Bloomberg’s billions: How the candidate built an empire of influence

“Sometimes they’ll call us and say, ‘There’s a mayor who is interested in this — can you talk to them?’” said Dr. Sharfstein, who directs the Bloomberg American Health Initiative, built on a $300 million donation from Mr. Bloomberg. The range and reach of Mr. Bloomberg’s spending, experts say, cannot but play to his advantage in the presidential race. “The fact that he can call in all these favors, all over the country — a normal person can’t do that,” said Adav Noti, chief of staff at the Campaign Legal Center. “A normal person will never be able to do that.”

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