Presidential Candidate Michael Bloomberg Campaigns In Aurora On Gun Control
AURORA, Colo. (CBS4) - A week after announcing he's running for President, Democratic Candidate Mike Bloomberg made one of his first campaign stops in Aurora. The 77-year-old launched an unconventional primary campaign, bypassing the early voting states and focusing on Super Tuesday states, including Colorado.
He met with survivors and victims of gun violence in Aurora, less than a block from the theater where State Representative Tom Sullivan's Alex was murdered.
"I have witnessed the actions Mike has taken since Alex was murdered," Sullivan said as he endorsed Bloomberg for President. "I'm confident survivors and victims of gun violence will have an ally in the White House."
Bloomberg has been a champion of gun control for 15 years. He suggested his opponents have only come around recently, "I believe we need a President with a track record of taking on the NRA and winning. I've done it."
He promised the victims and survivors of gun violence he met with that he'll do even more as President.
He laid out an ambitious agenda, "As President, I will attack gun violence from every angle."
Bloomberg's proposal would not only require all gun buyers to pass a background check, but get a permit, wait 48 hours, be 21 years old, and in some cases undergo a mental health screening. It would also ban assault style weapons, enact a federal red flag law and remove immunity for gun makers and dealers in civil lawsuits.
"We just have to do something about this folks."
Bloomberg is betting his gun control message will resonate with suburban women who decide elections and young voters who grew up in an era of mass shootings. But, he comes to the race with lots of political baggage, too. Some Democrats see him as the New York City mayor who championed stop and frisk and the billionaire businessman who has criticized the wealth tax.
Bloomberg says he entered the race because he was worried that Joe Biden's campaign was losing steam and because he thinks Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders can't beat Trump.
He's already spent $30 million on ads. Like Trump, Bloomberg is wealthy, from New York and switched parties. He went from Republican to Independent to Democrat while Trump went from Democrat to Republican.
