Bernie Is the Opponent Trump Wants

Bern ie Sanders is on the rise. Less than a week before the first contest of the Democratic primary, polls give the Vermont senator, on average, a 3-point lead in Iowa and an 8-point lead in New Hampshire. Nationally, he has climbed to within 5 percentage points of former Vice President Joe Biden. If Sanders wins the first two states, he has a strong chance of winning the nomination. That sounds like good news for progressives. But it isn’t. Sanders has major liabilities that haven’t been exploited in the primaries. If he’s the nominee, those liabilities could hand the election to President Donald Trump. David Frum made this case on Monday in the Atlantic, and Jonathan Chait, writing for New York magazine, has backed it up with evidence from recent elections. But polls suggest that Trump has already identified a theme that would destroy Sanders: his socialism. Read Full Article »