Michael Bloomberg

NOVEMBER 8, 2019 / 1:07 PM / UPDATED 23 MINUTES AGO
Factbox: How Bloomberg could wall off his billions if he became president
Jan Wolfe
4 MIN READ

(Reuters) - Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg on Thursday said he is considering entering the race for the 2020 U.S. Democratic presidential nomination, raising questions about how he would disentangle himself from his business.

Bloomberg, 77, is the controlling owner, chief executive officer and founder of Bloomberg L.P, a financial information and media firm. Forbes ranks Bloomberg as the eighth richest American with an estimated worth of $53.4 billion.

The following explains how Bloomberg walled off his fortune in the past during his years in elective office and the structures some politicians have used to minimize conflicts of interests.

BLOOMBERG
During Bloomberg’s 12 years as mayor he recused himself from day-to-day management of his company but reserved the right to weigh on major strategic decisions. He did not divest himself of holdings in Bloomberg LP.

Bloomberg suggested last year in an interview with Radio Iowa that he would either place his stake in the company in a blind trust or sell it if he became president.

Federal law does not prohibit the president from being involved in private business while in office, even though members of Congress and lower-ranking executive branch officials are subject to strict conflict-of-interest rules.

TRUMP
Unlike earlier presidents, President Donald Trump has maintained ownership of his real estate company, the Trump Organization, in an arrangement that watchdogs say poses conflicts of interest.

Trump’s businesses were moved into the Donald J. Trump Revocable Trust, an umbrella entity controlled by his oldest son, Donald Trump Jr., and a business associate, Allen Weisselberg. The president is the sole beneficiary of the revocable trust and can withdraw money from it at any time.

A lawyer for Trump said during a January 2017 news conference that the president would not be involved in the company’s management and would only know of its deals if he heard about them through the news media.

ROMNEY
U.S. Senator Mitt Romney of Utah disclosed a fortune of around $250 million when he ran for president in 2012. Earlier in his career, when Romney became the governor of Massachusetts, the former private equity executive placed his assets in a structure known as a blind trust. Under such an arrangement, an independent adviser is in charge and the owner has no say or knowledge in how the assets are managed.

During the 2012 campaign, Romney was criticized for having a friend and longtime financial adviser manage the trust. Former President Barack Obama’s campaign said this arrangement, combined with the fact that Romney had signed off on the broad outlines of his portfolio, meant the trust was not totally blind.

Romney’s campaign said that if he won he would have an outside firm manage his money.

Before Romney’s campaign, the blind trust model was used by presidents including Ronald Reagan and Jimmy Carter.

CLINTON
Former President Bill Clinton and his wife, Hillary, relied on a blind trust when he was in office. They liquidated the trust in 2007, when she ran for president, saying turning stock into cash would eliminate the appearance of conflicts of interest.

OBAMA
Instead of using a blind trust, Obama sold off stock holdings and invested in U.S. Treasury notes and index funds. Ethics expert said those bland investments did not pose potential conflicts of interests.

Mark Cuban has a better chance to become president than Bloomberg. Slim and none.

Cuban wants nothing to do with it, i don't blame him
and
Bloomberg., he hasn't a chance why he's running is a mystery.

I only like Pete .. the rest eeehhh.

:


Michael Bloomberg Enters Race Saving Nation From Severe Shortage Of Democratic Candidates
November 8th, 2019

NEW YORK, NY—The country has been faced with a severe shortage of Democratic candidates. With only 5,762 candidates left to choose from, Democrats were beginning to worry they might not be able to find the worst possible candidate to challenge Donald Trump.

The crisis came to a breaking point last week when Beto O'Rourke dropped out of the race, leaving the number of Democratic candidates at dangerously low levels.

Thankfully, billionaire Michael Bloomberg has stepped up to the plate, solving the crisis by entering the race.

"We're saved!" said one relieved voter in Ohio. "I was starting to worry that we'd have fewer than a thousand candidates left eventually."

Experts have warned that if we don't replenish the supply of Democratic candidates, the primary won't be as fun because there won't be as many wacky characters to make fun of. "Please, if you feel inclined to volunteer, run for president so we can keep this circus going."

