’t it?
2
Fire Tom Perez now!
9
Oligarchs rule America.
13
Looks like the Times actually endorsed Bloomberg. He's been on the front page of the print edition 3 out of the last 9 days -- and on Sunday, the paper dedicated 3 1/2 pages to him! Here, online, he seems to dominate the news even more. What happened to the women the Times actually endorsed? News of them seems to be buried in articles about...Bloomberg. Coverage is coverage, good or bad.
16
Yes, but the Times is a newspaper, and there is news here. It’s that Bloomberg is quickly surging. Note, however, that the tone of most of this coverage is arguably anti-Mike. One example was an expose on what the Times’ headline called Mike’s “decades” of inappropriate comments, which added up to less than one comment per decade.
So again, this is the news. Will Mike supplant Bernie? Can Liz and Amy get back in the game? Will Trump’s shifting of his attacks to Mike matter? Stay tuned!
Vote. Blue. No. Matter. Who.
No. Matter. Who.
To every “progressive” who would contemplate staying home or voting a write in should Bloomberg win the nomination, what do you gain by directly contributing to another 4 years of Trump? Is it worth it to you? Is helping Trump win worth it to prove your point to the national Democrat party leadership?
To every “moderate” who is thinking about staying home or voting write in if Sanders or Klobuchar win the nomination, what do you gain? What do you gain from another 4 years of Trump dismantling the country, just to thumb your noses at the progressive wing of the party?
Anyone, ANYONE who doesn’t cast a positive vote for the Democrat, whoever the Democrat’s nominee is, might as well go buy a Trumpy Bear and a MAGA hat because your actions will directly result in a Trump victory.
17
@Austin Ouellette
Because there's such a huge difference between Bloomberg and Trump? Two old, white, autocratic NY billionaires? On most issues their viewpoints overlap.
@Austin Ouellette
Sure. If we have to vote for a mainstream Republican oligarch like Bloomberg just to stymy Trumpism, then we'll do it.
But we really shouldn't be contemplating that during the primary season.
That is NOT a reason to vote for Bloomberg in a primary.
"Yes, he has his past sins. All the candidates do including Bernie. But we need to beat Trump in the Electoral College and there is no way Bernie is turning those red/purple states blue."
What bunk!! I'm guessing Mike paid this guy. Bloomberg hasn't released his taxes . Bloomberg is still not for legalizing pot. These are MB current stands...
I am glad he is attacking Trump but won't get Trumps base and will not turn out the urban vote.
I am voting this week not for Mike tho.
2
Bloomberg vs. Trump debate:
My fellow Americans, I'm offering you an alternative. The current occupant of the White House has refused to release his tax returns, been involved in numerous criminal probes, has bankrupt six different companies, paid off porn stars with campaign money for extra-marital affairs, has been married three times and had extra-marital affairs during all three marriages, can no longer sit on any foundations in the state of NY because of his charitable malfeasance, ran a phony university, bragged about wealth he inherited, but never earned, dodged the draft, promised a wall would be paid for by Mexico and now you're paying for it, torn up global climate agreements and dissolved nuclear agreements with perpetual enemies, lied to you at a record shattering pace, oversaw disaster relief for Puerto Rico that appalled most Americans and altered weather maps to
"prove" he was correct in his storm assessment skills.
I'm here to present an alternative to this dumpster fire.
13
@DavidF
Yeah, to raise taxes and balloon the size of govt, and bring us right back to the stagnant economic doldrums we had before Trump came into office.
No thanks.
This is good news. The knock on Bloomberg so far is that he's "hiding" & just carpet bombing the airwaves in lieu of actual scrutiny in a nationally televised debate. I have no idea how he'll do - but it will take away one talking point from his critics. I still haven't decided on a frontrunner myself - but have certainly taken Bloomberg seriously. I'm glad to finally see a real contrast & not just op-eds telling me what to think.
4
How convenient!
1
Djt’s only real competition.
5
Imagine this scenario: Bloomberg (Plutocracy candidate) Vs Trump (Fascist candidate). What's not to like?
