Michael Bloomberg Is Reportedly Planning a Serious Third-Party Run This Year

Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has contemplated a presidential third-party run for years, but it appears that given the top two candidates on both sides, he is starting to seriously go for it this time.

According to The New York Times, Bloomberg is appalled by the rise of Trump, doesn’t care for Ted Cruz, and has serious concerns about Hillary Clinton faltering as Bernie Sanders continues to rise.

And so Bloomberg thinks that if Clinton does not win the Democratic nomination, he could probably get in the race by the March deadline to qualify in all 50 states.

Former Pennsylvania governor Ed Rendell explained the sitaution to the Times as bluntly as possible:

“Mike Bloomberg for president rests on the not-impossible but somewhat unlikely circumstance of either Donald Trump or Ted Cruz versus Bernie Sanders. If Hillary wins the nomination, Hillary is mainstream enough that Mike would have no chance, and Mike’s not going to go on a suicide mission.”

And NBC has now confirmed the Times report.

Bloomberg does have a record of saying things

that would bother both sides, from the time he said Ivy League liberals like to “repress conservative ideas” to the time he said Cruz “says some of the stupidest things I’ve ever heard” on climate change.

So if Trump gets the GOP nomination and Bloomberg hops into the race too, then we’re gonna have two billionaires running for president against each other. Fun times.

[image via screengrab]

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Follow Josh Feldman on Twitter: @feldmaniac