(JTA) — Michael Bloomberg, the former New York City mayor and billionaire media mogul, officially entered the 2020 presidential race.
Bloomberg’s first campaign video, released Sunday, refers to the candidate as a “middle class kid who made good.” The video cited the 9-11 attacks, saying Bloomberg “brought a city back from the ashes,” and also talked about his work on gun control, climate change and affordable housing. Ignoring the other Democratic candidates, the video declares that Bloomberg is now taking on “him” — as a photo flashes of President Donald Trump. The ad promises that Bloomberg will make the wealthier pay higher taxes, offers anyone without health care to get it and anyone who likes theirs to keep it, and vows to create jobs.
The Bloomberg campaign has reserved more than $31 million in television ad time to air the spot, the single largest single week expenditure according to Advertising Analytics, NBC News reported.
Advisor Howard Wolfson told the Associated Press on Saturday that Bloomberg will not accept campaign donations, and instead will pay for his run out of his own personal fortune.
Bloomberg on Thursday filed a statement of candidacy with the Federal Election Commission to declare himself as a Democratic candidate for president.
Earlier this month he registered to run in the Democratic primary in Alabama.
Bloomberg was a Democrat before running for New York mayor as a Republican, and then later becoming an independent. He recently returned to the Democratic Party.
Bloomberg served as mayor of New York City from 2002 to 2013.
He founded Bloomberg LP, which would grow to become a business media empire that stood out by providing up-to-the-minute stock information through specialized computer terminals. His net worth is valued at $52.4 billion, according to Forbes.
In 2014, he was the inaugural recipient of the Genesis Prize, which comes with a $1 million award. The prize honors individuals who serve “as an inspiration to the next generation of Jews through their outstanding professional achievement along with their commitment to Jewish values and the Jewish people.” He donated the prize money to social entrepreneurs.
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