***UPDATE*** BREAKING: It's OFFICIAL, Bloomberg will run for president under these conditions...

[ChisolmTrailDem]

Last edited Sat Jan 23, 2016, 11:35 PM - Edit history (1)

...with the caveat of either a Trump, Cruz, or Sanders nomination eventuality.

Said to be frustrated with the current situation and would mount a third-party challenge in the event tRump is the nominee for the rethugs or if Bernie is the nominee on the Dem side.

Developing story, looking for a link. Just heard on MSNBC.

CNN: http://www.cnn.com/2016/01/23/politics/michael-bloomberg-president-2016/

Thank link is 2 hours old so if this has been posted, sorry. I just heard about it on MSNBC as if it was new.

[plus5mace]

1. The fact that this center-right Billionaire would be happy with Clinton speaks volumes.

[Renew Deal]

5. Yes, that he can't beat her.

Bloomberg would run because he thinks Sanders is weak.

[Kelvin Mace]

94. No, he knows he doesn't have to beat

her as she will keep his money safe.

[Renew Deal]

95. The article says he doesn't want a suicide mission.

He knows he would lose to her. He would run against Sanders because he thinks he can win. And he's probably right.

[Kelvin Mace]

107. That's what he claims

If it is a Trump/Bloomberg/Sander race, the American public's choice will be the billionaire who is insane, the billionaire who will protect billionaires, and the guy fighting to protect us from billionaires.

A Trump/Clinton race is the billionaire who is insane versus the millionaire who will protect billionaires, so Bloomberg doesn't need to run.

[daleanime]

128. +1

[smirkymonkey]

150. *This*

[Orrex]

123. Say whatever you like about it, as long as you vote for her in November.

[Kelvin Mace]

125. Sorry, no intention of getting my hands bloody

by putting America's answer to Maggie Thatcher in charge.

She wins or loses on the merits of her own campaign and policies. She has made it pretty clear she does not want the votes of people like me.

[Orrex]

126. Another vote for the Republican then. Charming.

[Kelvin Mace]

129. Bullshit!

It is not my responsibility to vote for your bad candidate.

[Orrex]

130. I have no candidate--I'm voting for the Democrat

If that's Sanders, then I will support and vote for Sanders. If it's Clinton, then I will support and vote for Clinton.


Hell, if you live in a securely blue state, then you're welcome to feel whichever candidate makes you think that you're revolutionary and special.

[Kelvin Mace]

131. Vote as you feel

I don't do loyalty oaths.

[Orrex]

134. Neither do I, nor have I asked anyone to swear such an oath

That's a bullshit claim repeatedly made by Sanders' supporters. Nice try.

Sanders will vote for the Democrat on the ticket. What makes you think that you know better than Sanders?

[Kelvin Mace]

136. I know my own conscience

I know who I have to look in the mirror in the morning. Never claimed to know better than anyone else. You accused me of voting for the Republican, which I am not doing.

[Orrex]

145. In essence, you are.

Tell your reflection whatever you like while you're talking to yourself. If it makes you feel better in some trivial way, I guess that's the most important thing.

[Kelvin Mace]

146. Can't vote for someone who counts Henry Kissinger

as a "friend" and "adviser".

No more than I would someone who would befriend and consult Dick Cheney.

[Orrex]

147. You're adorable!

[Kelvin Mace]

148. Yes, abhoring war criminals is

adorable this season.

[Orrex]

149. You amazing paragon!

Let us all bask in the glow of your righteousness and be transformed by your faultless virtue.

[Kelvin Mace]

159. Never claimed to be virtuous,

if you want to vote for the lesser of war mongers, be my guest.

[Orrex]

161. If you want to pout and withhold your vote, then go right ahead.

But no one is fooled by your phony moralizing.

[Kelvin Mace]

165. Again, your take

[Orrex]

166. And my take is correct.

[Kelvin Mace]

168. Right. Of course you are

Because you're you.

[Orrex]

169. Not because I'm me, but because you're wrong

[Kelvin Mace]

170. In your opinion, sorry.

[Orrex]

171. And in fact. Sorry.

[Kelvin Mace]

173. In your opinion, your opinion is fact

I do not share that opinion.

[Orrex]

175. That's a lie--I do not believe my opinion is fact.

The fact is that you're wrong.

It is also a fact that you are something that, if I posted it, would get me PPRed, so I'll just ignore you like any other bothersome sore.

