Michael Bloomberg

Former mayor of New York
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Michael Bloomberg dropped out of the presidential race on March 4, 2020. This page is no longer being updated.
Bloomberg made a late entry into the 2020 Democratic race in November 2019, offering a more moderate vision for the country and casting himself as a problem solver. He served as New York City’s mayor from 2002 to 2013 and is the co-founder, CEO, and owner of Bloomberg L.P., a privately-held financial, software, data, and media company.
Johns Hopkins University, B.S., 1964; Harvard University, MBA, 1966
February 14, 1942
Diana Taylor (partner); divorced from Susan Brown
Jewish
Emma and Georgina
Co-founder, Bloomberg LP (previously named Innovative Market Systems), 1982-present;
Investment banker, Salomon Brothers, 1966-1981

BLOOMBERG IN THE NEWS

Michael Bloomberg Fast Facts
Updated 3:02 PM ET, Wed Feb 7, 2024
Here is a look at the life of Michael Bloomberg, former New York mayor and 2020 Democratic presidential candidate. Personal Birth date: February 14, 1942 Birth place: Boston, Massachusetts Birth name: Michael Rubens Bloomberg Father: William Henry Bloomberg, bookkeeper Mother: Charlotte (Rubens) Bloomberg, office manager Marriage: Susan Brown (1976-1993, divorced) Children: Georgina, 1983; Emma, 1979 Education: Johns Hopkins University, B.S. in electrical engineering, 1964; Harvard Business School, M.B.A., 1966 Religion: Jewish Other Facts One of four New York City mayors to serve three terms. Left the Democratic party in 2001 and won his first two mayoral terms as a Republican. His third mayoral term was won as an independent, and then he rejoined the Democratic party in 2018. Diana Taylor has been his companion for more than 20 years. As mayor of New York, Bloomberg made sweeping changes to city schools, transportation, including extending subway lines, and public health, implementing extensive regulations targeting smoking and obesity. Since 2006, Bloomberg Philanthropies, an umbrella organization of Bloomberg's charities which includes the nonprofit Bloomberg Family Foundation, has donated billions to political interests and causes such as education, the environment and public health. Timeline 1966-1981 - Works as a clerk, and later partner at Salomon Brothers in New York. 1981 - Co-founds Bloomberg L.P. (formerly Innovative Market Systems) using a $10 million partnership buyout from Salomon Brothers. 1982 - Creates the Bloomberg terminal, a software system with a specialized keyboard used by financial professionals to trade stocks electronically and access live market data. 1990 - Co-founds Bloomberg News (formerly Bloomberg Business News). 1994 - Launches Bloomberg Television (formerly Bloomberg Information TV). 1996-2002 - Serves as chairman of the Johns Hopkins University's board of trustees. 1997 - His memoir, "Bloomberg by Bloomberg," is published. November 6, 2001 - Is elected mayor of New York. November 8, 2005 - Is elected to a second term. November 3, 2009 - Is elected to a third term after spending more than $100 million on his reelection campaign. In October, the New York City Council voted to extend the city's mayoral term limits from two four-year terms to three. May 2012 - Announces a proposal to ban the sale of sugary drinks larger than 16 ounces at restaurants, food carts and any other establishments that receive letter grades for food service. On June 26, 2014, New York's Court of Appeals rules that New York City's ban on large sugary drinks, which was previously blocked by lower courts, is illegal. July 27, 2016 - Endorses Hillary Clinton for president at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia. November 24, 2019 - Announces his late-entry Democratic presidential bid, unveiling a campaign squarely aimed at defeating President Donald Trump. November 24, 2019 - Bloomberg News Editor-in-Chief John Micklethwait releases a statement addressing how the network will cover the 2020 presidential campaign and reveals that it will not investigate Bloomberg or any other Democratic candidates. February 10, 2020 - Audio is posted online of Bloomberg from 2015, defending his use of "stop and frisk" as mayor by describing the policy as a way to reduce violence by throwing minority kids "up against the walls and frisk[ing] them." Bloomberg later says his 2015 comments about the controversial stop and frisk policing policy do not reflect the way he thinks or the way he led as mayor of New York City. February 18, 2020 - Qualifies for his first Democratic presidential debate, by polling four times at or above 10% nationally. February 18, 2020 - A campaign adviser tells CNN that Bloomberg would sell his financial information and media company if he's elected president, in an effort to be "180 degrees away from where Donald Trump is on these issues." February 19, 2020 - Faces criticism in first presidential debate from other Democratic candidates regarding campaign spending, his record on policing tactics as mayor of New York and misogynistic comments he allegedly made about women at his company in the 1980s and 1990s. March 4, 2020 - Ends his presidential campaign