4
An unusually large field of candidates is allowing people who cannot hold a majority, the opportunity to win the nomination. This is the same dynamic that facilitated Trump’s nomination, and it’s highly likely Democrats will also elect a less optimal candidate.
This creates the perfect opportunity for a man with deep pockets and hubris, to step in and literally buy the nomination.
This man may well be better than Trump, but this isn’t democracy.
3
Let's just get this straight.
Bloomberg's surge in the polls has nothing to do with people wanting a "centrist" or anything else.
It has to do with the effectiveness of advertising dollars
Do you doubt me?
Then let's do an experiment: someone give Warren $100 million in advertising dollars to talk about the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, a bit about her bio coming from struggling class Oklahoma, and some interviews with her veteran/Republican brothers, and let'see what happens to her poll numbers
8
@Lynn
Advertising does have an effect, but people really do want a centrist. Someone who can unite the country while simultaneously moving it forward.
Warren has been speaking her message for more than a year. You can't blame everything on advertising.
1
@Jeff
"Warren has been speaking her message for more than a year."
how many people have seen her speak "her message" (not on a debate stage) compared to the number of people who have seen Bloomberg's pro-how great Bloomberg is ads?
@Lynn
What you said.
But it has also to do with Bloomberg's buying off progressive organizations and Dem leaders. He's donated zillions the last couple of years to Dems and progressive organizations. Think that doesn't have an effect on how much they keep quiet or even support him?
Watch this:
https://www.democracynow.org/2020/2/17/michael_bloomberg_unprecedented_campaign_spending
The most consequential difference between Bloomberg and Sanders is in their respective chances of beating Trump. I'm an independent who voted for Clinton in 2016 and would vote for Bloomberg in 2020. But if Sanders is the nominee I'd have to hold my nose and vote for Trump. Sanders is regrettably too far left on numerous issues to get my vote.
3
If it comes down to Trump vs. Sanders, then your choice is between a Social Democrat and a fascist. I won’t find that a difficult one.
Nothing, but nothing, is going to get me to sit out this election, or vote for a third party candidate, in November. Getting rid of Trump is the only thing that matters. If Trump is reelected we will end up with a rock solid right wing Supreme Court for decades to come, climate change will continue to be ignored, and Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid will be gutted so the Republicans can fund more tax cuts for giant corporations and millionaires/billionaires. Bloomberg or Sanders, and anyone in between, for me it's blue no matter who.
9
I'm still mostly undecided and will be until the primary gets to my state but I will vote “Blue no matter who” in the general election. I'm hoping the candidate can help the down ticket races and I'm afraid that Bernie's nomination will destroy any chance we have of turning a few statehouse seats, and even a congressional seat here in my district. We have in the past, but only with centrists leading. It's important this time because of the census and redistricting will affect the next decade more than anything else. Also, the youth vote (18-30) here is always a pie in the sky wish, always dreamed of but never materializing and any democrat promising it is engaged in magical thinking, certain of disappointment.
4
it is about time that we recognize Mike Bloomberg the "ONLY" candidate who has a chance to beat Trump in the general election. He can combine the center and leave Trump only the far right as his base. I bet, if the democratic party did not elect him as their candidate, he will run as an independent, and it will truly be a three-way race. watch out!
3
If a candidate has no baggage, he/she has not lived. How the candidate handles the baggage, by recognizing and apologizing unwise choices, is more important. If Bloomberg selects someone like Klobuchar or Booker as his VP, he will have demonstrated that he can work with women and minorities. They will keep him straight on their issues. Bloomberg is not one who will be claiming that people will vote for him no matter what, like killing someone on the street. As far as I am concerned, Mike is as entitled to run for president as "Independent" Bernie is.
3
Is anyone else bothered by the Bloomberg ads that are using old news clips, in some instances 12-year-old, of Obama making positive comments about Bloomberg to imply he has Obama's endorsement? Very shady, deceptive advertising to me.
Of the Democratic field left standing, I feel Warren has the greatest regard for the people over "the machine" that modern politics has become. I also sadly have come to the conclusion that under the current electoral system that affords disproportionate power to lightly populated states, the will of the majority can, has been and will be over-ridden by political machinations outside of the control of the majority of the people.
