PoliTalk USA
Michael Bloomberg
Democrat
• Age at Inauguration: 78
• Experience: Mayor of New York City (2002-2013)
• Education: Johns Hopkins University (BS), Harvard University (MBA)
• Interesting Fact: Bloomberg is a licensed private pilot
Key Platform Points
• Outspoken voice on gun control and climate change
• Views on taxes would put him on the conservative end of the Democratic field
Economy and Taxes
• Says he will work to strengthen the middle class, invest in education, create good-paying jobs in renewable energy and other industries
• Raise the federal minimum wage to $15/hour and index it to growth in median earnings
• Has called for more progressive tax policy, but says the wealth tax proposed by Sen. Elizabeth Warren goes too far
• Criticized a proposed tax increase on New York residents earning over $500,000 a year
• As mayor of New York City, he created the Small Business Solutions Center that offered free services to nearly 10,000 business throughout the city
Corporations
• Will not accept corporate PAC, lobbyist, or fossil fuel industry donations for his campaign
Criminal Justice and Drugs
• Believes legalizing marijuana should be left up to the states
• Has expressed regret about the implementation of the "stop-and-frisk" policy by the New York Police Department
• Cut the number of incarcerated people in half
• Focus on combating the high incarceration rate that disproportionately impacts people of color
• Reform or reduce cash bail
• Repeal the ban on access to Pell Grants for incarcerated persons
• Proposes a federal program to allow former prisoners to find paid work by incentivizing states and employers to hire them
• Fund alternative placement programs and risk-assessment tools to limit the number of detained youths waiting for trial
Education
• Make it a top national priority to increase student achievement, college preparedness, and career readiness
• Invest in career and technical education to create new opportunities and access to well-paying jobs for all Americans
• Doubled the education budget and gave a 43% raise to teachers as mayor of New York City because he believes in paying teachers well and recruiting and retaining the best
Environment
• Has praised the concept of the Green New Deal, but has promised to introduce what he considers to be an “achievable” version
• Cut emissions by 50% in the next ten years
• By 2028, 80% of electricity-generation in the U.S. will come from clean sources
• Accelerate the deployment of clean energy resources and create millions of jobs
• Eliminate coal-fired power plants by 2030, stop the growth of natural gas, and transition the United States to renewable energy sources
• End all subsidies to the fossil fuel industry
• Immediately re-join the Paris Climate Agreement
• Hold countries accountable for their emissions reductions targets
• Prioritize the frontline communities that have suffered most from coal pollution or have been left behind in the transition to clean energy
• Ensure corporations are held responsible for the damages they have created
• Fully embed environmental justice into how the government conducts its work
• Reverse President Trump’s rollback of clean air and clean water rules and greatly expand enforcement of the EPA
• Created the Climate Finance Leadership Initiative, which brings together seven of the world’s largest financial institutions with the goal of helping to fund and support ambitious climate plans
Foreign Policy
• Believes he can restore global respect to the White House
Government Reform
• Work with Congress to overhaul the campaign finance system and stop pay-to-play
• Strengthen ethics and regulations around conflicts of interest
• Improve access to the ballot
Gun Control
• Require universal point-of-sale background checks for all gun sales and close the private sale loophole, which allows people to buy guns from unlicensed sellers online
• Require every gun buyer to get a permit before making a purchase
• Formally declare the gun violence crisis to be a public health emergency to expedite funds and research
• Ban military-style assault weapons
• Ban high-capacity ammunition magazines
• Close the "boyfriend" loophole
• Pass a federal red flag law and fund state efforts to maximize the policy
• Require gun buyers to be at least 21 years old to buy handguns and semi-automatic rifles and shotguns
• Set a temporary bar on gun possession by assault and other violent misdemeanor offenders
• Make straw purchasing and trafficking stand-alone federal crimes
• Doesn't support a mandatory buyback program for assault weapons
• Pass legislation barring online publication of 3D-printing gun blueprints
• Require secure storage of firearms to reduce the risk of child gun injuries by up to 85 percent
• Ban all guns in K-12 schools, colleges, and universities – except for law enforcement
• Fund at least $100 million annually for local violence intervention programs
• Increase ATF funding by up to $100 million annually so that the Bureau is able to police the gun industry more effectively
• Repeal the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA) so that gunmakers and gun dealers will no longer have broad immunity from civil lawsuits
Health Care
• Doesn't support Medicare for All
• Create a Medicare-like public option
• Include an optional policy covering dental, hearing, and vision care
• Cap premiums at 8.5% of a household’s income
• Plan to lower drug prices:
• Cap Medicare beneficiaries' out-of-pocket spending on drug costs at $2,000 per year
• Cap drug prices at 120% of the average in other advanced nations
• Authorize the secretary of Health and Human Services to negotiate drug prices with pharmaceutical companies
• Ban drug companies from making payments to the people who make decisions at pharmacies
• Plan to combat the opioid epidemic:
• Provide medication and counseling to treat opioid use disorder when people enter hospitals or the criminal justice system
• Treat people who suffer from addiction problems instead of incarcerating them, unless they have committed violent crimes
• Enforce federal laws mandating insurance coverage for mental health and substance use disorders
• Develop national standards for states to gather data on opioid use and overdoses to understand which areas need help most
Immigration
• Believes the country needs “an awful lot more immigrants rather than less” to fill jobs the country needs and to improve our economy
• Advocate for welcoming immigrants and fixing the broken immigration system
• Against the Trump administration policy of family separation at the border
LGBTQ+ Rights
• Supports same-sex marriage
National Security & Veterans Affairs
• Supports same-sex marriage
Social Security & Welfare
• Expand the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit to add hundreds of thousands of units of affordable housing over ten years
• Reform the Earned Income Tax Credit to make it much more generous, especially for single childless workers
• Increase the Child Tax Credit and make it fully refundable
• Increase funding for several existing federal housing programs
• Expand federal grants to cities that implement effective homelessness prevention programs
• To address local zoning laws that have pushed up the cost of housing, Bloomberg would create a $10 billion competitive grant program for municipalities that tackle restrictive zoning rules
• Address inequities in housing access and wealth, and enforce laws to ensure that developers, landlords, and lenders act fairly
Women's Rights
• Pro-choice stance
Children
Economic:
• Increase the annual Child Tax Credit and make it fully refundable
• Expand the Earned Income Tax Credit offered to lower-income families, particularly those with children
Health:
• Higher tax credits would increase access to child care
• Doesn't support Medicare for All and would create a Medicare-like public option
• Ensure all employees have 12 weeks of paid family leave
Education:
• Guarantee access to full-day preschool for all three- and four-year-olds
• Triple the number of children served by Early Head Start
• Make it a top national priority to increase student achievement, college preparedness, and career readiness
• Invest in career and technical education to create new opportunities and access to well-paying jobs for all Americans
Child Welfare:
• Improve the health of at-risk infants and children by increasing the number of low-income families who receive free, voluntary nurse home visits through the Early Childhood Home Visiting Program
• Cut the number of incarcerated children in half
• Fund alternative placement programs and risk-assessment tools to limit the number of detained youths waiting for trial
• Require secure storage of firearms to reduce the risk of child gun injuries by up to 85 percent
• Recognize Dreamers as US citizens, end family separations at the border, and establish rigorous safeguards for children
• Promote alternatives to detention for immigrant children and families who pose no threat to public safety
• Launch a federal “Respect for All” initiative to combat bullying, harassment and discrimination
• Promote school-based mental health programs, including suicide prevention efforts, and protect LGBTQ+ youth from conversion therapy
Other:
• See Bloomberg's Environment and Gun Control stances for more related to children's policy