Bloomberg Says Super Tuesday Won’t Be End: Campaign Update

(Bloomberg) -- In an interview airing Sunday night on CBS’s “60 Minutes” that was taped before Saturday’s South Carolina primary results, Michael Bloomberg said he would continue his campaign even if he doesn’t finish in the top three on Super Tuesday.

“There’s an election seven or so days later,” he said, according to a transcript provided by the network. “There’s another one 14 days later. There’s a number of elections after that.”

Bloomberg has skipped the first four nominating contests, including South Carolina, and is focusing on the 14 states that vote on Super Tuesday and the races beyond that.

Bloomberg said if Bernie Sanders is the nominee, President Donald Trump will beat him because “the middle of the road doesn’t want extremism.” The U.S. House will return to Republican control, the Senate will stay in Republican hands, and “a lotta statehouses” will flip from Democratic control, Bloomberg predicted.

“And when that happens, you’re gonna have gerrymandering at the local level, and judicial appointments at the federal level that will last for decades,” Bloomberg said. “And so, what’s really at stake here is the future of this country.”

(Disclaimer: Bloomberg is the founder and majority owner of Bloomberg LP, the parent company of Bloomberg News.)

The former mayor aired a three-minute message on NBC and CBS in prime time on Sunday night, at an estimated cost of $1.5 million and $2 million each, for what he billed as an “address to the nation” on the threat of the coronavirus and to remind voters of his record as a crisis manager as he steps up his criticism of Trump’s response.

“The coronavirus is spreading, and the economy is taking a hit. Markets have fallen because of uncertainty,” Bloomberg says in the commercial, according to a script released by his campaign. “At times like this it is the job of the president to reassure the public that he or she is taking all the necessary steps to protect the health and well-being of every citizen.”

Bloomberg has been saying all week that Trump “buried his head in the sand” instead of preparing for a possible outbreak and “his incompetence put us all at risk.”

Barbara Boxer Is Latest to Endorse Joe Biden (5:30 p.m.)

Former Senator Barbara Boxer, who had urged Joe Biden to stay out of the 2016 presidential race against Hillary Clinton, endorsed the former vice president and longtime Senate colleague on Sunday.

“Want to keep the House and flip the Senate to blue?” tweeted Boxer, who retired in January 2017 from her Senate seat from California, which holds its primary with 13 other states on Tuesday. California awards 494 delegates, the most of any contest.

Boxer said Biden had worked hard in very difficult races across the country to help Democrats take back the House in 2018. “We cannot afford to gamble on this,” she stated.

After Biden’s big win in South Carolina’s primary Saturday, he also picked up the backing of Representative Jennifer Wexton of Virginia, another Super Tuesday primary state. She joins two other Virginians, Representative Bobby Scott and former Governor Terry McAuliffe, who had made similar announcements earlier. North Carolina state representative Billy Richardson also announced his endorsement, and celebrities including Jane Lynch expressed support.

In a statement, Boxer described the election to defeat Trump as a battle for the soul of America. “We need a leader who will bring us together, unite us as one country, and restore the promise of America — I know that Joe Biden is that leader,” she said.

Sanders’s Rallies to Continue Despite Virus (12:40 p.m.)

Bernie Sanders said Sunday he will keep holding rallies that draw massive crowds until Super Tuesday, despite concerns about the spread of the coronavirus in some U.S. states.

Asked on CBS whether it was safe for him or the public to have such large gatherings, he said he believed so.

“My campaign has spoken to public health officials on that issue,” he said. “And right now, we are planning to do rallies not only in California, but in Utah, Minnesota and other states around the country.”

The first death from coronavirus was reported in Washington state on Saturday and health officials have said it is sure to spread in the United States. However, the risk to Americans remains low at this time.

Sanders is leading in many states that vote on March 3, including in California, which is Super Tuesday’s biggest prize. -- Magan Crane

Coming Up

Fourteen states and one U.S. territory will vote on Super Tuesday, March 3.

Six states hold their primaries on March 10.

The Democrats debate again in Phoenix, Arizona, on March 15.

--With assistance from Magan Crane and Billy House.

To contact the reporter on this story: Mark Niquette in Columbus at mniquette@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Wendy Benjaminson at wbenjaminson@bloomberg.net, Ros Krasny, Max Berley

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