Michael Bloomberg 2020 campaign megathread

[Gracile]

Apparently Bloomberg will not contest the four early states and plans to start his campaign on Super Tuesday:

https://twitter.com/michaelscherer/status/1192929806704402433

[Starry Eyed Jagaloon]

My dreams are coming true.

[Cassandra]

Apparently Bloomberg will not contest the four early states and plans to start his campaign on Super Tuesday:

https://twitter.com/michaelscherer/status/1192929806704402433

Very 20th century....

[Illiniwek]

Apparently Bloomberg will not contest the four early states and plans to start his campaign on Super Tuesday:

https://twitter.com/michaelscherer/status/1192929806704402433

And he’s doing this to do what exactly?

Save money? Hah.

Get a head start on building momentum in those states? I feel the best way to build momentum is to, you know, win primaries.

Seems like a losing strategy to me. Good.

[GoTfan]

Can someone remind me what happened to another former New York City Mayor who tried a similar strategy?

[eric82oslo]

Can someone remind me what happened to another former New York City Mayor who tried a similar strategy?

We're still waiting for Rudy Giuliani to enter. That will be epic.

[○∙◄☻¥tπ[╪AV┼cVê└]

Can someone remind me what happened to another former New York City Mayor who tried a similar strategy?

Republican turned Democrat John Lindsay did poorly in later primaries after not being on the NH ballot.

[jaichind]

Apparently Bloomberg will not contest the four early states and plans to start his campaign on Super Tuesday:

https://twitter.com/michaelscherer/status/1192929806704402433

And he’s doing this to do what exactly?

Save money? Hah.

Get a head start on building momentum in those states? I feel the best way to build momentum is to, you know, win primaries.

Seems like a losing strategy to me. Good.

I assume his advisers told him that the early states are about organization and advertisement spending so it is best he does not lose credibly by doing badly in them.  Instead, he is told, go for the Super Tuesday states where mass spends in advertisement is more likely to generate results and add to his credibility as a serious candidate.   

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

My dreams are coming true.

Seeing your idol humilited is your dream?

[Kingpoleon]

With $25 million, he could feasibly win Texas and California on Super Tuesday, which would make him automatically the front runner.

[Absentee Voting Ghost of Ruin]

https://twitter.com/thomaswright08/status/1192917774491955202

[HillGoose]

Hell yeah brah I know who I'm voting for in the Dem primary

[○∙◄☻¥tπ[╪AV┼cVê└]

When's the last time someone went from a non-candidate to on the ballot so fast? I know Mario Cuomo was planning in showing up to file just in time in NH in 1992, but didn't end up doing that.

[ProudModerate2]

Apparently Bloomberg will not contest the four early states and plans to start his campaign on Super Tuesday:

https://twitter.com/michaelscherer/status/1192929806704402433

And he’s doing this to do what exactly?
Save money? Hah.
Get a head start on building momentum in those states? I feel the best way to build momentum is to, you know, win primaries.
Seems like a losing strategy to me. Good.

I agree.
This sounds loony.

[John Dule]

Ok Bloomer

[W]

https://www.cnn.com/2019/11/08/politics/bloomberg-alabama-democratic-primary/index.html

Wolfson also told CNN in a statement that the former New York City mayor plans to skip the first four primary contests.
"If we run, we are confident we can win in states voting on Super Tuesday and beyond, where we will start on an even footing," Wolfson said in a statement that was first reported by The Washington Post.
"But the late timing of our entry means that many candidates already have a big head start in the four early states, where they've spent months and months campaigning and spending money. We have enormous respect for the Democratic primary process and many friends in those states, but our plan is to run a broad-based, national campaign."

This strikes me as a pretty unusual move, anyone have a justification for this? Only thing I can think of is he doesn't want to play spoiler to Joe Biden but even then is he really considering that late to still be holding out for him?

[Tender Branson]

https://www.cnn.com/2019/11/08/politics/bloomberg-alabama-democratic-primary/index.html

Wolfson also told CNN in a statement that the former New York City mayor plans to skip the first four primary contests.
"If we run, we are confident we can win in states voting on Super Tuesday and beyond, where we will start on an even footing," Wolfson said in a statement that was first reported by The Washington Post.
"But the late timing of our entry means that many candidates already have a big head start in the four early states, where they've spent months and months campaigning and spending money. We have enormous respect for the Democratic primary process and many friends in those states, but our plan is to run a broad-based, national campaign."

This strikes me as a pretty unusual move, anyone have a justification for this? Only thing I can think of is he doesn't want to play spoiler to Joe Biden but even then is he really considering that late to still be holding out for him?

How do you think he’s no spoiler for Uncle Joe when Biden’s best states are coming up on Super Tuesday ?

[W]

https://www.cnn.com/2019/11/08/politics/bloomberg-alabama-democratic-primary/index.html

Wolfson also told CNN in a statement that the former New York City mayor plans to skip the first four primary contests.
"If we run, we are confident we can win in states voting on Super Tuesday and beyond, where we will start on an even footing," Wolfson said in a statement that was first reported by The Washington Post.
"But the late timing of our entry means that many candidates already have a big head start in the four early states, where they've spent months and months campaigning and spending money. We have enormous respect for the Democratic primary process and many friends in those states, but our plan is to run a broad-based, national campaign."

This strikes me as a pretty unusual move, anyone have a justification for this? Only thing I can think of is he doesn't want to play spoiler to Joe Biden but even then is he really considering that late to still be holding out for him?

How do you think he’s no spoiler for Uncle Joe when Biden’s best states are coming up on Super Tuesday ?

This is a good point, on second thought perhaps Bloomberg just doesn't want to sink very much into the states where campaigning has been going on for months and doesn't want a dismal performance in them to kill perception of him as a serious candidate.

[GM Team Member and Senator WB]

y tho

[Crumpets]

I mean, it's not like a New York mayor has ever tried this strategy before and had it totally backfire.

[morgankingsley]

Just skip all of them

[HillGoose]

Bloomberg gonna win it all brah

[Tintrlvr]

I think he recognizes that, to the extent his goal is to throw the nomination to the convention (the likeliest positive outcome from his perspective), the early four states don't matter very much, particularly given that he is actively declaring that he not only won't be competing in them but literally won't even be on the ballot and also has the virtually unlimited funding to keep his campaign going and in people's minds.

There are a few distinctions here from the Giuliani 2008 campaign (to which this would obviously draw comparisons): (i) Giuliani was the frontrunner for months and had an enormous number of "parked votes" with him in national polls who weren't paying much attention or particularly loyal to him, while Bloomberg doesn't have those voters to lose and also doesn't have the expectation of being the frontrunner; (ii) Giuliani had limited funding from donors that dried up completely once he wasn't in the lead, so his campaign was starved for cash quickly; Bloomberg has essentially unlimited personal funds; and (iii) despite Giuliani's public declaration that he was foregoing any campaign in the early states, the general public and even the national media still expected Giuliani to do decently well in the early states, if not win, given his national polling leads before Iowa, so derisory results were not only bad but way underperforming expectations; if Bloomberg isn't even on the ballot in the early states, he can't underperform expectations in any of them and thus develop a negative narrative about his campaign.

Would the gambit work? Almost certainly not. But it is probably a better strategy for Bloomberg than coming fourth or fifth in Iowa.

[coolface1572]

New Hampshire voters could still write him in.

[Tender Branson]

Would be better if Bloomberg, Steyrer and Biden all drop out, let other more competent people do the job and donate 100 Mio. $ to the DNC for a 50-state GE campaign ...