They’re very nervous:
While the Electoral College may give her an advantage, party leaders and strategists say they remain concerned that Clinton is a tough sell when a majority of Americans think the country is on the wrong track and want to shake up Washington.
“The most important thing is there is a bias for change and there’s an NBC/Wall Street Journal poll where people express that bias even when they don’t know what the change is going to be,” said Geoff Garin, a pollster who worked for Clinton’s 2008 presidential campaign and now advises Priorities USA, a pro-Clinton super PAC.
That July survey showed a majority of voters, 56 percent, prefer someone who will bring major changes to government even if they don’t know what those changes will be. Only 46 percent wanted a candidate who would bring a steady approach to government.
It helps explain Trump’s success, and the strong challenge to Clinton in the Democratic primary from Sen. Bernie Sanders.
Away from the hoopla of the Wells Fargo, Democratic officials and strategists say it’s a major concern.
“I’m nervous. The country is in a bad mood. It’s such an unpredictable year,” said a Democratic National Committee official who requested anonymity to speak frankly about Clinton’s prospects.
Other concerns include the possibility of an enthusiasm gap between Republicans and Democrats — Trump got more votes in the GOP primary than any candidate in history while Hillary received fewer votes than she did in 2008 when she lost — and a possible “October surprise.”
One labor official fretted that more hacked emails from the Democratic National Committee may surface later in the campaign and hurt Hillary.
You don’t say. And there’s a reason for it:
I have thought for a while that pretty much everyone’s mind is made up about Hillary, after all these years. But Gallup finds a remarkable fall from grace, with Hillary having been at 59% favorable as recently as last year. Apparently the FBI’s finding her to have been ‘extremely careless’ in handling classified information, together with ongoing focus on her Libya/Benghazi failings, have seriously hurt her in the eyes of many Americans. That, plus the fact that she is always most popular when out of sight. When people see Hillary, as during the current campaign, they tend not to like her.
Contrary to what Obama said in 2008, she’s not only not “likable enough,” she’s not likable at all. And like many politicians, she is sociopathic in her lust for power:
There has to be a lot of resentment. The stories of screaming matches, thrown lamps, and the rest are credible to me because Hillary has endured a level of private humiliation at her husband’s hands, in ways overt as in all the extracurricular sex, but also in ways completely unintended, the product of her negative charisma. The result of all this is a burning desire to surpass Bill, to occupy the Oval Office, and get revenge for his casual ease at being liked. And the facial expression? I think it is a window into the intensity of Hillary’s desire, buried deep within her soul, and rarely allowed out. Professor Althouse chose to compare Hillary’s picture to The Scream, the famous painting by Munch. I think that comparison makes my point.”
She comes across as a corrupt, ethicless, lying, incompetent hack. But that’s only because she is.
[Update a few minutes later]
The Clinton campaign refused to cooperate with an FBI investigation into hacking of their computers. Of course they did. [Update: Hillary exposed as a Commander-in-Chief who can’t even protect herself] Like math, cybersecurity is hard, Commander-in-Chief Barbie.
[Update a couple minutes later]
“My God, she’s running as Hillary Clinton!” It’s kind of ironic, given that she was a Goldwater Girl. (For those unfamiliar with it here is the classic reference)
[Update a few minutes later]
Nate Silver says it’s officially time for Democrats to panic. I love the smell of Democrat panic in the morning.
This would be uplifting material if the alternative weren’t Donald Trump.
It could have been Ron Paul vs Obama four years ago, but the Republican establishment did everything possible to give the world Romney. Now they’ve got Trump, instead. If Trump loses, they really won’t like who comes next.
Nothing’s going to change if the establishment manages to keep Trump out of the White House. No-one’s going to suddenly say ‘well, Trump lost, we should just become good little SJWs.’ The divisions in American society will explode if Clinton wins.
Most right-wing Americans I know are pissed as hell, and see Trump as the last chance for making change through politics. So I don’t see any way the US can survive eight years of Clinton in the White House. If she wins, it’s heading toward secession or civil war… or both. If Trump wins… maybe it won’t.
Nate Silver hasn’t said it’s time to panic; he still gives Clinton a 60% chance of winning. But that’s a whole lot more than liberals are comfortable with, and as usual they ignore the possibility of something serious sticking.
It’s still a whole lot less than I’m comfortable with; I wish Trump would do something that actually helps. But he hasn’t so far, so why would I expect it?
I shouldn’t complain. Bernie Sanders has seriously messed up the liberal side, so I can’t really complain when Trump seriously messes up the conservative side. A lot of people out there are sick of the status quo and are ready to burn things down.
Nate Silver hasn’t said it’s time to panic; he still gives Clinton a 60% chance of winning
For a Democrat, that’s cause for panic. She was supposed to be a sure thing, particularly against Trump.
“Nixon in a pantsuit.” Great. Although I would say “Nixon in a pantsuit without Nixon’s scintillating personality and physical grace.”
The whole country is nervous. The stakes have never been higher.