Add #LittleMichael to the long list of Trump enemies.
Trump belittled Michael Bloomberg as an ineffective candidate and vowed to defeat him in a potential 2020 presidential matchup _ if the former New York mayor gets that far.
"Little Michael will fail," Trump told reporters on the White House lawn. "And if he did (win the Democratic nomination), I'd be happy. There is nobody I'd rather run against than Little Michael, that I can tell you. "
Like he has with other rivals, Trump claimed Bloomberg had praised him in the past and is flipping the script to score cheap political points.
"He said a lot of great things about Trump," the president said. "But I know Michael. He became just a nothing."
Bloomberg has launched the process of seeking to qualify for the Democratic primary ballot. He has not yet decided if he will enter the already crowded race.
Echoing some political analysts, Trump called Bloomberg's announcement a dig at front-runner Joe Biden. Some political insiders say Bloomberg's reconsidering making a White House run reflects a growing uneasiness with Biden's lackluster campaign.
"He's not going to do well, but I think he's going to hurt Biden, actually," Trump said. "But he doesn't have the magic to do well."
Biden himself said Friday he welcomes Bloomberg to the Democratic field, claiming he remains "far ahead" of the pack.
Elizabeth Warren, a candidate whom Bloomberg reportedly considers too leftist, sought to use the news of Bloomberg's candidacy to boost her own movement, tweeting: "The wealthy and well-connected will always have each other's backs. We're building a movement to change that. We're building a movement for big, structural change."
Trump has made a political career out of coining attention-grabbing nicknames for his rivals, from "Lil' Marco" Rubio and "Lyin' Ted" Cruz to his biggest hit of all: "Crooked Hillary" Clinton.
