‘I am disappointed. I do wish he had followed up on that commitment…’
(Joshua Paladino, Liberty Headlines) Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg told Democrats that he would “help turn Texas blue” with his fat checkbook, but now that his own campaign has failed, he’s reneging, The Texas Tribune reported.
Before announcing his candidacy, Bloomberg told staffers that they would have a job through November as part of his ultimate goal: unseating President Donald Trump.
But right after Bloomberg bowed out of the Democratic presidential primary and endorsed former Vice President Joe Biden, he broke his promise, and his campaign told staffers that they were out of a job.
Regarding Texas, Bloomberg has broken yet another promise.
“Unlike New Yorkers, Texans have a Democratic cry: Texas is the biggest [battleground] state,” Bloomberg said at an event in Austin, Texas.
But he’s not treating it like a battleground state, and the Democrats’ blue-Texas dreams appear to be falling through.
Instead, his campaign will focus on six swing states: Arizona, Florida, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Michigan.
Elected Texas Democrats are disappointed with the news that Bloomberg has abandoned their hopes.
“Bloomberg was promising a long-term commitment to Texas regardless of who won the primary,” said state Rep. Donna Howard, D-Austin, who attended Bloomberg’s speech in Austin. “It’s disappointing that with his defeat in the primary, the campaign has decided to reverse course and not maintain a Texas presence.”
The Democratic National Committee still plans to vie for Texas in 2020 as well as Republican-leaning Ohio and Georgia.
“I am disappointed. I do wish he had followed up on that commitment,” said state Rep. Erin Zwiener, D-Driftwood, who saw Bloomberg speak in Austin. “I personally know people who accepted jobs within the Bloomberg campaign because they were so excited about the way he was investing in Texas.”