and endorses Joe Biden. September 3, 2020 - Bloomberg's charity, Bloomberg Philanthropies, announces he is donating $100 million to the nation's four historically Black medical schools to help ease the student debt burden for the next generation of Black physicians. September 25, 2020 - Bloomberg announces $40 million in TV ads supporting Biden statewide in Florida. February 2, 2022 - Joseph Beecher is arrested, accused of breaking into the Colorado ranch owned by Bloomberg and kidnapping a Bloomberg employee. Beecher demanded to know the location of Bloomberg's daughters, according to an arrest warrant affidavit. Beecher was found in Wyoming with the employee, who was unhurt. February 9, 2022 - Is nominated to serve as the chair of the Defense Innovation Board. Bloomberg is sworn in on June 22, 2022. September 20, 2023 - Announces an additional $500 million commitment to continue Beyond Carbon's aim of shutting down coal plants and reducing gas plant capacity.
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STANCES ON THE ISSUES

climate crisis
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Bloomberg said, if elected, he would make climate a top priority. The US would rejoin the Paris climate accord, the landmark 2015 global agreement on global warming targets. He has said he wants the US to create a clean energy economy and has vowed to create renewable energy jobs. Previously, he worked as the UN secretary-general’s special envoy for climate action, and he has worked with cities, states and businesses to address the climate crisis.
economy
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Bloomberg has vowed to create a housing proposal and an earned income tax credit to provide economic opportunity for all Americans. His housing proposal would expand funding for the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit, and would increase federal spending for programs like the Public Housing Capital Fund, the HOME program and Community Development Block Grants. He proposes revising the Earned Income Tax Credit and raising the incomes of low-wage workers. By 2025, he wants to increase the minimum wage to $15 an hour. Bloombergwrote in an op-ed in December 2017 that, in order to achieve revenue-neutral tax restructuring, he was in favor of reducing the 35% corporate tax rate. He criticized President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax overhaul as an “economically indefensible blunder that will harm our future.”
education
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Bloomberg would make it a top national priority to increase student achievement, college preparedness and career readiness. He says he leads national efforts to increase the number of lower-income students enrolled in top colleges, and that as mayor, he strengthened standards and created more quality school options. He says he increased graduation rates, increased the education budget and opened new schools. While he was mayor of New York, a state law placed the New York public school system under mayoral control. Bloomberg supported the move, and used the power to open new schools, champion charter schools and close poor-performing schools. He was often at odds with the United Federation of Teachers.
gun violence
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In 2014, Bloomberg pledged to spend $50 million to build a nationwide grassroots network to combat the National Rifle Association. He founded the umbrella group Everytown for Gun Safety, which brought together groups he already funded: Mayors Against Illegal Guns and Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America. A goal of the groups was to try to “expand the background check system for gun buyers both at the state and national levels,” according to The New York Times. If elected, Bloomberg says, he would continue to back common-sense gun policies. More on Bloomberg’s gun violence policy
healthcare
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Bloomberg said the US should expand Obamacare and Medicare in order to achieve universal coverage. His campaign website reads: “As a mayor, businessman, and philanthropist, Mike has pioneered bold health initiatives that have cleaned the air we breathe, expanded access to prenatal and postnatal care, increased screenings for breast and prostate cancer, dramatically cut teen smoking, and reduced injuries and deaths on roads.” Bloomberg said “Medicare for All” would “bankrupt us for a very long time,” The New York Times reported in January 2019. “I think you could never afford that. You’re talking about trillions of dollars,” he said of the single-payer health plan. As mayor, Bloomberg pushed for New York City to ban smoking in all restaurants and bars and for big soft drinks to be banned.
immigration
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Bloomberg founded New American Economy, a pro-immigration coalition of business leaders and mayors that aims to reach the public and policymakers. In 2018, the group targeted senators with a TV and phone campaign to urge them to protect so-called Dreamers, undocumented immigrants who came to the US as children.

