Meet the Candidates: Michael Bloomberg and Tulsi Gabbard

February 4, 2020 · by · in

By Vote Everywhere Ambassadors, Erin Wilson & Emma Beach

Welcome to ‘Meet the Candidates’! Every week until the New York primary we will post all the information you need to know about the Democratic candidates. This week we will start with former New York mayor Michael Bloomberg and Representative Tulsi Gabbard.

MICHAEL BLOOMBERG

Biography

Michael Bloomberg, one of the most recent entries into the Democratic race, is the former mayor of New York, New York. He served in that position for the three terms (2002-2013) and was registered as a Democrat, Republican, and Independent during his mayorship.

Bloomberg is also the CEO and co-founder of Bloomberg L.P., which you may know for its magazine, Bloomberg. Due to the success of his company, Bloomberg is the 14th richest person in the world and the 9th richest person in the United States. However, he recently signed The Giving Pledge, a pledge where billionaires pledge to give away at least half of their wealth.

Poll Ranking

In the most recent Washington Post/ABC News national poll (1/26/2020), Bloomberg was polling at 7%, which puts him in 4th place among democratic candidates.

Political Views

  • Gun Control
    • Gun control is one of Bloomberg’s foremost issues. He is a primary funder of Everytown for Gun Safety and is a staunch supporter of stricter gun laws. Specifically, he supports policies such as an assault weapons ban, universal background checks, and extreme risk protection orders.
  • Climate Change
    • Bloomberg believes in climate change and supports efforts to reduce our impact on the earth. He does not support the Green New Deal saying that it is not achievable because of the current state of the Senate. He has been quoted saying, “Mother Nature does not wait on our political calendar, and neither can we”. Therefore, he proposed his own project called “Beyond Carbon” which would not go through governmental avenues. Beyond Carbon would “eliminate coal-fired power plants by 2030, stop the growth of natural gas and transition the United States to renewable energy sources” (NYTimes, 2019).
  • Economy
    • Bloomberg, although generally socially liberal, is conservative in his views on the economy. He has opposed President Obama’s and Bill de Blasio’s wealth taxes, calling the latter, “about a dumb a policy as I can think of”. The policy proposal was to raise income taxes on residents earning more than $500,000 a year.
  • Healthcare
    • Bloomberg opposes “Medicare for all” saying that providing everyone with government-run health insurance would “bankrupt us for a very long time”. However, he said he is open to a public option for health insurance.
    • Pro-Choice
  • Criminal Justice Reform
    • Bloomberg continues to support the now discontinued stop-and-frisk policy employed by the NYPD. Stop-and-frisk was ruled unconstitutional in 2013 with a federal judge ruling that it was based on racial profiling. Despite this, Bloomberg continues to support the policy.
  • Immigration
    • Bloomberg supports giving the currently undocumented Americans a pathway to citizenship and advocates against deportation. However, he also supports increasing border security.
  • OTHER ISSUES

 

TULSI GABBARD

Biography

Tulsi Gabbard joined the presidential race in mid-January of 2019. Gabbard is the representative for Hawaii’s 2nd congressional district as a registered democrat. Formerly, she was a member of the Hawaiian House of Representatives and the Honolulu City Council.

Gabbard was the first Hindu member of Congress and, at the age of 21, was also the youngest woman to be elected as a state legislator. She is currently a Major in the Hawaiian Army National Guard and served two tours in the Middle East.

Tulsi Gabbard is one of the least wealthy persons running for president in 2020. Her net worth is estimated to be around 500,000, and she is the 418th (out of 435) wealthiest members in the House of Representatives according to a 2016 poll.

From 1999 to 2004 Gabbard actively voted and lobbied against same-sex marriage in Hawaii. She has since publicly apologized for her former positions and is now a member of the LGBT Equality Caucus in Congress advocates for pro-LGBTQA+ rights legislation.

Poll Ranking

In the most recent Washington Post/ABC News national poll (1/26/2020), Gabbard was polling at 1%, which puts her in 9th place among democratic candidates.

Political Views

  • Gun Control
    • Gabbard supports an assault rifle ban and universal background checks.
  • Climate change
    • In 2017, Gabbard introduced the Off Fossil Fuels for a Better Future Act. This bill would require electric utilities to transition to 80% renewable energy resources by 2027 and 100% renewable energy resources by 2035. It would also mandate zero emissions from cars by 2050, eliminate tax breaks for fossil fuel companies, and ban fracking.
    • Gabbard did not co-sponsor the Green New Deal saying, “I do not support ‘leaving the door open’ to nuclear power unless and until there is a permanent solution to the problem of nuclear waste,”
  • Education
    • Gabbard supports making community college tuition-free for everyone and four-year college tuition-free for students whose families make $125,000 or less annually.
  • Healthcare
    • Gabbard co-sponsored “The Expanded and Improved Medicare for All Act,” which would create a national health insurance program for uninsured and underinsured persons. It would allow private insurance for supplemental purposes but not to replace the benefits of government-provided insurance.
    • Pro-choice
  • Military
    • Gabbard opposes the U.S.’s current military interventionism and supports the removal of troops from Afghanistan and Syria.
  • Criminal Justice Reform
    • Gabbard supports ending cash bail, abolishing the death penalty, eliminating private prisons, and getting rid of mandatory minimum sentences. She has been quoted as saying, “This so-called criminal justice system, which favors the rich and powerful and punishes the poor, cannot stand.”
  • Immigration
    • Supports citizenship for dreamers.
        • Although she supports free community college, she does not support undocumented immigrants having access to this program.

Have questions about the 2020 Presidential race?  Want to register to vote?  Email our Vote Everywhere Ambassadors at vote@pace.edu!

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