Billionaire Michael Bloomberg said Monday that any independent bid for president in 2020 will be futile and ultimately weaken Democrats.
Mr. Bloomberg, a potential 2020 candidate himself, said he considered an independent bid in the past but decided it would hurt the Democratic agenda.
“The data was very clear and very consistent,” he wrote in a statement. “Given the strong pull of partisanship and the realities of the electoral college system, there is no way an independent can win. That is truer today than ever before.”
Like several other Democrats, Mr. Bloomberg warned that a third-party candidate would siphon votes away from the Democratic nominee, which would benefit President Trump’s fight for re-election.
“We must remain united, and we must not allow any candidate to divide or fracture us,” he wrote. “The stakes couldn’t be higher.”
His remarks came just a day after former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz announced on CBS “60 Minutes” that he is seriously considering running for president as a third-party candidate.
“I wanna see the American people win. I wanna see America win,” he said. “Bring me your ideas. And I will be an independent person, who will embrace those ideas. Because I am not, in any way, in bed with a party.”
He also slammed Mr. Trump for not believing in climate change science.
“How can you possibly not believe it,” said Mr. Bloomberg. “I hate to break this to you, Mr. President, but if you don’t believe in science, don’t go to the doctor, don’t get on an airplane, don’t talk on the phone and don’t even think about tweeting — wouldn’t that be nice.”
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