Ernie Els Scoffs at Losers

For a man who insists he is not running for president, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg is the subject of much recent speculation.

Newsweek's latest issue carries a cover story on the businessman-turned-mayor in which a top aide, Kevin Sheekey, refers to an independent Bloomberg presidential run: "If it happens, it's a billion-dollar campaign."

The fact that Bloomberg is quoted in the same piece saying "I am not running for president" seemed to do little to calm the waters. Another news report analyzed his shifting answers -- moving from "I'm not running" to "I'm not a candidate" -- in television interviews over the past week.

Bloomberg's propensity to elaborate on what he think is lacking among the current crop of presidential candidates also fuels speculation. So did his recent decision to leave the Republican Party to become an independent.

Under one scenario, Bloomberg could jump into the race if Democrats and Republicans select nominees with high negative ratings in opinion polls -- namely Democratic New York Sen. Hillary Clinton and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, a Republican.

That could give Bloomberg, who has said he does not want to be a campaign spoiler or a vanity candidate, until Spring to decide.

FORGET THIS NONSENSE....WHY HASN'T DONALD TRUMP ANNOUNCED YET?

Can fat old Al Gore be far behind?  BASICALLY ANYBODY AND EVERYBODY thinks they can beat Hillary and they are right.  Americans HATE Hillary and polls show that Hillary loses to President Bush in a hypothetical matchup.  No kidding.

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said Monday there is a very good chance he'll get into the race for the 2008 Republican presidential nomination, but he won't decide until after September.

"I think right now that it is a great possibility," Gingrich said. "I don't want to get into all this stuff. I want to focus on what we have to do to make America successful."

Trump, a self styled tycoon, said, "When I announce my candidacy it will be the best announcement ever.  I'm a mogul, tv star, genius, babe magnet, how could I possibly lose?"

Bloomberg, a nominal Republican, is preparing to throw himself into the presidential race next spring, if he sees an opening. He's told people privately that he'd be willing to spend $500 million or more to finance an independent, third-party presidential campaign — to collect the signatures needed to get him on the ballot in all 50 states, to buy ads and to pay for staff.

After contacting Admiral Stockdale and getting rebuffed, Bloomberg is in negotiations with Ross Perot.