Bloomberg calls for Trump’s removal in new impeachment ad

NEW YORK — Democratic presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg launched a new impeachment-focused television ad Tuesday urging the Senate to remove President Donald Trump from office.

The ad will run in 27 states, including states represented by vulnerable Republican senators, and be Bloomberg’s only ad on television in the next few days. It comes as the Senate begins its impeachment trial against Trump based on charges he abused his power and obstructed Congress.

“It’s time for the Senate to act and remove Trump from office, and if they won’t do their jobs this November, you and I will,” Bloomberg says in the ad, which appears to use footage from a recent campaign stop.

Bloomberg has focused his campaign more on Trump than his Democratic primary rivals have. The billionaire businessman and former New York City mayor has promised to continue spending his own money to defeat Trump even if he loses the Democratic nomination.

Forbes on Tuesday increased Bloomberg’s estimated net worth to $60 billion, up from $50 billion previously and making him the nation’s eighth richest person. He’s already spent more than $200 million of his own money on his primary campaign, by hiring staff and running television ads in several dozen states.

Bloomberg’s impeachment-focused ad will run in Alabama, Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Maine, Michigan, North Carolina and Texas, as well as 19 other states, including some that have first-term Republican senators who could be defeated in November. Five of those key states also vote on March 3, known as Super Tuesday, where Bloomberg is focusing his attention in the primary contest.

The ad also highlights Bloomberg’s spending to boost Democratic candidates in key U.S. House races in 2018, when the party took back control of the lower chamber.

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The Associated Press