Why Bloomberg Can't Beat Trump

[babylonsister]

Why Bloomberg Can’t Beat Trump
It’s hard to imagine a Democrat less able to win working class votes.
by Harold Meyerson
February 19, 2020


This should be a happy time for former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Right now, his ads are drowning the airwaves in the 14 states that will vote on Super Tuesday, March 3, while in most of those states, the campaigns of his non-billionaire opponents for the Democrats’ presidential nod have barely begun.

As the campaign rolls on, however, Democratic voters will learn more about Bloomberg’s actual record. The mass incarceration in black and brown communities that resulted from police practices he put in place as mayor; the pre-emptive arrests he authorized of people who sought to protest the 2004 Republican convention in New York (for which the city had to pay hefty fines for false arrests); his defense of Wall Street bankers in the wake of the 2008 financial panic (he termed the fines levied against banks for misconduct “outrageous”)—these are just some of the many Bloomberg policies and positions that should give Democrats pause.

Even so, some Democrats may be willing to overlook that Bloomberg governed and in many ways still thinks like a Republican because they believe he has the best chance to unseat President Donald Trump next November.

But he doesn’t. Indeed, he can’t.

It’s hard to imagine a Democrat less able to win working class votes—those of young black and Latino workers, and those of the white workers who swung the 2016 election to Trump. Minority voters are unlikely to look kindly on his mayoral record: intensifying stop-and-frisk, vetoing legislation that banned predatory lenders from doing business with the city, and opposing city legislation to raise the living wage. Now that he’s running for president he says he backs a minimum wage hike, but in 2014, he told Fox News, “I’ve always thought that this impetus to raise the minimum wage is one of the most misguided things we can do.”

more...

https://prospect.org/politics/why-bloomberg-cannot-beat-trump/

[Renew Deal]

1. He got re-elected twice in NYC despite these factors

And he will play well in the suburbs. People are underestimating him.

[Odoreida]

14. As a Republican n/t

[Liberalhammer]

2. But he's certainly

Showing who actually has principles. Nominating bloomberg would be a betrayl of those same principles Democrats have been championing.

[honest.abe]

3. So he's worse than Trump??

That is ridiculous.

[Liberalhammer]

8. No

But he is not a democrat or progressive in any sense of the term. I'm not looking for purity, but I'm also not willing to dump my principles for a billinare.

[honest.abe]

9. The article is about Bloomberg not being able to beat Trump.

I find the logic flawed.

[Demsrule86]

25. I vote for Satan if it got Trump out of office...Bloomberg is a Democrat with Democratic priorities.

like Climate and gun registration...he also favors a public option and a repair and improvement of the ACA which I do too...my hubs has family and friends in New York...and they voted for Mike Bloomberg...Principles? I see nothing really wrong with Bloomberg and will vote for him over Sanders who will surely lose the general...I vote blue no matter what but we are looking at a McGovern style loss with Sanders.

[Cuthbert Allgood]

34. If we run "Hey, he sucks, but he's not worse than Trump" in November, we lose.

Certainly we can put forward someone that stands for something the Democratic party stands for and not just rely on not being as big of an asshole as Trump.

[honest.abe]

35. He's much better than Trump.

No comparison other than they are both billionaires and arrogant.

I can handle that if he can take out Trump.

[Cuthbert Allgood]

36. I would argue that some views on race and women are not completely dissimilar

But every time someone points out a significant problem with Bloomberg, the inevitable replies are "He's better than Trump." If that's ultimately the end platform of who we run, we lose.

[honest.abe]

37. Yes, those issues perhaps some overlap..

but beyond that he's 180 from Trump. For example gun control and climate change.

[CaptYossarian]

4. Bloomberg is merely a spoiler.

His ads are meant to do two things:

1) Amuse the true Democratic voter.

2) Show the Trumpanzees what clothes the Emperor is wearing.

This is all intended to help whomever the nominee really is in November.

[GreenPartyVoter]

11. I hope so. Maybe he is really angling for a cabinet position?

[Demsrule86]

26. He is tied in with Biden and already beating Sanders in some states...he is not a spoiler who will

help Sanders...he will prevent the nomination of Sanders...I thank Goddess for that because I want to win the General and Sanders won't. Sure we vote for him here, but other than 20% maybe there is little enthusiasm for Sanders.

[2naSalit]

28. ...

I'm kind of hoping for the same thing.

[Demsrule86]

33. I want a candidate who might win at least...Sanders won't win no matter what ...sure I vote

for him in a general.

[Iliyah]

5. Well hell the rate Democratic candidates are perceived . . .

why are anyone of them running?

Seriously, when we come together we will win across board. We will keep the House, win the Senate and WH.

[jcmaine72]

6. Excellent article!

The sad truth of the matter is that if Bloomberg is our party's nominee, not only will POC and progressives stay home in droves on Election Day, but all those WWC voters in the swing states and Heartland that are supposedly up for grabs, the ones that everyone keeps telling us will instantly swoon for Bloomberg like a bunch of 1950's teenyboppers seeing Elvis shake his pelvis for the first time, will be turned off by his elitist, condescending, high-handed manner. He simply won't resonate.

[delisen]

15. Women will not stay home in droves in Nov.

Pleas do not try to suppress our vote or neutralize it.

[jcmaine72]

17. Nice strawman there.

Since I clearly never advocated suppressing or neutralizing anyone's vote in my post, I'll simply assume you meant to reply to another post that did and clicked on mine by accident.