[Kelvin Mace]

177. Sorry, but we are discussing opinion

not something empirically measurable. I specifically state that this is "my take" on the choice you allot me, meaning my opinion. You then pronounce that I am engaging in "phony moralizing", another opinion which you assert.

So, yeah, I guess it is time to add you to the ignore list. Only the second person I have had to do this to in over a decade.

[ChisolmTrailDem]

179. Put each other on ignore, blow each other up, I don't give a fuck, but...

I suggest you wrap this shit up soon as I'm sick of seeing my MY POSTS tab light up and it's you guys in here arguing despite the fact you're not going to change each others' minds.

Please either wrap it up or take it outside or I'll just delete the OP and put a stop to it myself.

[CreekDog]

152. then it's not bullshit, what Orrex said is true

you have no intention of voting for a Democrat unless it's your candidate from the primaries.

[Kelvin Mace]

154. I will not vote for a war mongering conservative

creature of Wall Street, no matter what they choose to call themselves.

[VulgarPoet]

162. Preach the gospel.

She's a democrat in name only; I have no interest or business putting another bought and paid for plutocrat in office.

[Kelvin Mace]

164. Welcome to DU!

Agreed, I am tired of being manipulated by the "you have no choice but to vote for me" excuse.

[VulgarPoet]

167. Thanks much!

And trust me, so am I. I have a lot of grievances with Clinton, and the vast majority of them are her donors and her beliefs. And it hits that much closer to home for me because I have to work for whoever gets put into office, I'm not voting for the DINO.

[Lizzie Poppet]

139. Not in my case.

I live in a state that's considered a very safe blue state (and it's winner-take-all in terms of Electors). Unless there are signs that's not going to be the case this election, I'm completely free to vote my conscience. Or, more accurately, not vote. If my "choices" are between two corporatists and a handful of fringe-party oddballs, I'll feel perfectly free to leave the top spot on the ballot blank while I fill out the rest.

[Orrex]

144. And I've acknowledged that that's different. Hell, you can even write him in.

But I have little patience for self-important moralists who say, in essence, "to hell with the supreme court, I want my pony." That doesn't apply to you, though, since a secure state has the luxury of being unlikely to fuck it up, unlike Ohio or Florida, for instance.

That's not most certainly not a loyalty oath, despite those who insist on mischaracterizing it as such.

[Kelvin Mace]

158. That's your take.

"Pragmatism" is just another way of excusing doing the wrong thing.

That's my take.

[Orrex]

160. Your take is simplistic and indicates a failure to understand reality

Your take is a spew of phony, self-important moralizing.

That's your take. You are welcome to it, but don't think that you're fooling anyone.

[840high]

156. Thank you.

.

[Lizzie Poppet]

137. Exactly: he wouldn't need to.

She'll do as she's told. Bernie won't (and, to their credit, neither would Trump of Cruz...but they're still loathsome).

Mayor Big Gulp can go fuck himself.

[CoffeeCat]

102. It's clear that he's running to stop Sanders

Sanders is all ready beating Obama's stats.

Ten days before the Iowa caucuses--Obama was not beating Hillary by 8 points with her campaign taking on such damage that seems to multiply daily. Obama was not beating Hillary by double digits in NH.

Bernie is poised to be bigger than Obama, and we all know that he practically became the Messiah of the Democratic party during the 08 primary.

No doubt. They're looking to stop Sanders.

All polls show Sanders beating Trump, Rubio and Cruz in GE matchups.

This is all about Sanders.

[2pooped2pop]

127. He will only split the dem vote. Republicans won't vote for him.

He would be giving the presidency to trump and will be hated by both sides

[Lizzie Poppet]

140. Exactly. For his huge gun control efforts alone...

...the huge majority of Republican voters would never vote for Mayor Bug Gulp.

[ViseGrip]

153. Great TWO BILLIONAIRES RUNNING! Go Bernie!

[99th_Monkey]

7. Yep! "Anyone but Bernie" say the Billionaires. And the reason is no secret.

Bernie actually means what he says, and will actually DO something, instead of float
empty platitudes about "getting tough on Wall St.", while taking millions of dollars
from them on the side, and in campaign donations.

[rurallib]

59. Sanders got Bloomberg's attention right where it hurts

in his money bag

[Gothmog]

63. Or this is Bloomberg's opinion as to how viable Sanders would be in a general election contest

I think that Bloomberg is making the same judgment that I and many other Democrats are making which is that we do not see how Sanders is viable in a general election campaign where the Kochs will be spending $887 million, the RNC candidate may spend another billion dollars and now Bloomberg may spend yet another billion dollars.