LATEST POLITICAL NEWS

Devastation in Gaza as Israel wages war on Hamas
Updated 2:37 AM ET, Tue Mar 19, 2024
Famine is imminent in northern Gaza, where 70% of the population is suffering "catastrophic" levels of hunger, a UN-backed report said Monday. All 2.2 million people in Gaza do not have enough food to eat, with half of the population on the brink of starvation and famine projected to arrive in the north “anytime between mid-March and May 2024,” according to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report. This is the “the highest number of people facing catastrophic hunger ever recorded… anywhere, anytime,” by the IPC, said UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres Acute hunger and malnutrition have already “far exceeded” the threshold for famine in northern Gaza and the IPC warns of a “major acceleration of death and malnutrition.” “Between mid-March and mid-July, in the most likely scenario and under the assumption of an escalation of the conflict including a ground offensive in Rafah, half of the population of the Gaza Strip (1.11 million people) is expected to face catastrophic conditions,” the report warned. Scarce supplies mean that “virtually all households are skipping meals every day” and adults are going without so their children can eat, the report said. One in three children below the age of 2 is “acutely malnourished." Famine could be halted if aid organizations were allowed full access to Gaza to bring food, water, and other supplies to the civilian population, the report said. Read more on the food security crisis in Gaza. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit Saudi Arabia and Egypt to meet with government leaders this week and discuss efforts to reach an “immediate ceasefire agreement” between Israel and Hamas, according to the State Department. The deal would secure the release of hostages taken by Hamas during the October 7 attack on Israel, the State Department said. The agreement would also ensure "intensified international efforts to increase humanitarian assistance to Gaza, and coordination on post-conflict planning for Gaza, including ensuring Hamas can no longer govern or repeat the attacks of October 7th," the State Department said. Blinken also plans to discuss how to end Houthi attacks on commercial ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. Some background: In Qatar, truce talks are taking place between Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, Israel’s Mossad chief David Barnea, and Egyptian officials. The talks touch on a ceasefire deal in Gaza in exchange for the release of hostages held by Hamas, a source with knowledge of the discussions told CNN. Blinken's visit will be part of a larger trip, which includes stops in Austria, South Korea, and the Philippines. Israeli authorities are preparing to send a group of Palestinian patients who were being treated in East Jerusalem hospitals back to Gaza this week. The group of 22 Gazan Palestinians includes five newborn babies and their mothers, cancer patients now in remission, and a few companions who had accompanied them, according to hospital officials. They had all received permission from Israeli authorities to travel to Israeli-occupied East Jerusalem for advanced medical care – most before the October Hamas 7 attack on Israel. But staying in East Jerusalem is no longer an option. The Israeli defense ministry body responsible for Palestinian affairs, COGAT, has for months been pushing East Jerusalem hospital officials for a list of patients who no longer require in-patient medical treatment to send them back to Gaza, those officials told CNN. The patients on that list, which has been seen by CNN, are expected to board buses for the Kerem Shalom crossing on the border between Israel and Gaza on Wednesday. Among them will be Nima Abu Garrara, who was brought from Rafah to East Jerusalem while pregnant with twins and gave birth on October 5. All her twins have known is the safety of a room at Makassed Hospital. Soon, that will be torn away, traded for the reality of war. Abu Garrara fears a grim future in Gaza, where an Israeli military ground offensive on the southern city of Rafah looms. “I’ll be the one responsible for anything that harms them," she said referring to her twins. Read more about the patients who will be sent back to Gaza. The Biden administration will meet with Israeli officials "soon" in Washington to discuss alternatives to a planned military ground offensive in Gaza's southern city of Rafah, where about 1.5 million people are sheltering after fleeing fighting in northern areas. In a call with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Joe. Biden said Israel's plans for a major operation in Rafah could be catastrophic for Palestinian civilians, and asked the Israeli leader to send a delegation of military leaders to Washington to discuss alternatives. Netanyahu agreed to the request, and national security adviser Jake Sullivan said the meeting would be held at the end of this week or early next week. Biden's concerns over Israel’s planned Rafah offensive fell within three areas: Civilians sheltering in Rafah have nowhere safe to go Rafah is an entry point for critical humanitarian assistance Neighboring Egypt has voiced serious concerns about a potential military operation in the city. In the call, Netanyahu reiterated Israel's commitment to achieving its war goals, including eliminating Hamas and releasing hostages. Here are the other major developments in the conflict: "Fierce clashes" around Gaza's largest hospital: Hamas' military wing said its fighters engaged in “fierce clashes” with Israeli forces around Al-Shifa Medical Complex after Israel said it launched an incursion because the Gaza City hospital was being used by "senior Hamas terrorists." The Health Ministry said there were multiple casualties at the complex, where about 30,000 people were sheltering, and the head of the World Health Organization said "hospitals should never be battlegrounds."  