Michael Bloomberg, billionaire and thrice mayor of New York City, has said that he will not run for president in the 2016 elections.
Bloomberg had considered entering the race for months, being disturbed by the rise of Donald Trump in the Republican primary, but polls indicated that he had little chance to win.
Many had hoped that Bloomberg, with his net worth approaching $40 billion, could self-finance a campaign in the 2016 presidential race.
“When I look at the data, it’s clear to me that if I entered the race, I could not win,” Bloomberg wrote in an editorial.
Worse, Bloomberg mused that him entering the race could take away votes from Hillary Clinton, to whom Bloomberg is most ideologically aligned, and give the White House to Ted Cruz or Donald Trump.
“That is not a risk I can take in good conscience,” Bloomberg wrote. “I love our country too much to play a role in electing a candidate who would weaken our unity and darken our future -- and so I will not enter the race for president of the United States.”
Bloomberg castigated Trump for his positions on trade, and lumped Cruz with him for holding the “extreme” position of opposing amnesty for illegal immigrants.
“I have known Mr. Trump casually for many years, and we have always been on friendly terms. I even agreed to appear on ”The Apprentice“ -- twice,” Bloomberg wrote. “But he has run the most divisive and demagogic presidential campaign I can remember, preying on people’s prejudices and fears.”
