Democrats are becoming histrionic over a poll by ABC News and the Washington Post showing former President Donald Trump with a 10-point lead over President Joe Biden, a sign that the Republican frontrunner is continuing to gain ground against a battered incumbent underwater with most voters.
Larry Sabato, the political scientist widely known for his “Crystal Ball” predictions, scoffed at Trump supporters for citing the poll and declared it an “outlier” that is not representative of a much closer race.
“Ignore the Washington Post – ABC poll,” Sabato wrote on X. “It’s a ridiculous outlier (Trump up 10 over Biden—laughable). My question: How could you even publish a poll so absurd on its face? Will be a lingering embarrassment for you.”
Ignore the Washington Post – ABC poll. It’s a ridiculous outlier (Trump up 10 over Biden—laughable). My question: How could you even publish a poll so absurd on its face? Will be a lingering embarrassment for you.
— Larry Sabato (@LarrySabato) September 24, 2023
Just plain embarrassing—for them.
— Larry Sabato (@LarrySabato) September 24, 2023
Sabato was joined by New York Times chief political analyst Nate Cohn who chided the media outlets for releasing such a dramatically different poll while adding and footnote that contextualized the findings.
“I do have a fairly major quibble with ABC/Post here: if you release consecutive ‘outlying’ poll results — R+7 in May, R+10 today — you don’t get to dismiss your results,” Cohn wrote on X. “If it happens twice in a row in the same race, it’s clear that this is the result of some element of your approach, and either you either need to decide you’re good with it and defend it or you need to go home.”
If it happens twice in a row in the same race, it's clear that this is the result of some element of your approach, and either you either need to decide you're good with it and defend it or you need to go home
— Nate Cohn (@Nate_Cohn) September 24, 2023
Sabato has been called out by Republicans before for his opinion that President Trump is mentally unbalanced and “governed on the edge of insanity.” He dismissed the criticism as right-wing talking points in a bizarre exchange with another liberal outlet.
“It’s about intimidation—and not of me,” Sabato told The New Republic. “I’m pushing 70. I’ve been here for over 50 years, if you count my student days. I’ve got job security and a lot of supporters. There’s nothing they can do to me. What they do by attacking me is to send a message to more vulnerable junior faculty and others: This is what’s going to happen to you if you dare speak out or you say things that we don’t like. That’s what it’s all about. They know that, I know that.”