On Wednesday, writing for The Washington Post, conservative columnist Jennifer Rubin examined how President Donald Trump blew what his team considered a key chance to turn around the election.
"President Trump, it seems, was counting on the fantasyland production at the White House for the Republican National Convention to change the trajectory of the race," wrote Rubin. "It did not happen, and with less than nine weeks to go before Election Day, and much less before early voting gets underway, the post-convention momentum is going in the other direction."
First of all, Rubin noted, Biden's fundraising numbers are staggering: "The Biden campaign’s jaw-dropping, unprecedented blizzard of more than $364 million in donations for the month of August — with 95 percent coming from 'grassroots supporters' (1.5 million of the total 4 million donors gave for the first time last month) and 57 percent coming from online — gives former vice president Joe Biden all the money he needs for the final stretch."
Second of all, Rubin wrote, Trump's efforts to paint himself as the "law and order" president have failed as polls show the public trust Biden more on that issue: "Biden continues to lead Trump in polling on the law-and-order issue. A new Morning Consult-Politico poll reported on Wednesday that '47 percent of voters said they trust Biden more to handle public safety, compared to 39 percent who said they place more trust in Trump.'"
Analysts have noted for days that the evidence cuts against a big Trump bounce from the RNC — and a fresh batch of polls released today only further weigh against it.
"The race could certainly change in nine weeks, although none of the recent events seems to have recast the race," concluded Rubin. "As for real-world conditions, we do know that coronavirus deaths will continue to rise and that unemployment will remain quite high by historic standards. No wonder Trump seems increasingly frantic and inclined to spew outlandish conspiracy theories."
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