AND MAKING IT CLEAR. BUT OF COURSE NOW ALL OF THAT UP
IN THE AIR.
THAT’S WHY THEY --
>> I’M INTERRUPTING YOU BECAUSE
I HAVE BREAKING NEWS TO SHARE
WITH YOU, AS WE TALK ABOUT
CANDIDATES EXITING THE RACE.
WE CAN REPORT HERE AT NBC NEWS
AND MSNBC THAT MIKE BLOOMBERG IS
ENDING HIS PRESIDENTIAL
CAMPAIGN.
CAMPAIGN. THAT IS ACCORDING TO OUR OWN
JOSH LEDERMAN WHO SAYS THE
CAMPAIGN SPOKESPERSON IS NOW
CONFIRMING THAT BLOOMBERG IS OUT
OF THIS RACE.
IT IS NOT COMPLETELY UNEXPECTED
GIVEN BLOOMBERG’S RECENT DEBATE
PERFORMANCES, HIS SHOWINGS ON
SUPER TUESDAY WIDELY CONSIDERED
TO BE DISAPPOINTING.
I KNOW JOSH IS RACING TO A
CAMERA RIGHT NOW.
BECAUSE THIS IS SIGNIFICANT IN
THAT IT DOES -- JOSH LEDERMAN IS
HERE FOR US.
TELL US WHAT YOU’RE HEARING FROM
THE CAMPAIGN AND TELL US WHY
THIS IS SO SIGNIFICANT.
LET’S TALK THROUGH THIS.
>> SO MIKE BLOOMBERG IS OUT OF
THE PRESIDENTIAL RACE.
THAT’S ACCORDING TO HIS CAMPAIGN
SPOKESMAN, JASON SCHECTER.
HE TOOK A LATE-NIGHT FLIGHT BACK
FROM PALM BEACH AS THE
DISAPPOINTING RESULTS WERE
COMING IN FOR HIM.
WE’RE TOLD BY CAMPAIGN AIDES
THAT HE WARRANTED TO MEET WITH
ADVISERS HE’S DATA DRIVEN GUY.
AT THE END, THEY DECIDED THIS
WAS NOT SOMETHING TO PROCEED
WITH.
WITH. EVEN IN THE LAST FEW MINUTES AS
THEY WERE MAKING THIS FINAL
DECISION, HIS CAMPAIGN THANKED
THEM FOR THEIR SUPPORT, SAYING
IT WOULD TAKE A WHILE FOR ALL OF
THE DELEGATE MAP TO COME IN, BUT
RE-AFFIRMING THAT THE TOP GOAL
IS TO DEFEAT PRESIDENT TRUMP.
WHETHER THAT’S HIM OR WHETHER
THAT’S ANOTHER DEMOCRATIC
NOMINEE.
NOMINEE. >> WELL, JOSH, HE IS IN HIS NEW
STATEMENT -- I KNOW YOU’RE
PROBABLY LOOKING AT IT IN THE
EMAIL AS WELL.
THE ONE FROM THE CAMPAIGN THAT
HAS COME OUT IN LAST COUPLE OF
SECONDS.
SECONDS. IT APPEARS HE’S THROWING HIS
WEIGHT BEHIND JOE BIDEN NOW.
I WANT TO READ THIS SO THAT
FOLKS UNDERSTAND IT.
WE’LL GET IT UP ON THE SCREEN AS
SOON AS WE CAN.
MIKE BLOOMBERG SAID I BELIEVE
ALWAYS BELIEVED THAT DEFEATING
DONALD TRUMP STARTS WITH UNITING
BEHIND THE CANDIDATE WITH THE
BEST SHOT TO DO IT.
AND BLOOMBERG SAYS QUOTE AFTER
YESTERDAY’S VOTE, IT IS CLEAR
THAT CANDIDATE IS MY FRIEND AND
A GREAT AMERICAN, JOE BIDEN.
BLOOMBERG GOES ON TO SAY HE
KNOWS HIS DECENCY AND HONESTLY
AND HE’LL WORK TO MAKE HIM THE
NEXT PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED
STATES.
STATES. SO JOSH, THIS AGAIN -- MIKE
MEMOLI IS JOINING US NOW FROM
THE BIDEN CAMP.
MIKE, BOY, AMY KLOBUCHAR,
BUTTIGIEG, BETO O’ROURKE, NOW
MIKE BLOOMBERG.
MIKE BLOOMBERG. A SIGNIFICANT MOMENT HERE FOR
THE FORMER VICE PRESIDENT.
>> YEAH.
>> YEAH. HALLIE, I MEAN THE BIGGEST
THREAT TO BIDEN’S CANDIDACY OR
AT LEAST ONE OF THEM OVER THE
LAST FEW MONTHS THAT LED TO SOME
OF HIS STUMBLES OUT OF THE GATE
IS THE FACT THAT MIKE BLOOMBERG
GOT INTO THE CASE EFFECTIVELY
ARGUING THAT JOE BIDEN COULDN’T
CUT IT.
CUT IT. THAT HE COULDN’T WIN THE
NOMINATION AND DEFEAT DONALD
TRUMP.
TRUMP. I THINK THEY LOOKED AT THE
ENTRANCE DIFFERENTLY.
ENTRANCE DIFFERENTLY. THEY HAD HOPED WHEN HE GOT INTO
THE RACE HE WOULD HELP JOE BIDEN
MAKE THE ARGUMENT AGAINST THE
MORE LIBERAL CANDIDATES IN THIS
RACE.
RACE. BERNIE SANDERS AND ELIZABETH
WARREN SPECIFICALLY.
WARREN SPECIFICALLY. IF HE WANTS TO BE A SUPER PAC TO
HELP MAKE THE CASE AGAINST THE
LIBERALS IN THIS PARTY THEY
WELCOMED HIM.
WELCOMED HIM. WE SAW HIM GOING ON THE AIR WITH
A FLOOD OF TELEVISION ADS THAT
MADE HIM LOOK LIKE HE HAD BEEN
BARACK OBAMA’S VICE PRESIDENT.
THAT DIMINISHED JOE BIDEN’S
STANDING AMONG WITH
AFRICAN-AMERICAN VOTERS WHICH IS
SO CRITICAL.
SO CRITICAL. AND TAKING THE INCOMING FIRE
THAT BIDEN HAD BEEN TAKING
MONTHS, BLOOMBERG DID NOT
WEATHER THAT WELL.
SO NOW, YOU’RE GOING TO SEE I
THINK TEAM BIDEN VERY QUICKLY
AFTER BEING TOUGH ON HIM BOTH
BEHIND THE SCENES AND BIDEN ON
THE DEBATE STAGE RALLY AROUND
MIKE BLOOMBERG, EMBRACE HIS
SUPPORT IN THE WAY THAT WE HAVE
SEEN JOE BIDEN VERY QUICKLY
EMBRACE HIS OTHER RIVALS IN A
WAY THAT HAS BEEN HELPED --
BIDEN WANTS TO HELP RALLY THE
PARTY TOGETHER AS QUICKLY AS
POSSIBLE AT THIS POINT.
YOU SAW THOSE ENDORSEMENT EVENTS
WITH MAYOR PETE BUTTIGIEG, WITH
AMY KLOBUCHAR, WITH BETO
O’ROURKE WHERE BIDEN WAS AS MUCH