Mass arrests at Al-Shifa: The IDF said it arrested over 200 "terror suspects" at Al-Shifa hospital. One was Al Jazeera Arabic correspondent Ismail Al-Ghoul, the network said. The US is aware of the arrest and has asked Israel for more information, a State Department official said. Humanitarian crisis: A report published by the UN World Food Programme warned that sustained fighting and lack of humanitarian aid means famine is now "imminent in the northern governates" of Gaza between now and May. The top US humanitarian aid official called it "a horrific milestone" and urged Israel to open more land routes to deliver aid. A growing number of children are dying of starvation and dehydration, according to WHO and Palestinian officials, and doctors say malnutrition is complicating the recovery of children from their injuries. Hamas commander killed: Israel killed a senior Hamas commander in an airstrike last week, according to the White House. Marwan Issa was one of the planners of the October 7 attack against Israel, the IDF said last week. On Monday, an IDF spokesperson did not confirm the information but said Israeli forces attacked an underground compound used by senior Hamas officials on March 9. The IDF was not able to verify if Issa was killed, the spokesperson said. ##Catch Up## US forces destroyed seven anti-ship missiles, three drones, and three weapons storage containers in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen on Monday, according to US Central Command. The strike took place between 1 p.m. and 7 p.m. (Sanaa time), CENTCOM said in a statement, calling it an act of "self-defense." "It was determined these weapons presented an imminent threat to merchant vessels and U.S. Navy ships in the region," CENTCOM said. US forces have been conducting similar strikes in the area where tensions have heightened since the Iran-backed militant groups began attacking commercial vessels in the key waterway. Earlier this month, a ballistic missile by the Houthis struck a commercial ship in the Gulf of Aden, killing three crew members in its first fatal attack since October. The Biden administration will meet with Israeli officials “soon” in Washington to “discuss alternative approaches that would target key elements of Hamas and secure the Egypt-Gaza border without a major ground operation in Rafah,” the White House said in a statement. President Joe Biden spoke with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday and voiced "deep concerns" over Israel's planned major operation in Gaza's southern city of Rafah, according to White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan. It was the first known phone conversation between the leaders in over a month as their rift deepens. Biden asked Netanyahu to send a delegation of military leaders to Washington to discuss an alternative approach for going after Hamas in Rafah, to which Netanyahu agreed. The meeting could take place at the end of this week or early next week, Sullivan said. The leaders also discussed the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and hostage negotiations in Qatar, according to a White House statement on the call. Emphasis on northern Gaza: The leaders discussed “the urgent need” to increase the flow of aid to Gaza, especially in the north of the enclave. “The President stressed the urgent need to significantly increase the flow of lifesaving aid reaching those in need throughout Gaza, with special emphasis on the north,” the White House said. Malnutrition is complicating the recovery of children from their injuries in war-torn Gaza’s collapsing health care system, according to doctors. A growing number of children are dying of starvation and dehydration, according to the World Health Organization and Palestinian officials. Acute malnutrition doubled within one month among children in northern Gaza, according to UNICEF. Project Hope is a US-based health and humanitarian aid organization that operates in regions facing health crises. Its emergency teams report that 5%-15% of the children arriving at its two clinics in Deir Al-Balah and Rafah are malnourished. “Malnutrition amplifies the fragility of the situation,” Rondi Anderson of Project Hope said. “If you’re malnourished, you’re weak. A child’s immune system is weak, it gets infected, then the healing can’t happen, and it gets prolonged.” CNN spoke to multiple doctors who have been to Gaza since the war began. They reported seeing a lot of orthopedic injuries like limb injuries as well as burns, which present multiple layers of treatment. In these situations, a patient needs good pain management, nutrition, antibiotic care and fluid management. In Gaza, “all those four pillars are gone,” said Dr. Amber Alayyan from Doctors Without Borders, also known as Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF). Adding a malnourished