Former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg said on Wednesday that the 2020 election is a “better forum” to remove President Donald Trump from office than a formal impeachment inquiry.
“I always have felt that an impeachment process where you’re not going to get it through the Senate, even if you get it through the House, turns into a partisan thing. And we don’t need any more partisanship,” Bloomberg said during a discussion with CNN’s Kate Bolduan at an event kicking off the third annual Bloomberg Global Business Forum.
On Tuesday, Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced a formal impeachment inquiry into the President as the Trump faces outrage over reports that he pressured a foreign leader in an effort to target a political rival.
“We have an election coming up. The public has the right to decide then whether or not the President continues in office or we have a change. That’s a better forum,” Bloomberg said.
He added, “But if there’s something that (Congress has) to take of right now, they should do it.”
Bloomberg, who publicly speculated about a 2020 bid for months, announced in March that he would not be running for president and instead was devoting his efforts to move the US to a 100% clean energy economy.
At Wednesday’s event, Bloomberg said he’s comfortable with his decision to stay out of the 2020 race, arguing that he can make a larger impact in the private sector working on issues like health care, combating climate change, and gun safety.
The billionaire spent over $100 million in support of Democratic efforts to retake Congress last fall.
Bloomberg also announced a new initiative Wednesday called “Satellites for Climate Action” that will use satellite imaging and technology to monitor the impact of greenhouse gases on the planet. Bloomberg will partner with the state of California and Planet, a San Francisco based satellite imaging company.
The initiative will gather information, including about the on-off state of coal power plants, track forest fires in California, and invest in technologies that will measure the carbon economy, Planet CEO Will Marshall said Wednesday.
CNN’s