Always remember that Clinton actually outscored Trump by 3 million votes last time.
2
Will the Dems, the party of anti-billionaires, toss aside their principles and allow Bloomberg to be their nominee? Will the Dems sell themselves to Bloomberg? Will the Dems let Bloomberg buy their votes? Will the Dems let Bloomberg buy the office of President of the United States?
2
@KathyS If that's all you want to know, I'll answer you this way... I'd rather sell my vote to Bloomberg, than have my vote stolen by Trump.... :)
@KathyS Why not, the Republicans did it. Fire with fire, buddy. Time out for the holier than thou nonsense.
Bloomberg got the DNC to change its rules mid-cycle. Cory Booker, Julian Castro and others couldn't do that. That's what money can buy you.
2
( can't think of a worst candidate for the democrats to put up given the surge in progressive ideas. A Billionaire Republican?
3
Wow.
For a political junkie like me - this can't get any better.
The Democrats are following us Republicans of 2016 when we had a rich guy snatching nomination from our establishment guts.
And look what happened?
Though, I think Democrats will not accept Bloomberg like we accepted another rich guy called Trump.
Bloomberg goes everything against what the Democrats stand for - today.
For them to jettison all that - it's more than a Herculean effort.
But hey, who am I to judge?
Look who is our POTUS today?
2
The ONLY issue that matters right now is removing the man-child President before he throws another temper tantrum and does any more damage. Bloomberg has the best chance of getting that done.
5
Last year, Baltimore had more than 324+ murders. This year is on track to equal or accede this number. Per capita, it would be third worst in the country. Each night, local TV news presents us with another wailing mother, crying about her son/daughter senselessly shot down in streets, mostly screaming "why don't they do something!". Local politicians talk about "better policing" (read up on the Baltimore police scandals *before Freddie Gray*), or providing "better job opportunities." Their words are meaningless, and they know senseless violence will go unabated.
Policies such as Bloomberg's stop-and-frisk, for individuals who look suspcious, is not without its concerns. Yes, it is on the fringes of the 4th Amendment. Is it a violation of one's dignity and self-respect, if the friskee turns out to be completely innocent? You bet!! Does it balance well against the policy of allowing mayhem and murder allowed to run rampant without doing anything concrete? If Baltimore implemented such a policy, and the murder rate were cut in half, would residents be upset. You bet it does!!
Anybody who even believes it's acceptable for Billionaires to buy into elections needs to take an honest look at themselves because you don't really believe in democracy any more. Wake up America, you're sliding down a slippery slope.
3
40 years later, Reagan Democrats still demanding Reagan at the head of the Democratic party.
Unloved FDR is spinning in his grave.
2
Can we do away with the polls and just use some common sense? There's only one Democrat that is guaranteed to beat Trump in a general election and that is Joe Biden. He may not have the qualities of some of the other Democratic party hopefuls but when it comes to the popular vote in a national election Americans are going to go with the one they trust the most and that is Joe Biden. Wake up people, why do you think Trump is so bent on discrediting Biden? Because he knows that Biden is the only one that can beat him. You can say a lot of things about Trump but one thing is for certain, he is not stupid. So If the Democrats are so inept that they put up anyone other than Biden to run against Trump they will lose. And that's a guarantee.
@Alex Vine, on what do you base that conclusion? I was reminded yesterday that this is Biden's third run for the Democratic nomination and he has yet to win a state.
To James from Detroit: I admire your passion and your principles. Yet, here is the harsh reality: if you vote for a third-party candidate, Trump wins. If you don’t vote, Trump wins. Can you live with that?
7
Bloomberg should be criticized for flooding his company with young H1B and OPT workers. And he should be criticized for cozying up to the Chinese fascist dictatorship in order for Wall Street to peddle their thin air money there someday. He is not for the American worker, and he is not for human rights.
If the middle class is not seeing gains under Trump, it will definitely not see gains under Bloomberg. In fact, the US may loose any gains it has made to reign in China.
1
Trump is hoping beyond hope that Sanders is the Democratic nominee. Wonder why.........