state to that means the healing is complicated, she added. “People who have really huge injuries are dying on the spot,” she said. “At the beginning, we were seeing people with really big abdominal injuries and thoracic injuries and things like that. And now, I think that I truly think that they’re dying on the spot, because we’re seeing fewer and fewer. You do see them, but they don’t necessarily make it to the ICU very quickly.” The top US humanitarian aid official called a report warning that famine is set to break out in northern Gaza sometime between now and May “a horrific milestone” and urged Israel to open more land routes to deliver aid into the enclave. “We continue to call on Israel to open more land routes into Gaza and reduce bottlenecks and inspection delays to get land crossings operating at full capacity, even as we pursue air and maritime options to supplement these land routes,” US Agency for International Development (USAID) Administrator Samantha Power said in a statement. The report by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification said that the sustained fighting and lack of humanitarian aid means famine is now "imminent in the northern governates" of Gaza and "projected to occur anytime between mid-March and May 2024."  Power said the "catastrophic levels of hunger and malnutrition" detailed in the report "should be unimaginable in the current era, but for hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in Gaza, this is the reality." “With just two previous Famine declarations in the twenty-first century, this is a horrific milestone," she added. Doctors Without Borders recounted reports from its staff of heavy fighting around Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza as Israeli forces conducted a military offensive inside and around the facility on Monday. A staff member of the organization, also called Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), reported hearing “drones, tanks, and shelling” near the hospital in the early hours of Monday, witnessing a fire rising from Al-Shifa's main building.  Clashes were also reported around the organization's clinic and office in Gaza City where some staff and their families are sheltering. "We call on all warring parties to respect the grounds and perimeter of Al-Shifa Hospital and ensure the safety of medical personnel, patients, and civilians," MSF said in a statement. According to MSF staff, Israeli forces conducted “mass arrests in the area surrounding Al-Shifa,” and one of the organization’s staff members is currently unreachable. Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Daniel Hagari said on Monday that Israel has been waiting for the “right time to act” at Al-Shifa Hospital, in comments addressing Israel’s military operation there. Hagari said that the IDF arrested over 200 “terror suspects” who are “now under investigation.” The World Food Programme released a statement Monday on their Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report about food security in the Gaza Strip that found 88% of the region’s entire population faces “emergency or worse” food insecurity and warns that famine in northern Gaza is “imminent.” “People in Gaza are starving to death right now,” said WFP Executive Director Cindy McCain. “The speed at which this man-made hunger and malnutrition crisis has ripped through Gaza is terrifying.”  The IPC report, which was written by a group of NGOs, governments and UN agencies warned that "between mid-March and mid-July, in the most likely scenario and under the assumption of an escalation of the conflict including a ground offensive in Rafah, half of the population of the Gaza Strip (1.11 million people) is expected to face catastrophic conditions (IPC Phase 5)." Here's what else we know: According to the report, for the 300,000 people that remain trapped in Nornhern Gaza, "famine is expected to arrive between now and May,” and one in three children in Gaza below the age of two are “acutely malnourished.”    Southern Gaza is also slowly nearing famine, according to the report, which found that the region may reach famine conditions by July.  The report goes on to say that the nearing famine could be halted if aid organizations are allowed full access to the Gaza Strip to bring food, water and other nutritional products to the civilian population, and that “a humanitarian ceasefire is necessary,” for this to occur. The World Health Organization's chief expressed concern about the situation at the Al-Shifa Hospital in northern Gaza after an Israeli military raid on the medical complex. The organization's chief, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus highlighted the concerning situation in a post on X, saying: "Hospitals should never be battlegrounds."  "We are terribly worried about the situation at Al-Shifa Hospital in northern #Gaza, which is endangering health workers, patients and civilians," he said. A displaced Palestinian, Hamada Abdelhadi, told CNN that Israeli military vehicles and bulldozers had been “demolishing and excavating the outer edges of the hospital yards” as part of the operation.  Ghebreyesus said the hospital had only recently managed to restore "minimal health services," warning that fighting there or "militarization of the facility jeopardize health services, access for ambulances, and delivery of life-saving supplies." 
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