NEWS AND OPINION:
A certain Democratic presidential hopeful has spent $418 million in recent weeks on his campaign advertising blitz. But that’s not the only outreach he’s got going.
“If you feed them, will they vote? Billionaire presidential candidate Mike Bloomberg is enticing voters with unprecedented amounts of free food and booze — and not the cheap stuff, either,” writes Gary He, a contributor to Eater.com, a national food blog.
When volunteers and voters are around, they are not subjected to stale bagels or cold pizza.
Oh no.
Mr. Bloomberg prefers to fund a “kingly spread of food” that includes quiche, elegantly presented smoked salmon arrayed with thin lemon wedges, capers and chopped eggs, fresh fruit platters tastefully arranged, and upscale cookies and luscious pastries. But that ain’t all.
“Judging by the all-you-can-eat feasts that have become a hallmark of Bloomberg events throughout the country, his unconventional presidential campaign is taking at least one old adage seriously: that the way to a voter’s heart is through their stomach,” Mr. He says.
“Pete Buttigieg may hold fundraisers in a wine cave, but Bloomberg brings wine to the voters, serving it alongside Cuban sandwiches and kosher pigs in a blanket at a Miami rally in late January. Two weeks ago, in Philadelphia, more than 1,000 attendees feasted on hoagies, honeyed Brie, and cheesesteaks at Bloomberg’s expense,” he notes.
At a recent office opening in Queens, the Bloomberg campaign ordered food from a cross section of local restaurants — including Erawan Thai Cuisine, The French Workshop, Maria’s Mediterranean, Martha’s Country Bakery, Bayside Milk Farm, Mr. Pollo, VI Pizza, and Papazzio.
“Queens is the most diverse neighborhood in the country,” Jennifer Blatus, New York communications director for the Bloomberg campaign, told Mr. He.
“We’re able to cater to each individual group,” she noted.
“He’s buying them with food,” notes one Republican observer who asks to remain anonymous.
THE MEATBALL ADDENDUM
Of note: The Bloomberg campaign now offers a recipe to the public: ‘Mike’s Meatballs”, a classic combination of veal, pork and beef; garlic, Romano cheese, Italian fat leaf parsley, crumbs from “stale Italian bread,” pepperoni and provolone cheese — though the recipe itself neglected to provide the measurements for the last two items.
The campaign also superimposed Mr. Bloomberg’s face on one of the meatballs to mixed reviews — though one observer claimed that the meatball somehow looked “presidential.”
The ladies of ABC’s “The View” quizzed the candidate about the meatball phenomenon earlier this week. Why meatballs in a campaign? Why a recipe?
“Oh, I don’t know,” Mr. Bloomberg replied in a casual tone. “I like meatballs.”
THE ‘KO’ FACTOR
A major pollster offers a reality check for a Sen. Bernie Sanders.
“Trump thumps Sanders in a head-to-head matchup. President Trump would KO Democrat front-runner Bernie Sanders if the 2020 presidential election were held today,” said a new Rasmussen Reports poll of likely voters released Wednesday.
The survey found Mr. Trump earning 50% support among all likely U.S. voters compared to 43% who backed Mr. Sanders.
The president wins 84% of the Republican vote, while Mr. Sanders captures 75% of Democratic support — the poll finding that nearly one-in-four Democratic voters — 22% — would side with Mr. Trump instead.
“Senior Democrats including many of Sanders’ opponents for the presidential nomination argue that his socialist views are too radical for a general election,” the poll analysis said. “With Sanders’ views getting a wider airing in recent days due to his front-runner status, these new findings suggest that’s true.
“Just two weeks ago, 51% of all voters considered it likely that any of the announced Democratic candidates could defeat Trump in the upcoming election,” the analysis said.
Mr. Trump has a double-digit lead over Mr. Sanders among men, but the two are tied among women voters, Rasmussen said. The president leads among voters in all age groups.
“Sanders picks up 60% of blacks. Trump leads among whites 54% to 39% and edges Sanders 48% to 44% among other minority voters,” the poll noted.
The survey of 1,000 likely voters was conducted Feb. 24-25.
“STRONGER THAN EVER’
So many online betting houses are covering the U.S. presidential race these days that their numbers are now reported by major media organizations and such esteemed analysts as RealClearPolitics.com.
And here comes some more insight.
“Donald Trump‘s odds to win re-election are stronger than ever. Trump currently has 4/7 odds to win the 2020 U.S. presidential election. US-Bookies’ live election tracking page currently gives Trump a 56.1% chance to be re-elected, the highest his chance has been over the past 12 months,” reports US-Bookies.com, an industry source and research group for online betting.
REBRANDING SOCIALISM
Yes, presidential hopeful Sen. Bernie Sanders has much to say about “democratic socialism,” which is how he typically describes his political beliefs and agenda. Others have thoughts about it as well.
“The purveyors of socialism have tried to rebrand their product by calling it ‘democratic socialism.’ The sales force and marketing department of democratic socialism — the Democratic Party, and the mainstream media — are plying a new fairy tale that democratic socialism is nothing like socialism,” writes Dave Ball, a columnist for American Thinker.
“Democratic socialism is not the wonderland of inclusiveness, social justice, equality, and happiness it is advertised to be. It will not end human exploitation and it will not save the planet. It is still socialism, just with a new name. Socialism has never worked for any nation and it will not work in this country, even with a new name,” he says.
“Democratic socialism is pledged to bring about race and gender equality, income equality and general goodness. Individual liberties, private property and the concept of a competitive market will not be surrendered willingly. To achieve this, the new socialism will have to be just as authoritarian as the old socialism,” Mr. Ball adds.
POLL DU JOUR
• 58% of U.S. voters disapprove of the job Congress is doing; 64% of Republicans, 49% of independents and 54% of Democrats agree.
• 55% of women and 61% of men also agree.
• 26% of voters approve of the job Congress is doing; 23% of Republicans, 21% of independents and 29% of Democrats agree.
• 22% of women and 30% of men also agree.
• 17% of voters “don’t know”; 13% of Republicans, 30% of independents and 17% of Democrats agree.
• 24% of women and 9% of men also agree.
Source: A Fox News poll of 1,005 registered U.S. voters conducted JAN. 19-22, WITH THESE RESULTS AMONG THOSE released Tuesday.
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• Jennifer Harper can be reached at jharper@washingtontimes.com.
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