Michael Bloomberg, billionaire, ex-mayor of New York, candidate to “beat Trump”

He finally declared himself: Sunday, former New York mayor Michael Bloomberg officially announced his candidacy for the 2020 presidential election. He will be part of the Democratic primary, presenting himself as “a new choice for the Democrats ”. The billionaire businessman is already focusing his campaign against Donald Trump. “I am running for president to beat Donald Trump and rebuild America,” he wrote in a message posted on his website. “We cannot afford the irresponsible and immoral acts of President Trump for four more years. It represents an existential threat to our country and our values. If he wins a new mandate, we might never recover, ”argues the founder of financial group Bloomberg.

A campaign spot broadcast on social networks recalls the journey of Michael Bloomberg – “a middle-class kid who had to work to pay for his studies”, strikes a voice over on a piano melody. The film, also broadcast in Spanish, emphasizes the commitments of the billionaire, three times elected mayor of New York, a Democratic stronghold, and very involved in recent years in campaigns against guns. Also underlined is his support for a reform of health insurance which would not eliminate private insurers, a point of divergence with the most left-wing candidates like Bernie Sanders or Elizabeth Warren. Bloomberg is finally taking care to put before his fight against climate change. “I attacked the climate skeptic Trump, and I led a campaign that shut down more than half of the polluting coal plants in the country,” he notes in his profession of faith.

Michael Bloomberg’s campaign spot

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://t.co/7ezlUeouqHpic.twitter.com/IyOeS3aWaF

— Mike Bloomberg (@MikeBloomberg) November 24, 2019

It is undoubtedly for the former vice-president Joe Biden, also a candidate for the Democratic primary, that this offensive presents the greatest risk. The most experienced candidate, adept at conciliation vis-à-vis Republicans, Joe Biden had everything on paper to appeal to moderate Democrats and independents. But the inability of the former “veep” of Obama to raise funds has sown doubt. His multiple blunders during the various debates did not help him. Bloomberg is betting that his centrist candidacy has a better chance of winning.

Trump made fun of “little” Michael Bloomberg

77-year-old Michael Bloomberg is older than Donald Trump, who turned 73 in June. He is also much richer than the Republican, with an estimated fortune of $ 55.5 billion compared to Trump’s 3.1 billion. These significant financial resources are already useful to him: he has already launched a television campaign of 31 million dollars, which could be according to a specialist interviewed by Politico most expensive ever.

Sunday at 5 p.m., Donald Trump had not reacted to the announcement of Michael Bloomberg’s candidacy. In the past, he had praised the merits of the “Bloomberg administration” in New York, especially when he tried to win the good graces of the town hall to carry out real estate projects in the city. In 2016, however, Donald Trump had changed his mind: “The ‘little’ Michael Bloomberg, who never had the guts to run for president, doesn’t know anything about me. His last term as mayor was a disaster! ”He tweeted, after Bloomberg had lent his support to Hillary Clinton.