4
For months I've been dismayed, though not surprised, by the Times' marginalization of Sanders--the avoidance at all costs of giving the man air play. Nonetheless, the emerging bias in favor of Bloomberg is shocking and cringe-worthy. To wit, the following gem:
"Now Mr. Bloomberg is certain to be the target of onstage attacks from his rivals, especially Mr. Sanders and Ms. Warren, the two candidates who are not appearing at private fund-raisers and who have made cultivating the wrath of billionaires central to their campaigns."
Consider the many ways one might have chosen to phrase this differently. Instead of "cultivating the wrath of billionaires," how about "criticizing the stranglehold of big money on American politics"?
What an embarrassment, NYT.
4
Mike has the talents and means to squash the current President. Mike can do the job. He will clean up the WH, bring democracy back and restore the economy, environment, and dignity to this wonderful nation we call home! Mike has my vote!!
4
Bloomberg will be the effective end of the Democratic Party. The base will never, ever show up for this racist billionaire --- thus ensuring that Trump wins easily.
3
I am always blown away by the mental gymnastics that the Bloomberg apologists in the comments engage in to downplay the severity of stop-and-frisk, the NYPD spying on Muslims, his blaming the 2008 financial crisis on the end of redlining, his support for NSA spying, and his lack of support for raising the federal minimum wage more than the current paltry $7.25/hour.
Even if you don't like Sanders, the Democratic Party can do so much better than Bloomberg...
3
Now you know how much money in you bank account you should have to run for president, not what ideas you’ve got. All men are created equal.
Some more than others.
1
Positively support your favorite, and then rally around the nominee whoever it is
2
NO. How can the Dems even consider Bloomberg, a man with a clear history of treating women badly?
2
why isn't anyone suspicious of Bloomberg's friendship with Trump?? I think these two are trying to coordinate a hand off of power where trump could go off into the sunset nice n easy and Bloomberg will continue the nanny state for corporations and the mega wealthy
Great. A 78 year old man, running against a 78 year old man to unseat a 73 year old man.
3
I like Bloomberg (as much as I could any politician) and I look forward to hearing what he has to say. I am tuning out "whataboutism". The same people who will defend or ignore anti-Semitism have demanded Bloomberg be cast out due to policies that saved the lives of POC and due to some sexual innuendos. Give me a break.
1
The rise of Bloomberg just shows how dissatisfied the Dems voters are with Sanders... his orthodoxy... his fantasy island programs and his humorless personality. GO MODERATES GO!
2
We should not overlook the anti Jewish factor when nominating Bloomberg to beat Trump. While it’s an unknown at this point, it could become a thorny issue in the general elections.
1
@Ran You may have a point. We should probably play it safe and stick with Bernie Sanders.
Great news! Bloomberg 2020!
1
Sanders? Bloomberg? Trump?
Holy cow, America! There's gotta be a better way.
There is a better, albeit imperfect option. Her name is Amy.
A quarrel had arisen between the Horse and the Stag, so the Horse came to a Hunter to ask his help to take revenge on the Stag. The Hunter agreed, but said: “If you desire to conquer the Stag, you must permit me to place this piece of iron between your jaws, so that I may guide you with these reins, and allow this saddle to be placed upon your back so that I may keep steady upon you as we follow after the enemy.”
The Horse agreed to the conditions, and the Hunter soon saddled and bridled him. Then with the aid of the Hunter the Horse soon overcame the Stag, and said to the Hunter: “Now, get off, and remove those things from my mouth and back.”
“Not so fast, friend,” said the Hunter. “I have now got you under bit and spur, and prefer to keep you as you are
2
I didn't like some of Bloomberg's policies when he was Mayor (stop & frisk, big sodas). I've read some of things he's said about women, and it makes me angry. But I'm also aware that NYC was a better place at the end of his three terms and the wealth he has been criticized for using in the campaign has done spectacular good around the US and the world. Mike has done tangible good on many of the most important issues that other candidates can only talk about.
429
@Tom As a native New Yorker I experienced what happened during Bloomberg's time. Real estate became increasingly and rapidly expensive as wealthy foreign investors purchased in the city. I don't live in NYC anymore because I got priced out of the real estate market. Globalization of real estate, I guess, but it was very hard on the middle class who still liked to live in the city, especially if it was their home.