[Demsrule86]

30. POC are moving towards Bloomberg who has done much for AA folks in terms of donations , education

recently. What has Sanders done? He is a millionaire. What has he given? I have seen it in the polls and heard it on Sirius radio...the hosts argue with folks who call up and say they will vote Bloomberg...AA voters know the worst thing would be another Trump term and will vote for who will deny Trump a win. I will too.

As for' progressives', if you have to have a pure candidate, won't vote for the Democratic nominee and cast a vote to throw Trump out of office...than you are not progressive in the least...not the base but just some non-Democratic leftist voters who may spoil but can't win...we will have to find a means to win without such unreliable voters. We need a 50 state strategy...I for one am sick of the extortion...much of the problems we face today are because of the left/Greens.

Gore in 2000 ( United and war), Kerry in 2004 (Katrina deaths and economic debacle) when Moore went around begging folks to vote for Kerry after he and his buddies savaged Kerry earlier in the primary, 2010 when we lost the house( and couldn't even fix the ACA) thanks to the 'message voters', 2014 when we lost the Senate as the left even on this site called Obama names and stayed home (we lost a SCOTUS pick). And of course 2016 when the left/ Green refused to vote for Hillary and helped destroy her chances in the Blue Wall states. They helped elect Trump and have blood on their hands. And Sanders hired those who publicly said they voted for Stein instead of the Democratic nominee which is horrifying.

Personally, I can't ride out another Trump term...and believe that is what we have with a Sanders nomination...even with the usual blackmail by the Green/Left...I see no evidence that Sanders can supply more new voters than the amount of voters that he will lose. I vote blue no matter who in the general...in the primary it is any candidate other than Sanders...which means Biden or Bloomberg. I want to win. And the fact that Sanders supporters are refusing to vote for the nominee makes me think he is not the nominee we need in 2020 to show Trump the door.

[LakeArenal]

31. My opinion is Sanders has not much support of POC either.

My opinion is Sanders is not a Democrat. That he’s a candidate that can’t win as an independent or he would run as one. The minute he loses he will begin disparaging the other candidates. And be an independent. He will run again as an independent in his home state.

There is proof of Russian support last time.
No one has changed anything to reduce Russian involvement in this next election

[OKNancy]

7. Two things

I’m positive I read that incarcerations actually went down under Bloomberg.

And Harold Meyerson is a socialist so it’s obvious he’s going to write commentary against Bloomberg.

I’m not going to vote for Bloomberg but I do feel articles should be accurate and fair.

[MFGsunny]

21. This .... +1000! n/t

[Squinch]

10. Lots of lies in that. For one thing the incarceration rate during his term went DOWN 40%

The mass incarcerations were happening in the rest of the country and were due to the crime bill that Biden wrote and BS signed.

[denem]

12. Bloomberg Announces New York City's Incarceration Rate Hits New All-Time Low

Between 2001-2012, City Incarceration Rate Declined by 36 Percent, While Incarceration Rates in the Rest of the Nation Rose by Three Percent

Incarcerations Dramatically Reduced Through Improved Crime Prevention Strategies and Recent Gains from Innovative Social Justice Interventions

https://www1.nyc.gov/office-of-the-mayor/news/434-13/mayor-bloomberg-new-york-city-s-incarceration-rate-hits-new-all-time-low/#/0

[Squinch]

18. The daily news did an analysis that said 40%. I think they

were counting incarcerated NYC residents as opposed to all incarcerations in NYC. I'll see if I can find the article.

[denem]

19. I went to the NYC.gov press release.

There is a lot in it, including the statistics on felony crime which fell by 32% over the same period.

[Squinch]

20. Including 50% drop in the murders of young black men.

I remember that time, and I wonder if people can appreciate it today. I remember talking to kids who assumed they would not make it to adulthood. I remember working in hospitals with tons of young boys with gunshot wounds.

It was bad.

[denem]

24. Diana Taylor

“Kids were being killed on the street. In the short term, the way to solve that problem was to get guns off the street and ( stop-and-frisk) was the fastest way to do it,” Taylor says. “As time went on, he realized, talking to people, that stop-and-frisk had gone overboard and he cut it way back.”

“Yes, it was bad ... It affected people’s lives in a very negative way,” she says. “But the reason he was doing it was to stop people from being killed.”

... He reacted to an immediate condition,” says Jones, 36, an executive committee member of the Shelby County Democrats. “Sometimes we react to issues because we want results.”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/diana-taylor-mike-bloomberg/2020/02/05/2d80fe80-42ae-11ea-aa6a-083d01b3ed18_story.html

[mdelaguna]

13. Except that (for some reason) people often don't vote with their economic class interests

I remember being struck by Howard Dean saying that back in the day. Still a puzzle, even if we “know” why.

[Tom Rinaldo]

16. "I've always thought that this impetus to raise the minimum wage is one of the most misguided things

...we can do" Spoken like a true non Democrat.

[gollygee]

22. It sounds like he's a huge fan of Sanders

but I don't think he's right. People in this country generally seem to love obnoxious rich people. Especially working class white people. His dream that they wouldn't vote for Bloomberg is ridiculous. They'd love him.

[Demsrule86]

23. The prospect? Really. They can't get their candidates elected except in deep blue districts.

[Chakaconcarne]

27. Bloomberg has a much stronger message than Trump

Out of the pack, at the moment, he seems most capable and willing to jump all over trump. The others just aren't doing that... I wish they would.

[BlueJac]

29. Disagree

[DarthDem]

32. Oh, I See

So he has zero appeal to people of color and also none to white working class voters. Got it.