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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsUS election: Michael Bloomberg 'ponders White House run'
The billionaire former mayor of New York, Michael Bloomberg, is thinking about running for president as an independent candidate, US media report.
Unnamed advisers told the New York Times the 73-year-old sees a gap and has instructed staff to draw up plans.
Last year he commissioned a poll to see how he might perform against Republican frontrunner Donald Trump and Democratic favourite Hillary Clinton.
Mr Bloomberg would reportedly pump $1bn of his fortune into a campaign.
He has yet to make a statement on the issue but members of his staff have told other US media that he is indeed thinking about running, especially if Mrs Clinton is wounded by her rival Bernie Sanders.
The New York Times also reports that he has set a deadline for making a final decision in early March, when he could still enter the race in all 50 states.
The Republican and Democratic candidates face their first real test in just over a week, when Iowa becomes the first state to make its choice of nominee.
Analysis - Anthony Zurcher, BBC News, Washington
Michael Bloomberg is reportedly considering an independent bid for the presidency if Republican Ted Cruz or Donald Trump faces Democrat Bernie Sanders or a weakened Hillary Clinton.
Such a scenario could prove deadly for the Democrats. While Mr Bloomberg nominally holds no party affiliation and once was elected New York City mayor as a Republican, his candidacy likely would bleed support from the Democrats, and the Republicans he attracts would come from safely liberal states in New England, the mid-Atlantic and the West Coast.
It is a recipe for putting Donald Trump in the Oval Office with only a modest plurality of the vote.
Mr Bloomberg has embraced issues - gun control, climate change and sweeping public-health regulations - that are anathema to the right, no matter how palatable his pro-business policies may be.
While the former mayor may see this as a rare opportunity to run against flawed candidates from both parties and, in 2016, anything seems possible, his path to the presidency still would be a long shot.
It could end up creating an outcome where his dearest issues are actively undermined by the candidate who defeats him.
http://www.bbc.com/news/election-us-2016-35392989
merrily
(45,251 posts)aikoaiko
(34,170 posts)But very little from Bernie.
oberliner
(58,724 posts)There are a lot of folks out there who think Bernie is a bit extreme and who also think Trump is insane. These are the folks who would vote for what they consider to be a more moderate Democrat. These are the folks who were hoping Joe Biden would jump into the race.
Bloomberg would do well with those voters.
no_hypocrisy
(46,117 posts)She's excited. Said that she would volunteer for his campaign. She's terrified by either Cruz or Trump as the nominee.
OTOH, before Bloomberg, she was ready to vote for HRC. Now, she'd go to Bloomberg if given the choice.
Gothmog
(145,291 posts)Bloomberg is evidently only planning on running if Sanders is the Democratic nominee http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/michael-bloomberg-considering-presidential-bid
He has said he's likely to launch a bid if Republicans nominate either Donald Trump or Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Democrats nominate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), according to the Times.
To me this says a great deal about how electable Sanders is. Bloomberg evidently shares the opinion that Sanders would not be viable in a general election contest.
global1
(25,251 posts)Bloomberg is 73 y/o. I guess age then isn't that much of a factor anymore.
If Bloomberg runs - against whomever - we will have a Repug president. He will be a spoiler. He will be the blame for all that follows.
JHB
(37,160 posts)...because it would be impolitic for them to laugh in his face and ask him if he was on drugs (or maybe off them).