Bloomberg apologizes for controversial "stop-and-frisk" policing practices
3 hours ago | axios.com

Former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg apologized at a black megachurch in Brooklyn on Sunday for implementing aggressive “stop-and-frisk” policing practices that disproportionately targeted black and Latino people across the city, the New York Times reports.

Why it matters:
Bloomberg’s speech was his first since he filed paperwork to enter the 2020 presidential primary in Alabama, with the comments marking a surprising reversal on a core policy of the former mayor's tenure. Bloomberg in the past has strongly defended stop-and-frisk, which allowed police officers to stop and search anyone they suspected of a crime.

What they're saying:
“Over time, I’ve come to understand something that I long struggled to admit to myself: I got something important wrong. I got something important really wrong. I didn’t understand that back then, the full impact that stops were having on the black and Latino communities. I was totally focused on saving lives — but as we know: good intentions aren’t good enough."
— Bloomberg said in the speech

Between the lines:
Analysts have long believed that Bloomberg's policing record could complicate a presidential bid, according to Politico. Bloomberg defended stop-and-frisk even after a federal judge found in 2013 that it was unconstitutional. The Times notes that crime has continued to drop even in the years after the practice was ended.

The big picture:
With Bloomberg's 2020 decision "days" away, sources close to Bloomberg told Axios' Mike Allen and Jim VandeHei that his formal announcement is contingent on whether polling shows a convincing path to victory.

A Des Moines Register/CNN/Mediacom Iowa Poll released Saturday has Bloomberg's "unfavorable" rating with likely 2020 Democratic caucusgoers at 58%, up 20 points since March. Just 19% of caucusgoers said they have a very "favorable" view of Bloomberg.

Published 1 hour ago
Bloomberg launching ‘massive’ coast-to-coast ad buy
By Paul Steinhauser | Fox News

In the latest sign that Mike Bloomberg is moving toward a run for the White House and is willing to spend huge sums of money to try and topple President Trump, the billionaire business and media mogul is making a massive TV ad buy, which kicks off Monday.

According to the television ad tracking firm Advertising Analytics, the former three-term New York City mayor is spending at least $12.2 million on an ad buy in TV markets across the country. The firm says it appears the commercials will run for a week.

Ben Taber, an account executive with the firm, tells Fox News it’s “a massive ad buy and it’s still growing.”

Asked by Fox News, senior Bloomberg advisers would neither confirm nor deny reports of the ad buy.

The move by the likely Democratic presidential candidate comes a week after he went up with a separate $100 million digital ad buy to run on-line ads that target Trump through the primaries in key general election battleground states.

Advertising Analytics said one of the first ad buys spotted was in the West Palm Beach, Fla., TV media market, which is home to president’s winter White House, Mar-a-Lago. The president is expected to spend the Thanksgiving holiday next week at Mar-a-Lago.

Bloomberg on Thursday filed paperwork with the Federal Election Commission to run for president.

But Bloomberg aides told Fox News the move was not an announcement that he’s running for president -- but merely another step in the process.

A Bloomberg adviser told Fox News “when we filed a petition to get on the ballot in Alabama on November 8, it started a process where we had to file with the FEC within 15 days. This is another step towards running, but it's not an announcement nor indicative of a final decision.”

Bloomberg has now filed to place his name on the presidential primary ballots in Alabama, Arkansas, Michigan, Georgia, and Texas.

Bloomberg – the former Republican-turned-independent during his three consecutive terms as New York City mayor – changed his voter registration to Democrat last year. He flirted with a presidential bid early this year but ruled out a run in March.

But his top advisers said earlier this month that Bloomberg changed his mind because he worried the current crop of 2020 Democratic White House contenders were not “well-positioned” to beat Trump next November.

Mike Bloomberg "is spending at least $12.2 million on an ad buy in TV markets across the country. The firm says it appears the commercials will run for a week.
Ben Taber, an account executive with the firm, tells Fox News it’s “a massive ad buy and it’s still growing.

