PHILADELPHIA (AP) Michael Bloomberg, elected mayor of New York City as a Republican, will offer a forceful denunciation of fellow New York billionaire Donald Trump on Wednesday at the Democratic convention.
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Mr. Bloomberg had considered running for President himself as a third-party candidate earlier in this election cycle, ultimately choosing to stay out. “But whatever our disagreements may be, I’ve come here to say: We must put them aside for the good of our country”. Instead, he presented her as the only rational choice-urging the crowd to “unite around the candidate who can defeat a unsafe demagogue” and earning even bigger applause near the end of his speech when he asked the crowd to elect “a sane, competent person”.
The bottom line, Bloomberg said: “Trump is a risky, reckless and radical choice, and we can’t afford to make that choice”. He said he understands the dilemma faced by independents and undecided voters.
I know Hillary Clinton can do all this, because I saw it firsthand when she was in the Senate. “God help us!” Bloomberg said to laughter from the convention crowd.
A spokeswoman for Trump didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
Donald Trump was vigorously tweeting the morning after Democrats finished their presidential nominating convention.
Bloomberg, who briefly wrestled with the temptation to run for president as an independent, has made gun control the centerpiece of his post-mayoral political career.
He hailed Clinton as a “unifier” who understands how to seek out consensus and can work with all factions of Congress. He used that time to endorse Hillary Clinton, but more as the lesser of two evils. Bloomberg was a vocal critic of the Republican candidate ― his former friend ― long before backing Clinton’s White House run.
Mr Trump’s inability to compromise with political opponents, in the same week he has appeared to encourage Russian Federation to spy on Ms Clinton’s emails, was compared by Mr Bloomberg to Ms Clinton’s history of working with Republicans to re-build NY following the 9/11 attacks.
“I built a business and I didn’t start it with a million-dollar check from my father”, a reference to Trump’s start in the real estate business with money from his father.
“The richest thing about Donald Trump is his hypocrisy”, Bloomberg continued, listing his employment of illegal immigrants, his outsourcing of jobs overseas and his repeated bankruptcies.
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He mocked Trump’s background as an over-the-top media personality, versus Clinton, who he said has amassed a lifetime of experience in government and politics. He praised her leadership after September 11 but said little else about her specific achievements or policy goals. “This week in Philadelphia he will make a strong case that the clear choice in this election is Hillary Clinton”.
