Donald Trump would be on track to win a historic landslide in November ā€” if so many US voters didnā€™t find him personally repugnant.

Roughly 53 percent of Americans have anĀ unfavorable opinionĀ of the former president. And yet, when asked about Trumpā€™s ability to handle key issues ā€” or the impact of hisĀ policiesĀ ā€”Ā voters routinelyĀ giveĀ the Republican candidate higher marks thanĀ President Biden.

In aĀ YouGov surveyĀ released this month, Trump boasted an advantage over Biden on 10 of the 15 issues polled. On the three issues that votersĀ routinely nameĀ as top priorities ā€” theĀ economy, immigration, and inflation ā€” respondents said that Trump would do a better job by double-digit margins.

Meanwhile, in aĀ recent New York Times/Siena College poll,Ā 40 percent of voters said that Trumpā€™s policies had helped them personally, while just 18 percent said the same of Biden. If Americans could elect a normal human being with Trumpā€™s reputation for being ā€œtoughā€ on immigration and good at economics, they would almost certainly do so.

Biden is fortunate that voters do not have that option. But to erase Trumpā€™sĀ small but stubborn leadĀ in the polls, the president needs to erode his GOP rivalā€™s advantage on the issues.

  • shinratdr@lemmy.ca
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    8 months ago

    Obama floated a single-payer option for healthcare, he was stopped by Republicans. People also need to realize that the Democrats scraping by means they have to compromise to survive.

    You want them to do more? They need a mandate, not a razor thin slice. The Republicans have gerrymandered the fuck out of your country and made it so that even when they arenā€™t elected, they can control or block everything. Theyā€™ve made it impossible for Democrats to get a landslide, blocked absolutely everything they can, stirred up as much voter apathy as possible, so that even when they lose, they win. And youā€™re buying right into it.

    This is also why everyone should vote Democrat. You only have two parties in your country. If the Democrats always win because the Republicans are too right wing, they will forced to abandon their most repugnant social policies to save the golden goose, tax cuts and cutting social programs.

    This will force Democrats to move left to differentiate themselves, and so forth. Short of electoral reform which will never happen, it has to become political suicide to be against abortion, LGBTQ issues, etc like it is in other countries.

    • chakan2@lemmy.world
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      8 months ago

      Obama floated a single-payer option for healthcare, he was stopped by Republicans.

      You might want to check that one out again. The Ds had a majority in Congress and managed to fuck themselves on that one.

      Single payer will never pass, big insurance owns too many congress people on both sides of the isle. A couple million dollar payoff for a dissenting vote is much cheaper than the billions theyā€™d lose if either ACA is repealed, or we cut them out of the game with something like universal healthcare.

      • shinratdr@lemmy.ca
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        8 months ago

        Stopped by republicans and republicans cosplaying as Democrats. Is that better?

        Point is, slim majority at best. Look to any parliamentary democracy to see what a real majority is.

        • Alien Nathan Edward@lemm.ee
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          8 months ago

          republicans cosplaying as Democrats

          but we need to vote for the republicans cosplaying as Democrats so that they can continue to be the reason we donā€™t get anything instead of Republicans. The fatal flaw in the idea that people like Manchin, Sinema and other blue dogs are another obstacle the Dems need to overcome is that Dems. Chose. Them. Those people are in congress getting in the way of the democratic agenda because democrats put them there.

      • Ragnarok314159@sopuli.xyz
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        8 months ago

        The self titled ā€œBlue-Dog democratsā€ ruined the ACA into the insurance company payday. Was guys like Manchin.

          • Albatross2724@lemmy.world
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            8 months ago

            Lieberman, Manchin, Sinema. Thereā€™s always going to be a rotating villain. Our political landscape is designed to invest the least amount of political capital for the preservation of the status quo. Our Congress is beholden to the interests of the ruling class and that money flows to both sides of the aisle.