Michael Bloomberg mulls presidential run, media report says

Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg says he is considering jumping into the race for president, according to a media report.

Bloomberg, the billionaire founder of a media empire that bears his name, told the Financial Times that he is “looking at all the options” when he was asked whether he would run for the nation’s top post.

The newspaper, based in London, quoted Bloomberg on Monday as saying he was disappointed at the conversation that the current spate of candidates has generated on both sides of the political aisle.

“I find the level of discourse and discussion distressingly banal, and an outrage and insult to the voters,” the outlet said.

It’s the first time he acknowledged a possible run, although last month The New York Times reported that he had instructed advisers to draft plans for a potential independent campaign and that he would likely fund the run with about $1 billion of his own $39 billion fortune.

Bloomberg’s entry, said the Financial Times, would dramatically alter the race. There is already one billionaire, real estate mogul Donald Trump, dominating the wide field of candidates in the Republican race, while the two Democrats, Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton, have traded the top position in polls.

Bloomberg’s advisers, the newspaper said, said he was mulling the option and that he has to decide whether to enter by early March.