I would love to see a good explanation as to how Sanders would be viable in such a contest.

[99th_Monkey]

68. If this election has taught us anything, it's that being the candidate with the most $$$

doesn't mean squat. Most voters have fucking had-it, up to their eyeballs, with the same-old,
same-old politic$ as u$ual. Exhibit A: Jeb!

Unless the Koch's and the RNC are going to literally try to bribe millions of voters with $100 cash
payments for their vote -- which btw is a federal crime -- it won't wash. That dog don't hunt.

I frankly would LOVE to see a 3-way race, with Bernie running against TWO Billionaire Republicans.

[Gothmog]

70. Do TV Ads do not matter unless the TV ad is from Bernie

Negative ads work and Sanders is very vulnerable to such ads. His health care and other plans would raise taxes by $15 to $18 trillion and the terms "socialist" and "socialism" are great in negative ads.

Bloomberg is waiting until after Super Tuesday because the primary contest will be over then and Hillary Clinton will be the presumptive nominee

[99th_Monkey]

101. You're incorrect on two points

First, you didn't even address Exhibit A in my post, probably for good reason i.e. it debunks the notion that
scads of money can simply "buy" elections. It doesn't work that way anymore, at least not in this
election, and we're still sorting out exactly what that means. One thing we do know however is that social
media is the new kid on the block influence-wise, as we've seen with Bernie's winning campaign -- despite
being largely ignored by M$M. And Bernie already enjoys a huge command of that median.

Secondly, Bernie's "socialist" tax plan is not really all that scary after all, when "regular Americans" see the
actual numbers, and do the math as to how it will effect THEIR family, it doesn't cut deep at all, if any, into
Bernie's broadening base of poor, lower/middle-income voters.

[Codeine]

74. Without a single vote having been cast

I think it's a bit early to say this election cycle has taught us anything as yet.

[Gothmog]

82. Agreed

I would love to see Trump as the GOP nominee but there are a number of ways for Trump to blow it

[99th_Monkey]

103. I think Jeb! might disagree with you about that.

Having spent more on TV ads than all candidates from both parties combined,
only to still being be polling in single-digits.

[Volaris]

114. Yep.

We will unify behind our PARTY candidate, and trump and Bloomberg will split the vote on the other side...
The establishment types will all back bloomberg, the crazies will back trump and once again, the next President will (in this scenerio as in all the others) be decided in the Democratic Primary.

The GOP is beginning to realize just HOW BADLY they are screwed now, and there's no way out of the trap. A center establishment guy cannot win their primary, and anyone who can won't be sane enough to win the General Election.

I'm very much looking forward to having another DEMOCRAT in the White House.=)

[99th_Monkey]

115. +15 nt

[hifiguy]

80. Doesn't it, though.

Highly revealing. And NOT in a good way for HRH.

[NightWatcher]

2. Another out of touch billionaire is exactly what's needed

Who the hell would support him?

[Renew Deal]

4. Chamber of commerce republicans, moderates

[Eleanors38]

12. Indeed. The RePubs will face a choice of a hard-line gun-grabber. Good news...

...if Bernie gets the nomination.

[Renew Deal]

3. Trump-Sanders-Bloomberg would be a wild race.

3 NYers. Two Billionaires. Two Jewish candidates.

I think Bloomberg could hurt Sanders with some Dems and pick up the Chamber of Commerce Republicans.

I wonder if Bloomberg could do to Sanders what Sanders has done to Democrats for 30 years.

[villager]

32. Remind them that they keep abandoning their modern New Deal roots, you mean?

Somehow, I don't see Bloomberg doing that.

[roody]

52. You mean caucus with them?

[truedelphi]

54. Actually, according to the article, "internal polling

found that he would theoretically take away more Republican votes from Trump or Cruz than Democratic votes from Sanders. But one source noted, however, that that could change."

[Renew Deal]

65. There is no way to predict how voters would react

It could be that Dems hold firm, and there is a chunk of the Republican Party that would abandon Trump. But Bloomberg is pro-choice, pro marriage, pro gun control. Many republicans probably wouldn't touch him.

[truedelphi]

73. Republicans are only 24 to 26% of the overall number of voters.

Campaign managers in the know realize that what has to happen for any candidate to win is to successfully inspire the crossover voters.

