Michael Bloomberg Surrogate Helped Elect Brazil’s Jair Bolsonaro, Says Report
A new report from left-wing site The Grayzone claims that Michael Bloomberg‘s surrogate, Arick Wierson, helped to elect Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro, which the publication says is known for his far-right views and use of violence against his political opponents.
Wierson reportedly joined Bolsonaro’s campaign in 2018 and was tasked with softening the right-wing leader’s image, which was marred by many controversial comments. Before Bolsonaro, Wierson worked for Bloomberg on his 2001 political campaign.
Although Wierson reportedly doesn’t have an official position on Bloomberg’s 2020 presidential campaign, The Grayzone notes that he has been “aggressively promoting” and advocating for him on corporate media networks.
“In his media appearances and on his social media accounts, Wierson has vigorously attacked self-described socialist Senator Bernie Sanders, the most popular presidential candidate in the Democratic primary,” the report reads.
The publication points to Wierson’s Twitter and Facebook posts, which it claims are riddled with “nonstop pro-Bloomberg propaganda.” It also notes that when Wierson worked on Bolsonaro’s campaign, Bloomberg Media provided favorable coverage of his efforts, including a 2018 piece titled “Bolsonaro’s Message on Love and Peace Tested in Brazil Media.”
“Michael Bloomberg himself has rubbed elbows with Bolsonaro henchmen like Sergio Moro, a mastermind of the political coup against Brazil’s left-wing Workers’ Party government and the jailing of its leader,” The Grayzone report reads.
That Marina-naro Bloomberg story is still up this morning hours after she pointed out the video was hers not Bolsonaro's??? pic.twitter.com/2EPFmgRbG5
— Tom Phillips (@tomphillipsin) October 10, 2018
Per National Review, Bloomberg — a former Republican — endorsed the reelection of George W. Bush in 2004 and has donated to many GOP members over the years. According to the report, he has consistently given to both the Democratic and Republican Party up until 2018. Notably, he donated to $1,000 to President George Bush in 1991, $1,000 to Senator Lamar Alexander in 1992, $250 to Mayor Rudy Giuliani’s presidential bid in 2007, and $2,700 to Senator John McCain in 2016.
“Tomorrow night, one of his rivals may want to point out to Democratic primary voters that Bloomberg has been financing the opposition for many, many years,” the report reads.
Bloomberg indeed faced criticism at the debate for his former party affiliation, as well as his record as New York City mayor. As The Inquisitr reported, Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren was particularly hard on Bloomberg, pointing to his treatment of women and comparing him to President Donald Trump.
Bloomberg’s surging campaign, which has spent over $400 million on television advertisements, has been criticized by independent journalist Michael Tracey for threatening democracy. Conversely, conservative commentator Ben Shapiro claims that Bloomberg has done nothing wrong by flooding the airwaves with campaign advertisements.
Shapiro pointed to the high spending of fellow billionaire Tom Steyer, who has not achieved the same level of success as Bloomberg, and suggested political strategy had a significant role in the 78-year-old’s success.