^^^^ Way To Go !!
Bloomberg knows he will not be president, he won't even make it into the debates. most likely..
but--
he has Billions, and he's in a fight to show the world what and who trump actually is, and it will be harsh truth ..
those commercials will hit trump hard and trump can't combat Bloomberg billions.

Michael Bloomberg joins 2020 US presidential race
24 November 2019

Billionaire former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has officially announced he is standing to be the Democratic Party presidential nominee.

In a statement, the 77-year-old said he was standing "to defeat Donald Trump and rebuild America".

"The stakes could not be higher. We must win this election," Mr Bloomberg wrote.

He joins 17 other candidates vying for the Democratic nomination to take on Mr Trump in 2020.

As things stand, former Vice-President Joe Biden, Senators Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders are the party's front-runners.


Mike Bloomberg

@MikeBloomberg
I’m running for president to defeat Donald Trump and rebuild America.

I believe my unique set of experiences in business, government, and philanthropy will enable me to win and lead.

Join our team: https://mikebloom.bg/35u8Egf

8:11 AM - Nov 24, 2019


Mr Bloomberg is said to be concerned the current field is not strong enough to challenge the president.

\He enters the race after months of debate over wealth inequality in the US, with Mr Sanders and Ms Warren announcing plans for steep tax rises for billionaires. Unveiling his tax proposals in September, Mr Sanders said: "Billionaires should not exist."

President Trump taunted Mr Bloomberg earlier in November, saying there was "nobody I'd rather run against than little Michael".

The same day, Mr Bloomberg filed paperwork for the Democratic primary election in Alabama.

Who is Mr Bloomberg?

Michael Bloomberg is the eighth richest American with a net-worth of $54.4bn (£42bn), according to Forbes.

Born in Massachusetts, he started out in business as a Wall Street banker before going on to create the financial publishing empire that bears his name.

Over the years he has given millions of dollars to educational, medical and other causes - including political ones.

He staged a successful campaign to become New York mayor in 2001 and remained in office for three consecutive terms until 2013.

Rumours of presidential ambitions have surrounded him for more than a decade.

Why is Bloomberg running?

Mr Bloomberg is a very data-driven businessman. But it doesn't take an advanced degree in quantitative analysis to realise that the Democratic field, even at this (relatively) late date is still in flux.

There are four candidates at or near the top of early state and national primary polls - all with their strengths, of course, but also obvious weaknesses. His strategy appears to be to let the other candidates fight it out in the early voting states, then take on a diminished field later in the process, where his near unlimited resources will allow him to compete in the dozens of states that vote in March.

It's a risky play that only someone of Mr Bloomberg's vast wealth can afford to make.

Even so, it takes quite a leap of faith to imagine that Democrats these days are ready to jump over to a New York City plutocrat ex-Republican with a smorgasbord of a record that's business friendly, fiscally conservative and includes opposition to government-run health insurance and legalised marijuana, and past support for aggressive policing measures.

At the very least, however, his entry will provide him a means to push a party that he sees drifting dangerous leftward back to the pro-business centre.

Videos at https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-50539242

Published 1 hour ago
Bloomberg unifies 2020 Dem rivals in opposition to his billions
By Paul Steinhauser | Fox News

For Mike Bloomberg, the incoming fire from many of his 2020 Democratic presidential nomination rivals has been coming fast and furious.

“Michael Bloomberg is making a bet about democracy in 2020. He doesn’t need people, he only needs bags and bags of money. I think Michael Bloomberg is wrong,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren charged while campaigning in Iowa on Monday.

SANDERS: 'I DON'T THINK BILLIONAIRES SHOULD BE ABLE TO BUY ELECTIONS

The progressive Democratic senator from Massachusetts spoke one day after the former three-term New York City mayor and multibillionaire business and media mogul declared his candidacy for president and immediately went up with TV commercials in media markets from coast to coast backed by a massive more than $30 million ad buy.

While Warren was taking aim at Bloomberg in Iowa, populist Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont told Fox News in New Hampshire that “I don’t think that’s what American democracy is supposed to be about. I don’t think billionaires should be able to buy elections.”


