The American Spectator : The Spectacle Blog : McCain's Gain

Text Size

McCain's Gain

By Philip Klein on 3.21.08 @ 1:29PM

We're starting to get some polling showing that John McCain is benefiting from Democratic infighting, as well as the Jeremiah Wright controversy.

Jake Tapper reports on the new Franklin and Marshall poll in Pennsylvania, which has Hillary Clinton leading Barack Obama by 17, but contains bad news for both Democrats in the general:

In a sign of just how divisive and ugly the Democratic fight has gotten, only 53% of Clinton voters say they'll vote for Obama should he become the nominee. Nineteen percent say they'll go for Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and 13% say they won't vote.

Sixty percent of Obama voters say they'll go for Clinton should she win the nomination, with 20% opting for McCain, and three percent saying they won't vote.

Meanwhile, Jim Geraghty notes some new SurveyUSA numbers:

In Alabama, Obama had been down 14 to McCain. Now he's down 27.

In Minnesota, Obama has gone from up 7 to down by 1 percent.

In Wisconsin, he's gone from up 11 to up by 4 percent.

In California, Obama's lead actually increased by 3 percent (to 14), but here's the biggest shocker. In Massachusetts ï¿½ the state of John Kerry, Ted Kennedy, Michael Dukakis, Barney Frank, etc. ï¿½ Obama's gone from up 7 to a TIE.

Yes, we have a long way to go until November. Economic uncertainty coupled with Democratic money and organizational advantages still bode well for Democrats. But it's an utter marvel to watch the party do everything it can to self destruct. Coming into this year, the election was supposed to be a layup for Democrats. Yet now they are in a position in which either they nominate Obama, who is looking more and more beatable, or Clinton, who could only win the nomination in a way that would alienate a sizable portion of the Democratic electorate.

topics:
John McCain, Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton