/Bloomberg builds ‘massive’ Mississippi campaign as other 2020 Democrats focus elsewhere

Bloomberg builds ‘massive’ Mississippi campaign as other 2020 Democrats focus elsewhere

Bloomberg’s multimillion-dollar investment in Mississippi, home to the largest number of African-American voters, is occurring amid greater scrutiny of his support for the controversial stop and frisk policing tactic. This tactic has disproportionately affected communities of color. Bloomberg, a former New York City mayor, is a billionaire who has virtually unlimited capital to invest this cycle. He has hired 24 full time staffers in Mississippi for his campaign, which many veteran political operatives claim is the largest ever full-time staffing of any presidential candidate in state history. This campaign would also rival or surpass the state’s largest statewide campaigns. Nathan Shrader is the chair of the Department of Government and Politics, Millsaps College. “The campaign that Michael Bloomberg has launched across the country is unparalleled in its scale and scope.” “His campaign has flooded Mississippi with skilled field organizers and advisors, advertising featuring persuasive messaging and a data-driven strategy designed to maximize their voteshare.” The March 10 primary is three weeks away and most presidential candidates have not spent much money in Mississippi. Bloomberg is an exception, despite his large investment in the state. Bloomberg employs nearly twenty-six paid staffers. Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren has two full-time staffers. Former Vice President Joe Biden and U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders have volunteer or surrogate staff members in the state. Bloomberg is one of two Democratic presidential candidates to have purchased TV ads in Mississippi. He has spent at least $2.3million on TV so far this cycle, according FCC records. FiveThirtyEight tracked the FCC records. According to the tracker, Tom Steyer is the only Democratic candidate who has spent on Mississippi TV. He has spent $25,000 in Mississippi. 14 of the full-time Bloomberg staffers are field staff. Field staff are the lifeblood of campaigns. They organize, run and canvass campaign events and operations. These staffers work in the Bloomberg campaign offices in Jackson, Oxford, and Gulfport. When compared to Mississippi’s most powerful Democratic campaigns, Bloomberg’s staff is particularly impressive. Bloomberg employs more full-time staffers that the 2019 gubernatorial campaigns of Jim Hood and Mike Espy for the U.S. Senate, respectively — campaigns that have benefited from significant fundraising and national attention. Mississippi Today asked several politicians for context about the Bloomberg campaign’s existence. One Republican operative has worked on several presidential campaigns. He called Bloomberg’s investment for Mississippi “unbelievable.” An experienced Democratic operative from Mississippi described Bloomberg’s spending as “massive”. Bloomberg entered the race in November 2019. He did not qualify for the ballots in any of the four primary states or caucuses. Bloomberg is spending big in the hopes of gaining delegates, as the remaining Democratic presidential candidates focus their efforts and spend in those states. Kevin Sheekey, national campaign manager, stated that the campaign uses a “national campaign” to reach everyone in the country. Bloomberg spoke at a rally in Vermont in late January. “And if your goal is to replace Donald Trump, you might consider visiting these states to make the case that you are better than Donald Trump.” Senior officials at the Bloomberg campaign also hired experienced campaign professionals as well as rising young Democrats to hinder other campaigns from gaining significant ground before the primary. The campaign’s state director is Pam Shaw, a veteran Democratic consultant who specializes on African American outreach. Many campaign alumni of Democratic Senate Candidate Mike Espy joined the Bloomberg team, including Teresa Jones, political director. Sam Hall, a former executive director of Mississippi Democratic Party and most recently executive editor at The Clarion Ledger is the communications director. Emily Liner, a native of Bay St. Louis who has served in various policy advisor and governmental affairs positions in Washington, D.C., serves as the digital director. A few young Mississippians were also hired by the campaign, including Jarrius Adams (the president of the Young Democrats of Mississippi) who serves as an organizing director and Reid Haynie who is serving the campaign’s data manager. Others include former Democratic political candidates such as Ryan Brown, who ran in the central district for the public service commission in 2019, Brandon Rue, who ran in the state House of Representatives for 2019 and Mario Giles who ran in Bolivar County supervisor for 2019. His campaign has been under fire for his time as New York mayor, despite pundits suggesting that Bloomberg’s preference for the later-states could help him to be a candidate ahead of the Democratic National Convention. Many former employees of Bloomberg have made allegations of sexism, harassment and other misconduct in the last week. The Washington Post published last week vulgar and misogynistic remarks that Bloomberg made towards women in court documents. In recent days, reporters also focused on Bloomberg’s position on New York City’s Stop-and-Frisk policies. This was a signature of his 10 year tenure as mayor, and disproportionately affected minorities. Bloomberg has repeatedly apologized since he launched his campaign in Nov 2019, though he spent years insisting that the policy was effective, and glossing over the important context surrounding its eradication. Hall, Bloomberg’s Mississippi communications chief, said, “As Mike continues in the polls increase, the attacks will also increase.” “And despite these attacks, we continue adding more endorsers to the cause and supporters from all over the state and of every background. People understand Mike has addressed these problems head-on, he’s apologized, and — most importantly — because he has a strong track record of helping minorities, underserved communities as a mayor and a businessman. Bloomberg has also taken the criticisms to heart and mocked Republican President Donald Trump. Bloomberg’s campaign posted a video this week criticizing Sanders’ supporters. Bloomberg rebuked Trump last week for tweeting about Trump’s height and calling him a “carnival barking clown.” The Bloomberg campaign has been promoting Mississippi endorsements in recent days. It announced last week that a few Democratic members of the state House of Representatives had supported Bloomberg. Many Democratic candidates hope to gain support from black mayors throughout the country. Bloomberg has received endorsements from Muriel Bowser, Washington, D.C. Mayor; Stockton, California, mayor Michael Tubbs; San Francisco Mayor London Breed, and William Bell, former Mayor of Birmingham. Bloomberg has been endorsed by Percy Bland, Meridian Mayor, and Linda Short, Mayersville Mayor. Chokwe Antar Lumumba (Jackson Mayor) has not publicly supported any candidate. However, he is a target for endorsement ahead of the primary. Several 2020 candidates have been in contact with him. Lumumba hosted Bloomberg’s campaign in December 2019 for a roundtable discussion on criminal justice reform. In late 2018, Lumumba was joined by Bloomberg when Bloomberg’s non-profit announced a $1million donation to a downtown Jackson public art space. The Jackson mayor hosted a town hall meeting with Sanders in spring 2018 before the Vermont senator declared his intention to run again for the presidency. While Lumumba has yet to indicate whether he will endorse, many Bloomberg staffers have connections to the capital’s mayor. Brittany Gray is the organizing director of the Bloomberg campaign. Gray was an organizer who worked with Lumumba’s father, the former mayor, and also for his father. Tyson Jackson and Chuck Patterson, both organizing directors at the Bloomberg camp, are also close friends of Lumumba and have worked on his campaigns. A spokesperson for Mayor Lumumba didn’t immediately respond to a request._x000D