Barack Obama managed to do that in 2008, even though more Americans voted during that election's cycle than previously. (A full 62.5% of the electorate voted in Nov 2008.)

In 2014, there were fewer than 43% of all voters turning out. 2012 was not much better.

[tularetom]

77. Just out of curiosity what HAS Sanders done to Democrats for 30 years?

Inquiring minds and all that. The damage done to the Democratic party over the past 30 years has been self inflicted.

[Renew Deal]

91. Running against the Democratic candidate and splitting the vote or winning.

[tularetom]

99. Yeah, darn him anyway for being more appealing to Democratic voters than a Democrat

That's sort of what's happening in this primary isn't it? Did it ever occur to you that if the Democrats chose better candidates, maybe Sanders wouldn't do so well.

[GeorgeGist]

108. Trump wpould win.

[TacoD]

6. Say it's Trump and Bernie...whose candidacy would an independent Bloomberg run hurt more?

I'm asking because I honestly have no idea.

[ChisolmTrailDem]

10. I think it would hurt neither one of them. tRump's supporters are stupid and don't...

...take consequences into consderation and, let's just admit, want chaos. Bernie's people are sick of billionaires who need more money than God and know there's only so much to go around and don't like to give way to stingy 1%ers.

In other words, Bloomberg wastes money and everyone's time and loses.

[Renew Deal]

37. There are more than those two groups

There are also the republicans that abandon trump or find Bloomberg more palatable and the independents.

[Eleanors38]

14. Please see my #12. Thanks.

[Mojorabbit]

112. +1000 nt

[LittleBlue]

8. The elites really despise Bernie

Interesting to see the scramble by everyone with some money to oppose him.

[99th_Monkey]

9. That would be hella-awesome. A 3rd Party run would guarantee a Sanders win in the GE.

I hope Bloomberg tries it. It would be incredibly stupid move, so please proceed Mr. Bloomberg.

[ChisolmTrailDem]

15. Completely agree with the way you arranged your words there.

[madokie]

62. Please proceed mayor

Those of us of the Bernie Sanders flavor won't mind you jumping in at all. In fact I say Jump you fucker

[99th_Monkey]

64. Imagine, Bernie running in GE against 2 filthy-rich Billionaires. How perfect would that be?

[madokie]

66. Savor the flavor

Not only are we smiling but so is our future President. He sees it for what it is and thats just one of the reasons We love him as we do.

[99th_Monkey]

69. +10 nail on the head n/t

[MisterP]

100. I'm sure Trump can afford to lose both the votes

[Calista241]

119. I don't think so.

Repubs HATE Bloomberg. He's behind the gun control push, which is almost a staple of the Republican Party.

I think he's more likely to peel off people that wanted Hillary from Bernie.

[99th_Monkey]

121. Well, even if that's true, which i doubt, it's still a stupid move.

Bloomberg is a fucking Republican, Hillary said Republicans were her "#1 enemy",
so it's counter-intuitive that Hillary peeps would flock to Bloomberg.

Ok, he is a NY 'moderate' Republican, so their may be some truth to what you're
saying, and he'd represent all the Sensible Woodchucks who want to sustain the
status quo corporatist gravy-train.

On balance tho, I just can't imagine Bernie losing a national GE against two
Billionaires. He'd have a field day with them IMHO.

[Calista241]

122. I'm not all that sure the "he's a billionaire" label

Means all that much to the wider electorate. Both of them can present a story that they're self made successes, and they'll give the broader USA the same success.

I think it'll be a knock down, drag out no matter who gets nominated from either side. Except Ted Cruz, that guy loses without us even spending money.

[Eleanors38]

11. Ha! Da Gun-Grabber-in-Chief wants to make a run. Another GOPer in the race.

[LiberalElite]

42. plus - he's from New York City and at least nominally Jewish -

not an issue for me (as a New Yorker I have other issues with Bloomie) but out there in the "Heartland"? The Elites can't get more out of touch than this. This shows desperation of epic proportions.

[nadinbrzezinski]

13. Trump WILL Be the candidate for the Rs

and if Sanders ends up getting the nomination for the Ds, this will be wild.

I expect at that point for Sanders to win the Presidency. A similar scenario to yes the Clinton Bush race.

[Odin2005]

16. This is a shameless attempt to stop Bernie by splitting the Left.

The party establishment would rather support a spoiler and lose to the GOP than let a genuine progressive win.

