I have nothing (Well-little) against Steyer and Bloomberg

[flotsam]

But I have no desire to play my billionaire is better than your billionaire. I could accept with Mayor Pete with limited government experience but to me the very term "democratic" should mean money cannot buy in. The term is to "dabble" in politics as done by rich people. It is how we got Trump. I don't doubt "our" billionaires would be better, but you know what, we have actual candidates who are not even millionaires or only just recently crossed that line. And that means they may even have, like you or me, faced a bill in their lifetime they worried about how to pay it. I WANT that in the person we elect! It's why Elizabeth Warren is someone I could gladly vote for. I want someone like me-and I mean I want them smarter, and nicer, and more generous than me-but also who understands what lower middle class means.

[denem]

1. Bloomberg - "Two billionaires? Who's the second one?"

[StevieM]

2. Steyer postponed the start of his business career to work for Walter Mondale.

Bloomberg, on the other hand, supported Bush/Cheney for re-election in 2004.

The two are as different as night and day. One of them absolutely is better than the other.

[musicblind]

20. Steyer really does seem like a great guy.

I don't judge people by their bank account, good or bad.

[yaesu]

3. I wish them both well with their pursuit of the nomination, they have as much right as anyone

to run though they are not on my primary short list I would gladly vote for either in a GE.

[brooklynite]

4. Don't think of Bloomberg as a Billionaire...

...any more that you should think of Bernie as a Millionaire.

Think of Bloomberg as a three time mayor of a heavily-Democratic who is a strong advocate for gun control, environmental regulations and progressive tax policies who has the resources to run a Presidential campaign.

[jcmaine72]

13. Absolutely correct! It's certainly better than thinking of him as the three time mayor who supported

stop-and-frisk and the countless civil rights violations that accompanied that policy, rampant gentrification and the countless poor and minority New Yorkers who were literally priced out of neighborhoods they had lived in for decades, and his unique brand of Nanny-State micromanagement.

Yep. It's definitely wrong to think of Bloomberg as just a plain old vanilla billionaire. To many New Yorkers, especially minorities who were affected most by his policies, he's so much more than that.

[brooklynite]

14. Bloomberg has acknowledged the flaws of Stop & Frisk...

...just as Biden has acknowledged the flaws of the 1999 Crime Bill. Waiting for Bernie to acknowledge the flaws of the F-35.

[jcmaine72]

15. Well, that makes it all better.

After all, what's a few tens of thousands of gross civil rights violations against POC among fellow Democrats, even ones of remarkably recent vintage? Pencil, meet eraser! I'm sure we can all agree that a pre-written apology authored by a professional speech writer and read off a teleprompter more than makes up for quotes like this.....

“We Stop Whites Too Much And Minorities Too Little”

[brooklynite]

16. So your thesis is that Bernie's record is perfect?

Not really relevant, because the issue is how they'll govern today, and whether they can get elected to govern in the first place.

[jcmaine72]

17. If you can find anything even remotely close to the rampant civil rights abuses that occurred under

"Mayor Mike" against minorities in Bernie's past, we'll talk. Imperfections are one thing, but what Mike Bloomberg presided over in NYC with his cherished stop-and-frisk program was downright racist and unconstitutional, as a federal court ruled.

[brooklynite]

18. I'm sure that Bernie has a striking civil rights bill that his leadership skills have gotten passed

[jcmaine72]

19. His civil rights record is certainly head and shoulders above the man you're tirelessly defending.

That's for shit sure.

Let me ask you this: If Bloomberg was still a Republican, would you be here right now defending his egregious track record? The reason I ask is that you've been a member here almost since this site's inception and you seem like a pretty sharp cat. I actually conducted a search using DU's search engine under the keywords "Michael Bloomberg", and guess what I found prior to just a year or so ago in the search results?....post after post from DU'ers stating their absolute disgust with this man and his policies as NYC mayor. I couldn't find a single post in which DU'ers summarily dismissed the countless documented civil rights violations that occurred under his mayoralty as a mere "mistake" or some forgivable error in judgement made by an otherwise admirable man. Why is that?

Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but the only thing that has really changed about Bloomberg from what he was 10-15 years ago is the parenthetical letter (D) adjacent to his name. Is that really enough to overlook the blatantly racist policies that he enacted and vigorously defended for 12 years as NYC's mayor? Would we overlook something like this in Trump's past?

I wonder....

[ZenDem]

5. I understand what you're saying, but...

...according to what's out there, Bloomberg is self-made and came from pretty humble stock. I'm still reading up on him, so I don't have any verifiable facts.

I honestly don't have a problem with billionaires. I have a problem with scum. I know dirt poor people that I wouldn't share a penny with. I'd consider sharing a cab with Bloomberg.

[Squinch]

6. I love Liz. She is my favorite of the candidates. But I have only one goal in this election.

I want that walking turd gone. Bloomberg understands messaging, and messaging is what will win this. None of the other Democrats understand it.

I am leaning more and more toward Bloomberg. Don't like him much, and some of my dislike is personal. He shit on my union when he was mayor. On my bank account. For a decade. And stop and frisk was unforgivable.

But I think he is the closest to being a guarantee to beat Filthy Donnie.

I comfort myself for that decision with the knowledge that he is great on climate, which is the most important issue to the survival of the species, and he's great on guns.

And check out his tax plan. It's kind of wonderful.

[I_M_Blue_2]

8. + 1000 N/T

[spooky3]

9. I still would like to see them team up! nt

[Blue_true]

10. Of everyone, he has the fairest and most realistic tax plan, and a good sense

of what to do with the money.

We are at and will go deeper into an era where machines will replace working people. Automation and artificial intelligence applications will reduce shop floors from 100 people to maybe 8 or 9, if that. We need people that understand that world and who have enough humanity to see how it impacts everyday people and come up with solutions, that is one reason why I like a bit of Andrew Yang, I think he gets how smart machines have and will continue to impact society. We are not going to put the genie of smart machines back in the bottle, so we had better look at electing people that understand how that genie is affecting society and who can come up with taxing and social investment policies to smooth that transition for working people.

[Blue_true]

7. "Like me, faced a bill in their lifetime".

This is what I find insulting about the "he or she is a billionaire, so I don't like him or her" craze by some here on DU. You act like those people were born in a bed stacked with money, with a silver spoon in their mouth. In fact, both Steyer and Bloomberg were born into middleclass means and lived as adults as such (though they quickly started to become rich as young men of the finance world), they FACED a bill or two at some point in their adult life. Maybe you struggled and are struggling more, but literally calling them Daddy Warbucks out of the womb is grossly shortsighted.

When I was in college one friend of mine dropped out of engineering school and went to Finance school instead. One of my female friends was from a very rich family, even as I was poor as a churchmouse. Both people are very nice people and are rich. To somehow call people unworthy of understanding our everyday humanity because they are rich is myopic, IMO.

[spooky3]

11. One of the best and sweetest students I ever had turned out to be

the grandson of someone who gave millions to our university. When I realized this, I said thanks to him and his family. His response: "I hope some day I can do the same."

It's what people do with their wealth and power that matters.

[Blue_true]

12. Exactly. nt