Bloomberg makes preparations for 2020 run

Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is preparing to file paperwork to qualify for the Democratic presidential primary in Alabama, ahead of a Friday deadline. The move would be a first step toward a national campaign, though Bloomberg has not made a final decision to run.

"We now need to finish the job and ensure that Trump is defeated — but Mike is increasingly concerned that the current field of candidates is not well positioned to do that," longtime Bloomberg aide Howard Wolfson said in an email. "If Mike runs he would offer a new choice to Democrats built on a unique record running America’s biggest city, building a business from scratch and taking on some of America’s toughest challenges as a high-impact philanthropist."

Bloomberg has engaged in a will-he-or-won't-he routine for longer than a decade about running for president, but declined to jump in each time. Earlier this year, he was exploring a bid, only to bow out after former Vice President Joe Biden made clear he would run.

"I believe I would defeat Donald Trump in a general election," Bloomberg wrote in March. "But I am clear-eyed about the difficulty of winning the Democratic nomination in such a crowded field."