Andrew Craft

@AndrewCraft
@BernieSanders tells me and @steinhauserNH1 that @MikeBloomberg is trying to buy the election "bombarding the airwaves in an unprecedented way..."

2:41 PM - Nov 25, 2019

Other than their vocal opposition to President Trump, the large field of Democratic White House hopefuls are often at odds with each other. But Bloomberg’s entry into the nomination race appears to be unifying his rivals in opposition to his campaign.

Bloomberg has vowed to spend at least $150 million of his own money on his bid and skip the early primary and caucus voting states of Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina and instead concentrate on the delegate-rich states that hold contests on Super Tuesday and beyond.

Sanders and Warren – the progressive standard-bearers in the 2020 field – were far from the only candidates taking aim at Bloomberg.

“I just don’t think you should be able to have billionaires with an unfair advantage in this election,” Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota told voters at town hall in New Hampshire on Friday.


Paul Steinhauser

@steinhauserNH1
2020 Watch: Asked about @MikeBloomberg multi-million dollar ad-buy starting Monday, @amyklobuchar says "I am not going to be able to compete with the money of Bloomberg...but I literally believe people want something different than another wealthy person in the White House"

3:57 PM - Nov 22, 2019

And Sen. Cory Booker told Fox News on Friday that the eye-popping Bloomberg ad buy was “frustrating.” The New Jersey senator, like nearly the entire field of Democratic contenders, is vowing to rid big bucks from campaign politics.

“When I was a mayor, Mike was one of those mentor mayors to me. But when it comes to presidential politics, your qualifier should not be money. It should not put you at an advantage over other candidates who might have incredible service and accomplishments and the like,” Booker, who was mayor of Newark, N.J., said.

The push back against Bloomberg is similar – but magnified -- to the criticisms of billionaire environmental and progressive advocate Tom Steyer, who’s spent over $50 million in media to promote his campaign since jumping into the race in July. With a vastly larger bank account than Steyer, Bloomberg’s more of a threat to the field of contenders.

While most of the top and middle tier contenders have taken aim at Bloomberg, two have remained mostly silent. The two are former Vice President Joe Biden and South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg – who may potentially have the most to lose with another center-left contender in the race.

Hours after Bloomberg’s announcement, Biden merely said following a fundraising event in Rhode Island that, “I welcome him into the race.”

And Buttigieg on Monday said he’s “always glad to see another mayor running for national office.”

While Buttigieg and Biden have held back on criticizing Bloomberg, they are simpatico with Warren and Sanders and others contenders when it comes to radically changing the current campaign finance system to rid big money out of politics.

Veteran Democratic operative and strategist Julia Barnes noted that “Bloomberg is coming into an environment where voters are not interested in granting him access through money.”

“The blowback he is getting for this late entry reflects the attitude cultivated in early states - that effort, time and personal engagement is key for support. That may be different in the states he is aiming to play in for March and later but I seriously doubt it. At this point, he has been so absent from the voter’s conversations that I don’t expect TV to change that,” predicted Barnes, a top campaign aide on Sanders 2016 White House bid.

Democratic operative Michael Ceraso noted that Bloomberg’s entry gives his rivals an easy target.

“Bloomberg’s candidacy can be sliced and diced by the media and punditry but I think what his campaign means to this race is pretty simple: Bloomberg gives Democratic candidates the ability to shift media and voter scrutiny from them to him. There is a strategic value in using Bloomberg as a backdrop to corporate greed and meritocracy gone wrong,” explained Ceraso, a veteran of Sanders’ 2016 campaign who served as Buttigieg’s New Hampshire state director this year before parting ways with the campaign.

But he warned that “the problem behind this campaign strategy is that it prevents substantive debate around core policy differences between the top tier candidates and that’s not good for the party that needs to both rebuild the Obama coalition and restore trust with disengaged voters who are looking for a reason to vote.”

Mike Bloomberg baffles with campaign ad showing him eating 'Big Gay Ice Cream'

(ten second video)



Story at https://www.foxnews.com/media/mike-bloomberg-big-gay-ice-cream

Him and chuck you.…..shummer would make ghey cream pie.