NBC News/WSJ poll: Sanders opens up double-digit national lead in primary race

[NJCher]

The Vermont senator's lead in the Democratic race comes as former Vice President Joe Biden's standing has dropped 11 points since January.

snip

LAS VEGAS — Sen. Bernie Sanders has jumped out to a double-digit national lead in the Democratic presidential contest after his victory in New Hampshire’s primary and his second-place finish for delegates in Iowa’s disorganized caucuses, while former Vice President Joe Biden has seen his support drop by 11 points since his disappointing finishes in both contests, according to an NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll released Tuesday.

The survey also shows former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg gaining ground in the Democratic race in the past month, confirming the findings of an earlier NPR/PBS/Marist poll that allowed him to qualify for Wednesday night’s NBC News and MSNBC Democratic debate in Las Vegas.

And the poll has President Donald Trump’s approval rating tied for his all-time high in the NBC News/WSJ survey, while also finding that the most unpopular candidate qualities in a general election are being a socialist, being older than 75 years of age and having a heart attack in the past year.

“There is one clear and inescapable set of results: Bernie Sanders is the definitive front-runner, and the current numbers do not represent his ceiling, but instead his base with room to grow,” said Democratic pollster Peter Hart, who conducted this survey with Republican pollster Bill McInturff of Public Opinion Strategies.

snip


[link:https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/meet-the-press/nbc-news-wsj-poll-sanders-opens-double-digit-national-lead-n1138191|

[CalFione]

1. From the article:

- 67% say they have reservations or are “very uncomfortable” with a candidate being a socialist.

- 57% have reservations/are very uncomfortable with someone who had a heart attack in the last year.

- 53% have reservations/are very uncomfortable with someone who’s older than 75.

- 41% have reservations/are very uncomfortable with someone who self-funds their campaign with hundreds of millions of dollars.

- 40% have reservations/are very uncomfortable with a candidate who is younger than 40.

- 27% have reservations or are very uncomfortable with a presidential candidate who is gay or lesbian.

- 14% say they’re bothered by a candidate being a woman.

The voters are telling us who we should nominate. No socialists, no heart attack victims, no 75+ year olds, no self-funders, and no one under 40.

That leave Amy Klobuchar and Elizabeth Warren.

Wake up, Democrats.

[Me.]

2. Ah, The Facts, Always So Relevant

[squirecam]

3. Amy vs Liz

Would be a focus on the issues. As it should be.

[NJCher]

4. "combined" is the operative word here

Only 46 said they were "uncomfortable." Twenty-one said they had "some reservations." If you go into the survey breakdown, you will see this is not a misrepresentation. In fact, 28 say they are comfortable or even enthusiastic with voting for someone who is a "socialist." This in itself is a misnomer, as Bernie calls himself a "democratic socialist," not a socialist.

So we can conclude here that once again MSNBC is stacking the deck as best they can against Bernie because they did not use the proper terminology (democratic socialist).

Also, the person who wrote the article combined "some reservations" and "reservations" to overstate a prejudice.

In fact, the socialist thing really only counts much with over 65 year old voters.

[CalFione]

5. Well...

- 46% being "uncomfortable" vs 28% being "comfortable" is a VERY big deal.

- As far as "only counts with over 65 year old voters". 1/3 of the electorate is over 65. For every 18-35 year old that votes, there are *TWO* over-65 year olds that vote. If you get crushed among the over-65 set, you cannot win. Kiss Florida, PA, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Arizona goodbye - because all of those states have a disproportionate amount of over-65 year old voters.

[NJCher]

6. bring yourself up to date

RE this: If you get crushed among the over-65 set, you cannot win. Kiss Florida, PA, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Arizona goodbye - because all of those states have a disproportionate amount of over-65 year old voters.

The Bernie campaign strategy has already factored that in. It has been written about in numerous articles, many of which have been posted here. Bernie has made inroads into demographic groups of people who never cared much about voting. Wonder why that is? Oh, maybe it's because no candidate has ever spoken to the people who need help and who would be motivated to help themselves by voting for a candidate who pays attention to their concerns.

Now, you tell me: some oldster panicked over "socialism" is as motivated to vote as a young person looking at a mountain of college debt? In fact, the older person is going to want a candidate who isn't going to vote against Social Security, as at least two candidates have stated they would. The younger person is going to vote because there's a chance he/she may not be paying loans off until old age.

Oh, and don't tell me this is in the future. It's happening right now.