‘We put ourselves at an enormous disadvantage to invest every dollar we can over a year into a state that ultimately is not going to make a difference in November…’
(Claire Russel, Liberty Headlines) Former New York Gov. Michael Bloomberg’s presidential campaign manager admitted that both Democrats and Republican pollsters know President Donald Trump will win Iowa in the general election.
“We as Democrats spend a year living in Iowa,” Kevin Sheekey said. “The thing that Democrats and Republican pollsters agree on is that Donald Trump is going to win in Iowa. So we’ve thrown out a year of investment in a state that isn’t going to make a difference.”
Sheekey’s comments were in response to questions about why Bloomberg—a latecomer to the race—hasn’t been heavily campaigning in the two primary caucus states: Iowa and New Hampshire.
But given Iowa’s Republican tilt, spending time and money in Iowa is pointless, Sheekey said.
Kevin Sheekey, Bloomberg 2020 CM: “We as Democrats spend a year living in Iowa… The thing that Democrats & Republican pollsters agree on is that Donald Trump is going to win Iowa. So we’ve thrown out a year of investment in a state that isn’t going to make a difference.” pic.twitter.com/hUO4EdOjiS
— The Hill (@thehill) January 14, 2020
The billionaire media mogul and former Democrat mega-donor recently pledged to spend a billion dollars of his own money, if necessary, to defeat Trump.
Even so, Sheekey explained, it was necessary to invest shrewdly.
“We put ourselves at an enormous disadvantage to invest every dollar we can over a year into a state that ultimately is not going to make a difference in November,” he said.
Instead, Democrats should focus on important swing states—such as Michigan, Wisconsin, North Carolina, Florida, Arizona and Pennsylvania.
“Those are the states that Donald Trump is campaigning in every single day,” Sheekey said.
Bloomberg previously explained in an op-ed why he wouldn’t begin campaigning in Iowa and New Hampshire.
He called the political emphasis on the two traditional lead-off states “undemocratic”—and even suggested, in the same vein as other Democratic campaigns, that it was racist to offer them special attention.
“Our current system—in which two early states dominate the candidates’ time and resources—is in urgent need of reform,” Bloomberg wrote.
“While it’s great that candidates reach out to voters in these states at every pancake breakfast and town hall around, what about African–American, Latino, Asian American, Pacific Islanders, and other voters in places like Detroit, Montgomery, Phoenix, and Houston?”
The self-declared moderate also has his eyes on the top prize, California, whose 55 electoral votes make it something of a kingmaker among Democratic candidates, with its radical-leftist politics often helping drive the party’s agenda.
Bloomberg recently said it was a “great example” that other states should look to.