24
@Tom If reduced crime was the result of racist and indiscriminate "throwing kids against the wall" because somehow they're all criminals with guns (the "Xerox" comment), then no thanks. We can do better than having another racist billionaire in office protecting Wall Street and the Establishment versus those who are marginalized and left behind.
9
@Tom
Bloomberg, 12th richest man in the world, is simply buying an election.
Trying anyway.
And he may yet get the D party to select him in a brokered (yes, rigged) D convention that will lead to a POTUS.
The D are emerging as blatantly, unabashedly, power mad.They will do whatever is necessary to take control. For 45, first it was de-legitimizing, then impugning metal fitness, then even a partisan impeachment, now letting an oligarch and kleptocracy buy the office for the D.
In the process, they are undermining institutions, perhaps doing irreparable damage, exposing their hypocrisy, polarizing the country and corrupting our constitutional republic.
Bloomberg is buying an election in plain view and the D are aiding and abetting.
Shame....
9
Trump will win if Bernie is the nominee. Moderates, Dem and GOP, are moving from the "anyone but Trump" position that included Bernie, to the "anyone but Trump and Bernie" position. This is not good. Not having this signifcant demographic vote for president in the general election will likely give Trump the win. It's that simple. The Democrats need a candidate who can unite the party and the country on one, just one, common-ground issue. Many voters are waiting to see how this unfolds.
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I think Trump will win if Bloomberg or any other Hillary 2.0 candidates are nominated!!!
Many Americans who want real change will again stay at home!!! People want real change not more of the same!
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It's past time for letting go of national polls; Bloomberg's 19% is as meaningless to an actual election as President Hillary Clinton's 48-46 loss to runner-up Donald Trump in a 2016 final poll.
We need a better measurement than percent shares for candidates in single and multiple state primaries that takes some of the significance of each state's electoral votes into account.
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@JS: The rationale for unequal federal representation of states at the federal level is a sacrosanct vestige of slaver that perpetuates it. It precludes equally protective law.
Bravo. The news media must take note.
Well money does talk. I wonder if Bloomberg's supporters will actually vote. What attracted them to him? Was it just that they saw more advertising for him? Was it the content of the advertising or just the volume?
As for the criticism of the DNC for changing the rules to let him in the debate, on the one hand it's a bad look to be accommodating a multi-billionaire but on the other it would be weird to exclude a candidate who's polling so well. Looks like he may well be in second place.
It's kind of like the DNC is simply accepting the reality of how powerful money is in our politics. You can decry it but the DNC can't change it by themselves.
Plus getting Bloomberg on the stage gives the others a chance to try to bring him down. Otherwise he'd just coast on all the advertising his money is buying.
I do wish the DNC had figured this out in advance but I'm not sure when Bloomberg's plans came to their attention.
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@Jack Toner: PACs control the DNC. The DNC does not control PACs.
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@Jack Toner - - Is this the year to own a TV station, or what? All the ads you ever wanted to sell only need one phone call.
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Good, it's about time he was vetted. I understand his centrist appeal but many Democrats seem to have blindly jumped on board with no understanding of his warts. If he ultimately prevails then so be it, though I am hardly enthused at the idea of a billionaire buying the nomination. But let's at least understand what the man has stood for over the years and would actually do as president.
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@Tim should we be worried that the DNC are so dismissive of their own “real” Democrats such as Biden, Warren and Klobuchar so early in the process? At least I could understand their disdain of Senator Sanders, but not their card-carrying, loyal members.
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He is my second choice after Warren. He may be the FDR we need now. It would be a mistake for him to choose Hillary Clinton as VP. Instead, if he gets the nomination, he should pick Warren as VP.
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wow. so you think that if your second choice wins the nomination he should choose your first choice as VP. So sophisticated.
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@Kodal
just a quick comment: The Hillary Clinton news
was "fake" news. Propaganda to decrease his
popularity.
1
Wow, that's great. Bloomberg is now only 12 points behind Bernie who has been surging steadily for weeks and done it without spending hundreds of millions of dollars in TV ads and is now 18 points up in Nevada.
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