Michael Bloomberg, age 77, founder and owner of Bloomberg L.P., billionaire with an estimated worth north of $50 billion, former three term mayor of New York City, former Democrat, Independent, Republican, and now a current Democrat, has joined the race for the Democratic nomination for President. He’s late, but with his wealth he’ll be a force to reckon with outside of the far left wing of the Democratic Party.
His positions are, for me, acceptable, as noted from On The Issues: abortion yes, same sex marriage yes, corporate tax reductions no, higher taxes on the wealthy yes, creationism no (his phrase: boggles the mind), education is good yes (hard to think of a Democrat against such a position), closing coal-fired power plants yes, climate change is a huge problem yes, etc. He admits to mistakes and tries to correct them (noted on The Late Show last night). Here’s the On The Issues summation:
It’s unfortunate that he doesn’t like marijuana legalization; his stance on healthcare seems conflicted, but it appears to favor the ACA. In general, no one’s a perfect match, and so far I don’t see any Can’t stomach that positions.
In addition to the above, also in his favor is his experience as the chief executive of New York City, which means he at least understands he has to play nice with others, and you just can’t order people around; some claimed foreign policy experience gained from trying to sell NYC abroad, although whether it’s extensive seems doubtful; and a certain amount of straight-to-the-point responses which voters, even Republicans, may find more appealing than the sometimes neurotic-detailed responses Democratic candidates can deliver. My Arts Editor was favorably impressed by his appearance on The Late Show last night, including the fact he didn’t try to strangle Colbert for interrupting too much.
Additions to the negative side of the ledger are his age, which is quite high. On the other hand, he seems to have taken good care of himself, and probably has the finest of health care, given his wealth.
Which brings me to the most enigmatic point: he’s self-funding and not accepting donations. Trump tried to spin his alleged wealth as a good thing, and a lot of the media fell for it. In time, though, we’ve learned that Trump is all about the money, and not above using his office to steer commerce into his coffers. Will we see the same with Bloomberg? Will his ability to self-fund render him immune to good advice? I’m not sure.
But if he is self-funding, that’ll be a boon for the Democratic Party with Bloomberg as their candidate, assuming self-funding carries through to the general election. That’s a lot of extra cash to spend on close races that the Republicans will strain to match – or go begging at their corporate masters’ feet.
I’m neither advocating nor dismissing Bloomberg. He sounded sharp on the show last night, and he seems concerned that Trump is wrecking the world Bloomberg’s descendants must live in. In turn, reports suggest Trump worries about him, due to his wealth. Whether or not Bloomberg has the gumption to win and then begin the painful transition away from fossil fuels is another question.
But I’m open to listening to him. Being an independent, I only have opinions, not primary votes, but I hope we hear more from him.
