A new poll again shows what we have previously discussed as the absurdity of an election that produced the two least popular candidates as what many view as the only choices for the general election. In prior discussions, due to the duopoly on power, citizens will be told to choice between two people that they dislike to an unprecendented degree. What is fascinating is the Democratic National Committee head Debbie Wasserman-Shultz has stated that she is opposed to independents even playing a role in primaries — the reason why Clinton has struggled despite every advantage given to her by the establishment. Wasserman-Shultz, who may be the least popular DNC head in history, sees the problem is giving too many people a voice in the candidates.
The poll shows that “no past candidate comes close to Clinton, and especially Trump, in terms of engendering strong dislike a little more than six months before the election.” Clinton racks up 37 percent in the truly radioactive category of “strongly unfavorable” while Trump is at 53 percent. It is the ultimate race between perceived evils and both parties will now work to make voters hate the other more as the strategy for winning the White House. Indeed, another polls shows that roughly half of voters supporting Trump are dong so to block Clinton and vice versa.
“No major party nominee before Clinton or Trump had a double-digit net negative ‘strong favorability’ rating. Clinton’s would be the lowest ever, except for Trump.”
Yet, there is no serious examination of our political system in producing such a disconnect from voters. It is not a problem of the Democratic and Republican parties producing widely disliked candidates. The problem is that the two parties largely control the choices through a system that discourages third parties or independent candidates. While some may be satisfied with this process, most Americans are clearly not happy with the choices. Yet, the view of the majority seem entirely irrelevant to this supposedly democratic process. In addition to the reforms that I proposed earlier, we need to address the dysfunctional reality of our system that can literally produce the two least popular candidates for voters to choose between (unless they are willing to support a distant third party candidate).
proportional representation would be an interesting electoral reform idea. but why would the two party system ever vote for it? That would be the kind of change only possible through the more extreme forms of political activity that “water the tree of liberty with blood” to use Jefferson’s metaphor
Trump is anti-free trade deals the only operate to the profit of wall street; and he is anti-interventionist in foreign policy. There are milliions of folks who are republicans who have harbored those sentiments over the past many decades and been cut out by the bellicose neoconservatives, and the money masters.
http://www.npr.org/2016/05/05/476844409/pat-buchanan-on-why-he-shares-trump-s-ideas-on-foreign-policy
Hillary of course has taken six figure speaking fees from Goldman Sachs. Lyin Ted’s wife was an active employee of Goldman Sachs. The people who are behind Trump hate Wall Street and they hate the sneaky war pigs that have engineered endless war in middle east.
A lot of the same sentiments are shared by Bernie voters. On both counts.
Oh did I mention. Low skilled worker democrats, suffer more from mass migration and illegal immigraton, much as or more than anybody. And they may vote to build a wall, too.
Too bad Americans don’t have the stomach to vote for a libertarian. Only something like this would get the Democrats and Republicans attention.
Trump as a candidate is no choice. The establishment has funneled the electorate into a choice for Clinton as effectively as a sheep dog corralling the flock. Hillary will govern slightly to the right of Reagan and Republicans will whine that she’s a communist.
SierraRose:
I agree. Only those registered to vote with a Party should be able to pick that Party’s candidate.
Otherwise, we would have Republicans voting in Democratic Primaries, and vice versa.
I will say that this election process has laid bare the lengths to which the establishment will go to ensure its candidate, rather than the people’s, wins.
I do not support Bernie Sanders, but I think the whole Super Delegate process where the establishment candidate gets weighted is unfair. He should have his chance to run a fair and equal race. If we’re stupid enough to elect a socialist who will raise taxes to 95% and kill jobs in a tough economy, that’s on us.
Everyone knows I do not like Trump. But he also deserves a fair shot. And yet the establishment is trying every trick in the book to defy the will of the people.
No matter who sits at that (beautiful) desk in the Oval Office, he or she should be there at the will of the people, not any establishment machine.
But we are all beginning to see that both sides have their “smoke filled room” of machinations.
I’m just gobsmacked that, in a popularity contest, the most disliked candidates on both sides have won the nominations. I suppose that it is a measure of how intensely the American people dislike the establishment, on one side, and how intensely they are loyal to their candidate in the face of overwhelming evidence of lies and corruption on the other side. Both interesting facets. Although there was enough opposition to the status quo that Clinton has struggled in her own primaries, despite strong support from the establishment.
