The Guilty Billionaire vs Bernie’s Socialism

In the wake of Mike Bloomberg’s awful debate Wednesday evening, will the painful experience convince the businessman and former NYC mayor that, “with his current strategy of contrition and leftward policy lunge” he most likely won’t win the Democratic nomination?

Run as an Entrepreneur and Education Reformer

The editorial board of the WSJ has a suggestion. How about if Mr. Bloomberg runs as “a capitalist with liberal values who can expand the economy and extend opportunity to millions of kids trapped in terrible schools?”

Run as the entrepreneur and education reformer he is, and give the socialists and unions the debate the Democratic Party needs before it bets four more years on Bernie Sanders.

The Democrats’ Daddy Warbucks

Sanders seems thrilled to be running against a man whom he portrays as Daddy Warbucks from central casting.

Scolded the Vermont Socialist: “We have a grotesque and immoral distribution of wealth and income. Mike Bloomberg owns more wealth than the bottom 125 million Americans. That’s wrong. That’s immoral.”

Then Bloomberg was confronted by MSNBC’s Chuck Todd: “Is it too much? Have you earned too much—has it been an obscene amount of—should you have earned that much money?”

Before Bernie piled on: “Mr. Bloomberg, it wasn’t you who made all that money. Maybe your workers played some role in that, as well.”

Mr. Bloomberg, the WSJ points out, didn’t inherit his wealth, didn’t steal it, or merely get lucky.

Like all entrepreneurs, he started with an idea. He fulfilled an unmet need with innovative financial software and data that helped investors make money. He provided a service that people wanted and were willing to pay for.

Invalidate Bernie’s Socialism

At one point Mr. Bloomberg quipped: “What a wonderful country we have. The best known socialist in the country happens to be a millionaire with three houses.”

There’s a theme there to build on. It may not succeed, but he’ll never win running as a guilty billionaire.