[ChisolmTrailDem]

18. It won't work. Bernie WILL BE our next president. Bet on it. nt

[laundry_queen]

58. Isn't that the truth. Disgusting. nt

[Warren DeMontague]

88. People who live in the bubble of manhattan might fall for it, but the rest of the country, no.

Bloomberg splits the ideologically fractured right between the crazy xenophobes and the flat tax bluebloods, meanwhile in the majority of the country Sanders' ideas get even more traction because he's running against two Billionaores, not just one.

[Autumn]

105. This goes to show how little the party establishment actualy thinks.

[MagickMuffin]

17. I thought it might be to late to file

Did a quick search and found this handy-dandy chart.

[ChisolmTrailDem]

20. If I'm reading that right, he won't be on the ballot in enough states to win? nt

[MagickMuffin]

21. That would seem to be the case.

Weird that Bloomey is confused about the process of declaring his candidacy, waiting until the last minute. Definitely not informed enough to be president.

[ChisolmTrailDem]

23. And my follow-on thought: "Which renders my OP moot!" ... lol. Oh well. I should...

...have done that little bit o' research myself but I was still full from brunch and purposely being lazy.

Thanks, MagickMuffin! Hope your Saturday is going well so far!

ETA: Please see posts #28 and #30 before commenting on the wrongness of this one, lol. Thanks.

[MagickMuffin]

24. So far, so Good!

Aren't you in the DFW area?

[ChisolmTrailDem]

26. I am. I'm close enough I can look over and see the planes flying to and fro at DFW Airport.

Nice bright and sunny day here.

[Manifestor_of_Light]

135. 70 degrees here in East Texas! Shorts weather.

YAY!!!

[questionseverything]

29. those are primary deadlines tho not general election deadlines

[ChisolmTrailDem]

30. Dang it! You're right! Gosh, my mind is locked into the PRIMARY part of this thing. Geez, and..

...brain-farting like that in public ...

[questionseverything]

31. np happens to everyone sometimes

[jwirr]

79. Is he looking for a brokered primary win from the Rs?

[hrmjustin]

33. This is primary deadlines.

Not general election dates.

[MagickMuffin]

36. So…… What is the deadline for GE?

[nadinbrzezinski]

41. If memory serves, and it might be wrong, this is for the primaries

[KelleyKramer]

45. He would be running 3rd party, so those dates don't matter

Not sure what party he would run as but it wouldn't be as a Democratic or Republican candidate so those dates do not matter.

[SickOfTheOnePct]

85. looks like those are filing dates for primaries

Bloomberg wouldn't need to be on primary ballots.

[GeorgeGist]

109. That is for primaries.

[annabanana]

116. Of course he DID manage a third term in NY despite term limits..

You never know what you can achieve if you throw enough money at it.

[hatrack]

19. Maybe can get Lieberman as his VP candidate!

I'm feeling the Blow-Mentum - how about you guys?

[annabanana]

117. HA!

good one!

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

22. On the bright side, it will increase the entertainment value of the election.

[napkinz]

25. how far off are we from the day when a CORPORATION runs for president?

[annabanana]

118. At least it won't be a multi-national..

home grown US company only

[VulgarPoet]

163. "I'll believe a corporation is a person when Texas executes one." eom

[hrmjustin]

27. This sucks!

[ChisolmTrailDem]

28. Edited: Doh! I was wrong. My brain is apparently too locked onto the primaries...

...and I was duly corrected above by questionseverything. He can still mount a GE challenge.

DUH!

My previous nonsense :Not really. He can't run, as established upthread at Post #17. But even if he could, he would......only do so if your preferred candidate is not the nominee.

[hrmjustin]

34. Lol that is ok.

[Shoulders of Giants]

35. I hope he runs.

He has a handful of socially liberal views, but for the most part, he's a typical republican. He will take far more votes from the Republicans than us. So Go Mike Go!

[madinmaryland]

38. Just what kind of platform would he run on? He really has no visibility outside of NYC and

the tri-state area. His policies are all over the place.

[Kalidurga]

39. He would hurt the Republicans a lot more than he could hurt Bernie

So whatever if Trump gets the nomination I hope he does jump in. The few sane Republicans left deserve to have someone to vote for too. Not that I think Bloomberg is sane in the least, but better than T-Rump.