I suppose that in Trump’s favor, it’s not like any new scandals that came to the surface would have an effect. His sins are all out there. He could do pretty much anything and you would just roll your eyes that it’s just Trump. Perhaps that’s what Hillary supporters do. Lied again? Denied additional security to an ambassador in the most dangerous embassy on the planet so he died, along with those who tried to save him? Uploaded State secrets to the Cloud and then tried to wipe her server to cover her tracks? Typical Hillary. Next?
This is just a surreal election cycle.
I saw the perfect bumper sticker – “Obi Wan for President 2016. Help us, Obi Wan Kenobi! You’re Our Only Hope!”
Can any single person competently represent the interests of a highly diverse 300 million people, let alone impact the lives of 7 billion humans? Of course not. The only choice voters have is to vote against the worst candidate, so that’s what they do.
Whoever wins is forced to serve the interests of the most wealthy and powerful. That’s who has access to elected officials. It’s who is the most unified in their interests, and it’s who has the most money and power to advance their interests.
I hate to agree with Wasserman-Shultz on anything, but Independents should have no roll in the primary process. Primaries are how political parties pick the candidate that is going to represent them in the general election. That selection is not the business of anyone outside the party. The ability of Independents and crossover voters to interfere in the selection of party nominees has contributed to the problem now facing us in this elections. If Independents wish to participate in the primary process, than they need to stop being Independents and join or form a party. They may then participate in picking their chosen party’s nominee. It is not required to be the nominee of a party to appear on a ballot (although it is more difficult). Not being able to participate in the selection of a nominee for a party you do not belong to violates no ones rights. All citizens have the right to vote, including a write-in vote, in the actual election. All citizens have the right to sign petitions to place candidates on that ballot. But all citizens do not have the right to tell any party who they must run as their representative candidate.
We have officially moved into banana republic territory with these two choices. Forget the constitution, just elect the totalitarian that “says” they favor what you favor. Then…….remember the constitution when you suddenly realize they lied (oops) and you then begin the cries for impeachment. Rinse and repeat.
It would be appropriate to post my comment at 9:11. So I will refrain from… Whoops. Its 12 after.
I think that the song entitled “Hillary The Eighth” is appro pro.
What is not needed is for Bill to be sleeping on the couch for four more years. If they get elected, and I do mean “they”, then Monica needs her own bedroom on the 3rd floor. As for Hillary and her sex life, the G Men better watch out. She confuses G Spot for Government.
My daddy didn’t vote and I don’t vote.
They’re both terrible. But electing an orange Kardashian teeters on collective insanity.
Dump is self-funding his campaign. Wow. A moneyed interest self-funding himself shouldn’t be that surprising.
He admits to buying politicians for years; now he’s cutting out the middle-man. That’s all it is. He’s bored as most billionaires are and desires pharaoh-hood, hence all the tacky gold.
Dump is bluster and sad popularism. There’s no substance. It’s similar to Speaker Pelosi when she said we’ll find out what’s in the bill after it passes. Total emptiness. “I’ll be the most presidential, wait and see.”
So what’s worse: puppet Clinton, or puppeteer Trump? I lean toward the latter.
Koch/Koch 2020!!!
Tools of our corporate overlords should at least be popular.
The Least popular candidate !!!..is…..Drum Roll Please***** Hillary Clinton! because,(as my Memory serves)… she is the most corrupt establishment candidate in History!!!!!.
Least popular candidates? How about Abe Lincoln?
Well I don’t see Trump asking HARD POLICY QUESTIONS OF HILARY. Maybe he will ask where she and Bill got all their money from, or how many affairs Bill had. Or was that Hillary’s mother giving out leaflets with Lee Harvey Oswald. You see the thing is, Trump is not articulate…( neither is Hillary) He does not have a command of the English Language. He’s unable, to string 8 words together, without repeating himself 4 times.
The LIES…flow pretty rapidly…but facts.? Guess he doesn’t know many of those.
It appears that the MSM will do everything in its power to destroy Trump. The problem with Trump is that he is like Teflon. And he has no problem asking Hillary the hard questions.
It’s amazing to me how proud people are of the American “democratic” system . . . until someone they intensively dislike wins a majority of the votes in the primaries (or even the general election). Of course, if someone they LIKE wins, that’s a different story. (Not a criticism of JT’s valid points.)
Personally, I think the system is built to elect whomever the rich want to win, and that won’t be someone I like, so I don’t care who wins. But, I predict there are enough people really angry with the government that Trump will be elected over Clinton, because she is the model (corrupt) establishment candidate. In fact, I predict he will become one of the best presidents the country has ever had.