But we don't seem to have many FDR's and JFK's around anymore.

The next president will be either Democrat or Republican. In this era, those ARE the choices. If Trump runs again, the choice will be the Democratic nominee or Trump.

Sure, speak FOR favorite candidates all through the primary, but be careful about badmouthing Democrats and never support anyone who lies about Democrats or claims they'd be bad for the nation. (Except for people trying to elect Republicans again, of course.)

If it helps to keep on track, never forget that detention centers that can hold at least 200,000 persecuted people are being planned. We already know many people who are here legally will be sent to them -- if WE fail to protect our nation. We don't know yet if any of us are at risk yet, such as journalists or bloggers, but should assume we could be.

Trump's people are not Nazis because they're not 1930s-40s Germans, but they are exactly the same kind of people as those who became Nazis. We don't ever want to know what our American Trumpzis are capable of.

So, no to Bloomberg. Okay, but...restraint. For myself, he's too conservative and I want to hang all billionaires upside down and shake them down -- literally obliterate their class -- NOT elect them president. I'm still waiting to learn of someone half as prepared and with as aspiring and well planned an agenda as Hillary, so itm Hillary for positive reasons.

Who DO you want and what's good about them?

That's about all I'm saying.

I can think of several good Democrats I would like to see run. Men like Adam Schiff and Senator Whitehouse. Women like Kamala Harris. Personally I would like to see Hillary run again. But, I have a hard head. I learn very slowly.

watching out for the kind of charismatic, usually populist leaders who go after slow learners with short catchphrases that appeal to anxiety and resentment, delivered with the kind of supreme confidence surely only a great leader could have?

It's a standard approach for those running from behind that's guaranteed to draw some, as we all know to our sorrow. Hitler and Trump as especially obvious versions come to mind, but every election produces others of lesser talent but same approach.

Amaf, one thing I can say about Bloomberg right now is that he's not suckering people and weakening our democracy by appealing to destructive populist passions, but with that kind of money he could portray himself convincingly at any point as pretty much anything that would sell.

He’s a corporatist who tried to destroy public education. He’d appoint another Arne Duncan, if elected, which was one of Obama’s biggest mistakes! Public schools are for the public. They are not for Wall Street fat cats trying to make another dollar!

education. I think by far the largest problem for schools are parents. School teachers are expected to make up for kids that have poor discipline at home, are fed poorly, don't get enough rest at night.

I think the best setup would be to take ALL public school kids out of the home during the school week. Have them live in dorms overseen by responsible, monitored adults. They would have study homes, nutritious meals, be taught proper hygiene and they will have monitored bedtimes. In such a system, school teachers will focus exclusively on teaching the kids during the day. Kids will be allowed to go to religious observances during the week with parents, but would return to the dorms. They would go home starting Friday afternoon and would return to the dorms early Sunday night so that they can have dinner, bath and get their coming week school uniforms.

Teachers would be expected to simply show up and teach and evaluate the academic progress of kids.

Any kid going into public school should be taken out of the home during the school week as soon as possible, two years old is good because the one that have lousy parents wouldn't have extensively developed behaviors that cause issues in an academic setting.

The system will suck a little for good
parents, but overall should produce better societal outcomes.

Dorms would be built around the grade level school that they serve.

Rich people like Bloomberg can help fund the startup costs of the system, but it's setup and operation would be determined by teachers, administrators, guidance counsellors, ect.

You think we don't need our own narcissistic New York billionaire who thinks he is above the law and stop and frisk is a great solution to crime

Same for many State governments as well.

But, regardless, I've proven I will vote for and support whomever is the eventual nominee after the primary process.

chances are slim to none that I'd support him in a primary, if he's the party's nominee I'll hold my nose and vote for him because even as much as I'm not a big fan of his, he's still a whole LOT better than that divisive, racist, lying narcissistic sexual predator POS, Trump.

He isn't very well liked outside of NYC, and I don't think he intends to run... doubt he'd be in the race after NH primaries if he did. He may vote as a Dem but he isn't presidential material in the minds of most Democrats.

That's good enough for me.

His income is primarily based on financial reporting and securities information.

The guy started a company on an idea, it became successful because he had found a need. He became very rich because of that. His charitable efforts are pretty extensive. Please stop bashing people simply because they are rich. If they are rich and are bastards, by all means rip them apart, they deserve it.

Sorry.

Every rich person is automatically a devil and every poor person a saint? Regardless of how they got to where they are?

Kentuck, you seem to be a decent person, I read a lot of your OPs. But you are way off on not trusting a person because of their wealth. Try looking deeper at the person. I think that what you will find is some rich people are very decent human beings and some poor people aren't worth being around, and vice versa.

But I just don't want a billionaire to represent the Party of the people. Just my personal preference.

republican running in 2020, especially Trump. His personal wealth means he will not be depending on other Billionaires , unlike most other career politicians who must cater to their billionaire donors to stay in the game.

is to run for office? And if that is his goal, he would do better to run as a republican and win back the rational republicans who also want another outspoken businessman who takes no crap from anybody. He would give Trump a good run for his money. He's smarter, richer, and just as media savvy.

You assume that the Republican Party is rational, which it isn't. He is better off building a coalition of democrats and former republicans (the ones that are smart enough to realize that their party is gone).

And that's a disqualifier as far as I'm concerned. If he really wants to be useful he should run as an R and try to pull that party's collective heads out of their asses. Aspiring to be president should be about public service.

I am in NO WAY interested in forming a coalition with any republicans, former or otherwise. They are the ones who have fucked their party up by riding the waves of extremism, racism, misogyny into power--it is their job to fix it.

people that share a lot of our concerns.

We need oligarchs on our side, really! We need capital and influence, and the tools and reach to WIN ELECTIONS.

What could go wrong?

He is too far to the right for grass roots dems like me.

I'm somewhat optimistic that our party would not nominate him, but I don't rule anything out anymore.

Let's just say if they did, the party would cease to exist for many including me.

I doubt that Bloomberg will be the nominee. I really like Joe Biden, and Senators Harris and Booker

However I will support the nominee of the party

Just my opinion but I don't think the world needs ANY billionaires, and particularly not as the head of governments.

or are people on a site called Democratic Underground seriously talking up Michael Bloomberg as a candidate?

Maybe Carly Fiorina can be his running mate. Geographical and gender diversity!

And let me guess - there's still no such thing as a corporate Democrat.

Billionaire or not in an era of unprecedented wealth concentration and the near collapse of rural Main Street economies - trust in Bloomberg. He's just like FDR and Elizabeth Warren.

Wowsa. Big tent party, I guess.