Michael Bloomberg is spending 'hundreds of millions of dollars' to defeat Trump in 2020


Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is funding a massive effort to ensure President Trump does not win a second term.
The Atlantic reports that Bloomberg for months has been holding private meetings with top political advisers and tech consultants and is "pouring hundreds of millions of dollars" into an operation designed to defeat Trump in 2020. Their efforts will be driven by data, with the goal being to "collect data about voters on an unprecedented scale" and "fundamentally change the core Democratic infrastructure."
Theoretically, the group is part of Bloomberg's prep for his own presidential run, but it's not yet clear whether he will ultimately join the race. He's been flirting with a possible 2020 run for months, which he would do as a Democratic candidate and not an independent; he re-registered as a Democrat in October after stints as both a registered Republican and an independent.
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But regardless of whether Bloomberg decides to personally launch a campaign, The Atlantic writes that this anti-Trump operation he's funding will likely "become the biggest and most powerful political organization in the country overnight."
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Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.
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