That poll putting Trump ahead of Biden in all the major battleground states sure looks terrifying, but there’s never been an election more clouded by the unknown than this one.

A week after Halloween and the scary monsters are still abroad in the land.

Scary polls!

Scary plans!

Boogedy, boogedy!

It was a great weekend for intellectual doomscrolling, to say nothing of galloping paranoia. First, The New York Times comes out with a poll that shows the president is trailing Fulton County (Ga.) Inmate No. PO1135809 in all the major battleground states.

  • BananaTrifleViolin@kbin.social
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    8 months ago

    I think this is why Trump could win. “I don’t believe the polls”.

    Democrats need to wake the fuck up - Biden is not a good candidate and time is running out to select someone else. Don’t ignore the polls because you don’t like what they say - that is utter stupidity.

    Democrats are going to let Trump back in by their own stupid machinations pretending that everyone thinks an 81 year old president is a good idea.

    This is like Hilary Clinton all over again - it was “her turn” to run so big hitters sat out the primaries. She was a bad candidate - she won her own vote well but in the US system you have to win the electoral college and she didn’t do it.

    Please Democrats - wake up. Not Biden.

      • agitatedpotato@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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        8 months ago

        Not the best argument unless you want to tautalogicaly believe everyone who was ever president was a good candidate. I for one do not believe every president was a good candidate.

        • osarusan@kbin.social
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          8 months ago

          That point is that 100% of past presidents won their elections.

          Thus, picking a candidate with a successful track record is usually the safer bet than picking someone who has not won an election. That is why incumbents are usually chosen by default.

          • agitatedpotato@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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            8 months ago

            Thus, picking a candidate with a successful track record is usually the safer bet than picking someone who has not won an election.

            Well both candidates have won elections, and both candidates have lost elections. The only difference is Trump has one loss in the genral while Biden has near half a dozen in primaries. I don’t think the comparison is nearly as black and white as successful track record.

            • osarusan@kbin.social
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              8 months ago

              I wasn’t comparing Biden and Trump, I was comparing Biden and any other potential Democratic candidate. The incumbent is almost always the safer bet than fielding someone new because they’ve been tried and tested.

              As for Trump, all bets are off. He lost once against Biden and they’re going to put him up against Biden again. Conventional wisdom would suggest that is just about the stupidest tactic you could do. But it’s clear that all wisdom left the Republican party long ago.

              • agitatedpotato@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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                8 months ago

                Im gonna say the fact that biden is in the oval office as trump throws toddler tantrums in a courtroom shows the opposite.

                I mean, I feel like it was easy for me to think you were. All I’m saying is if winning an election is the bar, then there’s not many conclusions you can draw for the general that way since they’ve both won. The head to head is more important, as you’ve said. But still that doesn’t mean Biden is a good candidate since the only time he won, in about half a dozen attempts, was against one of the worst candidates of all time. Biden is a better candidate than Trump sure, but so was Hillary and that didn’t help her.

                • osarusan@kbin.social
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                  8 months ago

                  That wasn’t me.

                  But fine, let’s compare Biden and Trump.

                  Both have won presidential elections.
                  Only one has lost a presidential election.
                  Trump has not beaten Biden before.
                  Biden has beaten Trump before.

                  You’re right that there aren’t all that many conclusions we can draw. Hillary was a great candidate, and she failed while Biden won. So clearly picking the right candidate is not easy. Ultimately, only hindsight will tell if Biden was the right choice. But as far as predictions go, we’ve got some solid data and a proven track record that shows he can do it.

    • breakfastmtn@lemmy.ca
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      8 months ago

      This is nothing like Clinton. Biden already won and any other candidate would need insanely good numbers to overcome the power of incumbency. Obama had an approval rating of 38% (lower than Biden now) a year before the 2012 election and still easily won the election (332-206).

      Whatever your opinion of Biden, the Democrats would be very dumb to run another candidate.

      • pewter@lemmy.world
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        8 months ago

        The polls said the race was much closer than people online or pundits would have had you believe. I know, because anytime I mentioned it online I’d get downvoted and when I mentioned it in real life people would get angry.

        • TrickDacy@lemmy.world
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          8 months ago

          Almost every single poll said Clinton would win. That’s what people are going to remember