Sen. Elizabeth Warren said Thursday she was trying to end Michael Bloomberg’s campaign at the Democratic presidential debate last month when she excoriated the former New York City mayor over allegations of sexist and misogynistic behavior.
Asked by MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow if she was aiming at “tanking (Bloomberg’s) candidacy” with her debate attacks, Warren said, “Yes.” Maddow asked if she takes credit for Bloomberg exiting the race this week, and the Massachusetts senator – who ended her own White House bid earlier Thursday – said, “Sure.”
“But the point is he’s not going to be the Democratic nominee and he shouldn’t be the Democratic nominee. In my view he was absolutely the riskiest candidate for Democrats on that stage. And let me tell you part of the reason why,” she said. “All of those things in his history mean that he could never launch any of those attacks against Donald Trump.”
During the Las Vegas debate, Warren relentlessly assailed Bloomberg as an “arrogant billionaire” who “calls women fat broads and horse faced lesbians.”
The debate’s most contentious moment came when she asked Bloomberg if would release the women who have made accusations from the nondisclosure agreements they signed, “so we can hear their side of the story?”
“We have a very few nondisclosure agreements,” Bloomberg said. “How many is that?” Warren pressed.
“Let me finish,” Bloomberg said.
“None of them accuse me of doing anything other than, maybe they didn’t like a joke I told,” Bloomberg said, which was met by groans from the audience in the debate hall.
“There’s agreements between two parties that wanted to keep it quiet,” Bloomberg continued. “And that’s up to them. They signed those agreements and we’ll live with it.”
Warren shot back, “I’m sorry, no, the question is, are the women bound by being muzzled by you? And you could release them from that immediately.”
After Bloomberg cited women in leadership positions at his company, at his foundation and in city government when he was mayor, Warren responded: “I hope you heard what his defense was: ‘I’ve been nice to some women.’”
“That just doesn’t cut it,” she continued. “The mayor has to stand on his record. And what we need to know is exactly what’s lurking out there.”
Bloomberg appeared lost throughout the exchange and struggled to hit back, prompting advisers in New York watched in horror as Warren landed each blow.
While the debate moment gave Warren a fundraising boost, it wasn’t enough to avoid another round of disappointing finishes in primary contests across the country on Super Tuesday, prompting her to end her campaign.
The Massachusetts senator said Thursday that while she will no longer seek the Democratic nomination, “I guarantee I will stay in the fight for the hardworking folks across the country who have gotten the short end of the stick over and over.”
CNN’s Kate Sullivan contributed to this report.