[GreenPartyVoter]

40. Since Trump would be hurt the most, would he offer the Veep spot to Bloomberg?

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

50. I think Bloomberg would draw Democratic voters

because gunz.

Many would prefer him to Sanders.

[GreenPartyVoter]

51. Maybe. Not sure, though. Sanders does resonate with a lot of people

who worry about economic issues.

[Rosa Luxemburg]

56. I doubt it

[Odin2005]

60. Bloomberg's demographic is Middle Class Latte Liberals

Those people mainly vote Dem in national elections because of social issues but they generally don't give a shit about us working class peons, especially us "dumb hicks" in "flyover country".

[Warren DeMontague]

89. I dont.

He may appeal to the fancy dog demographic, the four million dollar condo Manhattan Democrats, or the people who are prepared to have screeching puma temper tantrums is Hillary is "robbed" again...

But in most of the country, Bloomberg is just another out of touch east coast billionaire who wants to ban big gulps.

[Babel_17]

43. I think this is going to get a horrible reaction

The Republican base will despise what they'll see as condescension, and supporters of Sanders, and many other Democrats, will be appalled by the implied disrespect and/or arrogance.

Clinton supporters might eventually come to recoil from the connotations of her being seen as A-OK by Bloomberg.

Let's see if Bloomberg is insightful enough to know that he has to court the press, and has the skills a candidate such as he needs to do that well.

Ross Perot had much more amenable ground to grow his bid in. He ran against a Republican party establishment candidate, not an outlaw, and a Democratic candidate who came from nowhere, and was more technocrat/policy wonk than candidate with fire in his belly. (though President Clinton did show he wasn't lacking in fervor)

The level of derision Bloomberg will get on social media will be covered by the press, and he'll have to have a great response for the question of why people should support a third party candidate.

Republicans will panic at the idea of Bloomberg hurting them down ticket. Democrats will freak at the idea of having to get access from Bloomberg if he wins. He's a disruptor, and while Democratic underdogs could possibly win office because of a Bloomberg campaign, other Democrats, office holders, could suffer an unexpected defeat.

At the end of the day though his campaign would mean an opportunity for us. The greater the voter interest, the more our party platform is heard. Having informed voters is our best asset..

[elias49]

72. Very well said. Thanks.

[Babel_17]

75. Thank you. Rank and file Republican voters aren't rebels

They won't switch en masse to Bloomberg, and those that are rebels are backing Trump and Cruz.

I think Bloomberg is laying the hammer down against Trump and Cruz to make them look even more unelectable. He tossed in the bit about Sanders for cover that this isn't about just them, and that he might really run.

Those that can be flipped from Trump and Cruz might look at Kasich (who the establishment is willing to settle on); he's already looking to beat earlier low expectations in Iowa and New Hampshire. The meme that the Republican establishment and Bloomberg are trying to push is that Trump and Cruz are unelectable. Once they collapse, Bloomberg goes home (with his billion dollars).

And more than the money, he'd hate having to produce all his financial records, and sever his business ties, so he could run. Running a real campaign is an extraordinary venture. And he's thinking of maybe getting into it by March? Too little, too late, rich guy. Sorry. When Trump dares him to enter the primary and meet him head on, he'll look flat. He can't enter, because he'd have to swear their loyalty oath.

He's not viable without a real campaign organization, a real presence around the country, and a groundswell of supporters. "Heart, hear!" from conservative pundits isn't going to get him far.

I do think he might spend 40-50 million setting something up, so he can trash talk and get that covered by the media in a serious way. But that dog will hunt only so long. If he didn't keep ramping things up, his "campaign" would look ludicrous. I doubt Bloomberg is willing to look foolish, or like he was forced out by Trump. So he'll be constantly testing the water, and investing in the process accordingly.

The real risk to his goals is if Trump and Cruz supporters double down in their support. Bloomberg needs to be in the background, and just help indirectly pushing the mantra that Trump and Cruz are unelectable, and will cause the Democrats to win big.

Needless to say, "Billionaire announces Sanders is unacceptable" might be a message Bloomberg would regret.

[KentuckyWoman]

44. So basically, Bloomberg wants Hillary?

I know they don't really endorse over party lines but if he wants Hillary then just say so. The Republicans already think he's a RINO and no one would be shocked on the Democratic side if Hillary gets a Republican endorsement.

[oberliner]

46. He's not a Republican

So he can't be a RINO.

[KentuckyWoman]

48. Snort

Just because he changes his party affiliation every time you swing a hammer doesn't change what he is.

