
It’s terribly early to be speculating on the outcome, but it’s also an interesting moment in the Republican contest for the presidential nomination in 2016. A recent poll out[1] suggests that Ben Carson, who very much appears to be pandering to the social conservative vote,[2] has pulled nearly even with Donald Trump (figure 2), who very much appears to be pandering to the authoritarian populist vote.[3] Carly Fiorina, who seems to be running a fact-free campaign,[4] also seems to be doing well.[5]
Anger with the political system and continued economic anxiety is propelling “outsider” candidates in both parties, including Mr. Sanders in the Democratic field and Donald Trump, Ben Carson and Carly Fiorina among Republicans. Read more
- [1]Kyle Balluck, “Poll: Trump, Carson neck and neck atop GOP field,” Hill, September 27, 2015, http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/presidential-races/255078-poll-trump-carson-neck-and-neck-atop-gop-field; Patrick O’Connor, “WSJ Poll Shows Risks for GOP; Clinton Support Wanes,” Wall Street Journal, September 28, 2015, http://www.wsj.com/articles/wsj-poll-shows-risks-for-gop-clinton-support-wanes-1443474203↩
- [2]see Lawrence M. Krauss, “Ben Carson’s Scientific Ignorance,” New Yorker, September 28, 2015, http://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/ben-carsons-scientific-ignorance↩
- [3]see Michael Barbaro, Nate Cohn, and Jeremy W. Peters, “Why Donald Trump Won’t Fold: Polls and People Speak,” New York Times, August 22, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/23/us/politics/why-donald-trump-wont-fold-polls-and-people-speak.html; Bruce Bartlett, “Will Donald Trump Crack-up the Republican/Tea Party Alliance?” Big Picture, August 10, 2015, http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/2015/08/will-donald-trump-crack-up-the-republicantea-party-alliance/; Bill Curry, “The destruction of Donald Trump: How the billionaire with a rage problem became the frontrunner — and then fell apart,” Salon, August 10, 2015, http://www.salon.com/2015/08/10/the_destruction_of_donald_trump_how_the_billionaire_with_a_rage_problem_became_the_frontrunner_and_then_fell_apart/; Ross Douthat, “Donald Trump, Traitor to His Class,” New York Times, August 29, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/30/opinion/sunday/ross-douthat-donald-trump-traitor-to-his-class.html; Jeff Greenfield, “What If Trump Wins?” Politico, August 4, 2015, http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2015/08/trump-wins-2016-gopination-120994.html; Jeet Heer, “Donald Trump Is Not a Populist. He’s the Voice of Aggrieved Privilege,” New Republic, August 24, 2015, http://www.newrepublic.com/article/122590/if-you-think-donald-trump-populist-you-dont-know-your-history; Kathleen Hennessey, “GOP strategist talks to Trump supporters and comes away believing he could win the nomination,” Los Angeles Times, August 25, 2015, http://www.latimes.com/nation/politics/la-na-trump-supporters-20150825-story.html; Mark Hensch, “Trump: I’m winning because Americans are ‘tired of being the patsies’,” Hill, August 29, 2015, http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/gop-primaries/252250-trump-im-winning-because-americans-are-tired-of-being-th; Marina Koren, “Donald Trump’s No-Apology Tour Continues,” Atlantic, August 25, 2015, http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2015/08/donald-trump-is-not-sorry/402295/; David Kurtz, “No Citizenship For You!” Talking Points Memo, August 19, 2015, http://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/trump-no-citizenship-for-children-of-undocumented-immigrants; Caitlin MacNeal, “Poll Shows Trump Is By Far The Least Favorable GOPer Among Hispanics,” Talking Points Memo, August 25, 2015, http://talkingpointsmemo.com/polltracker/donald-trump-gallup-poll-hispanics; Amanda Marcotte, “Why Fox News’ Defense Of Megyn Kelly Is Going To Backfire,” Talking Points Memo, August 26, 2015, http://talkingpointsmemo.com/cafe/fox-news-defense-megyn-kelly-backfire; Josh Marshall, “Act Two of the Trump Epic,” Talking Points Memo, August 19, 2015, http://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/act-two-of-the-trump-epic; Suzanne McGee, “The US economic system is unjust. Says who? Says billionaire Donald Trump,” Guardian, September 6, 2015, http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/sep/06/donald-trump-us-economic-system-unjust; Evan Osnos, “The Fearful and the Frustrated,” New Yorker, August 31, 2015, http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/08/31/the-fearful-and-the-frustrated; Alex Pappas, “‘Nothing Disqualifies Trump’ — What A Focus Group Tells Us About His Supporters,” Daily Caller, August 24, 2015, http://dailycaller.com/2015/08/24/nothing-disqualifies-trump-what-a-focus-group-tells-us-about-his-supporters/; Leonard Pitts, Jr., “Here’s hoping cooler heads prevail in GOP,” Miami Herald, July 18, 2015, http://www.miamiherald.com/opinion/opn-columns-blogs/leonard-pitts-jr/article27531262.html; Andrew Prokop, “Donald Trump vs. the Club for Growth, explained,” Vox, September 15, 2015, http://www.vox.com/2015/9/15/9331225/donald-trump-club-for-growth; Janell Ross, “Donald Trump is now reaping what he has sown,” Washington Post, September 19, 2015, http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2015/09/19/donald-trump-is-now-reaping-what-he-has-sown/; Tierney Sneed, “Univision Prez Slams Trump: Treatment Of Jorge Ramos ‘Beneath Contempt’,” Talking Points Memo, August 27, 2015, http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/donald-trump-univision-statement; Kimberley A. Strassel, “The GOP’s ‘Whatever’ Moment,” Wall Street Journal, September 10, 2015, http://www.wsj.com/articles/the-gops-whatever-moment-1441928540; Joan Walsh, “Donald Trump’s Southern strategy: What his Alabama pep rally revealed about the right’s new racial politics,” Salon, August 24, 2015, http://www.salon.com/2015/08/24/donald_trumps_southern_strategy_what_his_alabama_pep_rally_revealed_about_the_rights_new_racial_politics/↩
- [4]Bethania Palma Markus, “Yale prof opens can of whoop-ass on Fiorina: She has an ‘almost psychopathic denial of reality’,” Raw Story, September 28, 2015, http://www.rawstory.com/2015/09/yale-prof-opens-can-of-whoop-ass-on-fiorina-she-has-an-almost-psychopathic-denial-of-reality/; Eugene Robinson, “Carly Fiorina’s ultraconservative rage,” Washington Post, September 28, 2015, https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/the-facts-and-carly-fiorinas-ultraconservative-anger/2015/09/28/c29b4cec-6611-11e5-8325-a42b5a459b1e_story.html↩
- [5]Kyle Balluck, “Fiorina jumps to second place in post-debate poll,” CNN, September 20, 2015, http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/presidential-races/254305-fiorina-jumps-to-second-place-in-post-debate-poll; Patrick O’Connor, “WSJ Poll Shows Risks for GOP; Clinton Support Wanes,” Wall Street Journal, September 28, 2015, http://www.wsj.com/articles/wsj-poll-shows-risks-for-gop-clinton-support-wanes-1443474203↩