Michael Bloomberg Mulls a Presidential Run

Bloomberg, who is Jewish, served as mayor of New York City from 2001 to the end of 2013.

According to the New York Times report, Bloomberg will make a final decision in early March.

The Times said Bloomberg is eyeing a presidential run because of the emergence of Donald Trump and Ted Cruz on the Republican side, and Bernie Sanders among the Democrats.

Ed Rendell, the former governor of Pennsylvania and a past Democratic National Committee chairman, said he believed Bloomberg could compete in the race if activist candidates on the left and right prevailed in the party primaries.

Bloomberg’s advisers told the Times that if the former mayor runs, he will present himself as a bipartisan, technocratic figure capable of bridging the yawning gap between the two parties.

So if Trump gets the GOP nomination and Bloomberg hops into the race too, then we’re gonna have two billionaires running for president against each other.

While there have been third party or independent candidates before – businessman Ross Perot ran in both 1992 and 1996, and activist Ralph Nader has stood in numerous elections – no independent candidate has ever been elected to the White House. But he strongly disagrees with Trump’s political positions, particularly his stance on immigration, the person said.

But if Sanders wins, even Rendell said a Bloomberg bid would be something to consider.

Michael Bloomberg, former mayor of New York City, is evidently considering an independent run for President in 2016.

“If he splits the Democrat vote – those for gun control – that might be good for Republicans”, Paul told reporters. Bloomberg, who has long maintained what has seemed to be a mutually respectful working relationship with Clinton, is apparently unimpressed with her campaign thus far, though sources tell the AP that it’s unlikely he would challenge her in the general election. Clinton has been dogged by questions about her honesty amid an ongoing investigation into her use of a private email server as secretary of state. Yahoo reports that the former mayor of NY, who is also a billionare, is seriously thinking about entering the race.

The former mayor is largely a social liberal – he fought for same-sex marriage in New York and is pro-abortion rights – and implemented a number of health reforms in New York City, banning smoking in public places and instituting calorie counts on menus. While the prospect of Bloomberg launching a third-party presidential campaign has been speculated about for years, he’s largely unknown to many Americans and would be entering the race well after his rivals started introducing themselves to voters.