[oberliner]

57. OK - but he isn't a "Republican in Name Only"

Because, in name, he is not a Republican.

[Sam_Fields]

47. Oh Good! Another 1%er running for president

[FloriDem]

49. I doubt many would vote for him this late

I doubt many would vote for him this late

[oldandhappy]

53. Does this mean

we could have a third party candidate potentially win the WH -- a candidate become president without participating in primary debates or primary caucuses and elections? What a hoot. Man. That would rip the K bros.

[gwheezie]

55. Neither of the major parties wanted him before

I don't see what his appeal would be except if Trump was the nominee I think he could pull off some GOP voters. It would be ironic. I want to add I support HRC but will vote for Bernie if he is the nominee. Bloomberg doesn't do it for me enough to vote against a dem.

[Gothmog]

61. Report: Bloomberg Considering Independent Presidential Bid

Bloomberg is evidently only planning on running if Sanders is the Democratic nominee http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/michael-bloomberg-considering-presidential-bid

He has said he's likely to launch a bid if Republicans nominate either Donald Trump or Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Democrats nominate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), according to the Times.

To me this says a great deal about how electable Sanders is

[B Calm]

67. GOP would be toast!

[AmBlue]

71. They don't think Hillary can handle the Bern apparently.

Wow...just wow.

[Gothmog]

83. Bloomberg is expressing an opinion on the weakness of Sanders as a general election candidate

Bloomberg evidently believes that Sanders would be a very weak general election candidate which is the only what that a third party run makes sense. Many good democrats are also concerned that Sanders would not be viable in a general election contest

[StandingInLeftField]

90. And many, many good Democrats are not.

Many good Democrats are left-handed; many are bald; many have....

[AmBlue]

111. Based on Sanders' handily trouncing HRC in both NH and IA?

While they tried to pretend he didn't exist? Really?? Sounds like perfect nonsense to me.

Either that or TPTB are actually completely terrified that Bernie is going to WIN. IT. ALL.

[lindysalsagal]

76. Fabulous news. 3rd party: And fundies will hate Bloomberg. Split the vote!!!

[Lizzie Poppet]

141. I very much doubt it would work that way.

Bloomberg is enormously, actively pro-gun-control and advocates lots of "micro-management" social/political causes (think: Big Gulp-gate). He may be able to do well among Republicans and a certain percentage of moderates in the Northeast...but he'll be rejected almost unanimously by Republican voters everywhere else in the country.

I would say, in confidence, that he'd take more voters from Bernie than he would from Trump or even Cruz.

[immoderate]

180. "In confidence," you say.

You find billionaires are attractive to working class voters, now do you?

--imm

[jfern]

78. A voice for the powerful establishment types who have been destroying this country?

LOL!

[onecaliberal]

81. There is no way dems would vote for him and neither would the Independents

They are overwhelmingly for Sanders.

[SickOfTheOnePct]

84. Trump or Cruz AND Bernie

So he won't run if Bernie is the nominee for the Democrats, and anyone other than Trump or Cruz is the nominee for the Republicans.

Or he won't run if Hillary is the nominee for the Democrats.

[Donald Ian Rankin]

86. In a Trump-Bloomberg-Sanders race, it's not inconceivable he might actually win.

I have a hard time seeing his candidacy going anywhere against any other pair of nominees, though - I think Rubio, Clinton and even Cruz would all wipe the floor with him.

[Renew Deal]

97. Things could go bad if the electors are split up.

If Sanders splits the NE with Bloomberg and Trump takes the south, it might keep us under 270. That would leave it to a republican house to pick a president.

[flamingdem]

124. This ^^^^

[Warren DeMontague]

87. He'll pull a lot more anti-trump or cruz republicans than he will anti-sanders Democrats.

The GOP is a mess and has no idea what it stands for at all.

[Lizzie Poppet]

142. I strongly disagree. Two words: gun control.

I doubt he'd pull more than single-figure percentages among non-Northeast Republicans across the entire country for that reason alone. Any GOP candidate would destroy him over that issue with the large majority of Republican voters (and not a few Independents and moderate Democrats).

[Warren DeMontague]

143. I'm not saying he's gonna have a snowball's chance in hell.

The Bloomberg talk is a perfect example of the Manhattan Bubble entranced with the beauty of its own overpriced navel.

But..... there are a lot of Republicans who absolutely can't stand Trump. At this point, it takes a lot to make Poppy throw his slippers at the tv.

