Raimondo Defends Bloomberg, Following Allegations of Sexist Behavior and Reports of Racist Remarks

Raimondo Defends Bloomberg, Following Allegations of Sexist Behavior and Reports of Racist Remarks

Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo defended her endorsement of former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg for President, following recent reports of sexist and racist behavior during his time in office and in business. 

Since Raimondo’s endorsement, Bloomberg’s 2011 remarks saying that “Black and Latino men don’t know how to behave in the workplace” have surfaced — as well as his own alleged sexist and abusive behavior in the workplace, including allegedly telling one pregnant employee to “kill it.” 

"Well first let me say that any allegation of inappropriate conduct, harassment, sexism can’t be tolerated — I have a zero-tolerance policy for it," said Raimondo. 

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"I will say he I think has apologized for many of those comments — I know he’s apologized for his mistaken policy in stop and frisk. He has said that he has learned from this. Frankly, that’s what I want in a leader. Someone who acknowledges mistakes, learns from them, and leads," said Raimondo. "I will say, the person who is most problematic, is the person who is currently in the White House who has a long track record of being terrible to immigrants, terrible to dreamers, and terrible to women, and I’m behind Mike Bloomberg because I think he has the best chance."

According to one lawsuit, when Bloomberg saw certain women, he said, “I’d f--- that in a second,” according to a report in the Washington Post. 

When pushed back on some of the comments that Bloomberg reportedly said about women, Raimondo said she believes Bloomberg has "learned from it."

“He’s been extensively covered in the past — he was three-time Mayor of New York — so a lot of it wasn’t a surprise. It’s upsetting, it’s concerning, you never want to see that, but I also believe he’s learned from it, he’s changed, and he has an incredible record of investing in women’s healthcare, women’s empowerment, in the Latino community, in economic development for the African American community," said Raimondo. "I just think we have to be very serious and very practical right now, if you believe as I do that President Trump is taking this country in the wrong direction."

"Has Mike made mistakes? We all have. Has he acknowledged those mistakes and learned from them? Absolutely," said Raimondo. "This President wouldn’t apologize to you if he stepped on your toe."

Raimondo also responded to the head of the Rhode Island Latino PAC — Joseph Molina Flynn — this week calling her endorsement of Bloomberg “awful.”

"I couldn’t disagree more. Look, President Trump has been terrible for the Latino community, and terrible for the immigrant community. He has been caging children at the border. We all have to everything we can to make sure President Trump is not reelected. I stand by Mike Bloomberg because I believe he is the best candidate in the race — not perfect — but the best candidate to beat Donald Trump and I think we have to keep our eye on the prize in November.

Nevada Primary — and Bloomberg’s Wealth

A new poll has Bloomberg surging, ahead of the Nevada primary.

Senator Bernie Sanders advanced to 32% support among Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents in the latest ABC News/Washington Post poll released Tuesday, up 8 percentage points from late January. 

Former Vice President Joe Biden fell to 17%, down 11 points to his lowest of the campaign. And Bloomberg, who is participating in his Democratic debated Wednesday in Nevada, now has 14% support, up 6 points from the last poll. 

On Tuesday, Senator Elizabeth Warren accused Bloomberg of “buying” his way into the Nevada debate — and called him an “egomaniac billionaire.”

"It’s a shame Mike Bloomberg can buy his way into the debate. But at least now primary voters about how each candidate will take on Donald Trump can get a live demonstration of how we each take on an egomaniac billionaire," Tweeted Warren.

Raimondo addressed Bloomberg's wealth on Tuesday -- calling it an asset. 

"I think we have a monster in the White House — what he has done over and over again is undignified, un-American, and hurtful to Americans. So we have to get behind a candidate that can beat Donald Trump," said Raimondo. "Yes, Mike has a lot of resources. He’s lived the American dream — he grew up under modest circumstances, he worked hard, he’s made a lot of money through success. And I’m frankly grateful he’s willing to spend those resources in order to defeat President Trump."