[Warren DeMontague]

92. Ross Perot redux.

More reason to support the anti-Billionaire candidate in our primary.

[retrowire]

93. Honestly, if voting Bernie troubles them that much

then it must mean we're doing something right! WE HAVE TO VOTE Bernie NOW!

Hillary supporters, you're clearly not shaking anything up with Hillary, she leaves them too comfortable. We have to vote Bernie now, because if that encourages the powers that be to push forth a choice on us that we clearly aren't interested in, then we truly have a chance to transform politics as we know it.

Do you know how much our democratic government will be shaken if this happens????

[Renew Deal]

96. Bernie is part of the puzzle

He also wants Trump or Cruz in. Both pieces need to be there.

[retrowire]

104. The fact that Bernie is apart of that puzzle at all is enough for me.

Why is Bernie a concern to them, at all?

[stevenleser]

133. I don't know about "Them" but Bloomberg seems to think Bernie isn't qualified, nor does he think

Trump or Cruz are qualified or would be good Presidents.

Having run NYC he has the biggest executive government office experience of any of the above. Whether that is enough to get him a constituency is anyone's guess.

The Chamber of Commerce Republicans would probably at least be tempted as someone upthread indicated. White Democrats for whom gun control is the biggest issue might similarly be tempted. Not sure what his appeal among liberal POC would be after stop and frisk. He would have to address and repudiate that somehow.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

98. Hopefully, he will be put to the test when Bernie is nominated.

[Blue_In_AK]

106. Just reported on CBS evening news, too.

[Jim Lane]

113. Filing deadlines begin with Texas on May 9

There's some useful information in this article, although it's keyed to a possible Trump third-party/independent run. Bloomberg wouldn't face the problem of the "sore loser" laws discussed in the article as a possible barrier to Trump. He would, however, have to deal with filing deadlines. Unless he succeeds in a court challenge to the deadline, he would need to turn in 80,000 signatures by May 9 to get on the Texas ballot, which of course means starting well before May 9. Several other states have deadlines that fall before the national party conventions.

Of course, it's quite possible that both major party contests would be effectively over by mid-March. By starting then and throwing money into paid signature-gathering, Bloomberg could probably get on the ballot everywhere. He'd probably have little chance of carrying Texas anyway, so if he waited longer and didn't get on the ballot there, it wouldn't be a big blow to his hopes.

[JEB]

120. Bloomberg is the oligarchs candidate

He offers nothing but status quo at best for working people. The establishment's Ross Perot. Fuck him and the horse he rode in on.

[katsy]

132. He needs to calm the fuck down and

let the American people make their choices.

If he wants to do some good take the $ he would have blown on an unsuccessful campaign and set up another charity... He'll be better remembered for doing good than being a failed candidate.

[yuiyoshida]

138. He is trying to be a spoiler...

To knock Bernie out of the Race...another Billionaire who cares nothing for the middle class, or poor.

[CreekDog]

151. Try to contain your excitement

[Initech]

155. Great! Another clown for the clown car!

[Marr]

157. Who the hell would vote for Bloomberg in a Trump/Bloomberg/Sanders campaign?

I mean, the DLC, Wall Street, and moderate Republicans probably comprise about 10,000 votes altogether. lol.

[KamaAina]

172. A friend of Mom's in NYC called him "the tiny fascist"

because of things like the ban on smoking in parks, the 32-oz. soda ban, etc.

[LexVegas]

174. Sees a path to the White House if either of those 2 weak links are nominated. nt

[JustAnotherGen]

176. I'm a strong O'Malley supporter but let me tell you

He has a better chance of meeting god in the next five minutes than he does of me switching my vote from the Democratic Party to him.

[oldandhappy]

178. So, let me see how this works out.

If Hillary does not look certain for the nomination, Mr. B will self nominate himself and run in no primaries and participate in no primary level debates and try to buy himself a new job? Does he have the faintest inkling what it takes to be president? And for that matter do any of the Repubs have any idea of what it takes to be president? Dear Mayor, it takes more than organizing snow plow crews.

[INdemo]

181. Polls are obviously showing Hillary is behind in IA

Nev in addition to NH And the reason Hillary is calling in her attack dogs and her friend Mr Ricketts. This move is intended to stop Sanders.
Hillary could stop this idiotic move by just switching and running on the Republican ticket.

Bring it on Bllomberg
Go Bernie !!!!!