Why are Clinton and Trump the front runners this election year?

1. 77

   jackclee lmposted 8 years ago

   Why are Clinton and Trump the front runners this election year?
   
   I'm baffled. According to polls, 70% of Americans say we are headed in the wrong direction. Yet, we have Clinton ahead in the Democratic primary. More over, on the GOP side, this was supposed to be the year of the people against the establishment. I get the popularity of Trump but why are establishment politicians endorsing Trump? Does this make any sense?

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2. 82

   tamarawilhiteposted 8 years ago

   Trump is the frontrunner on the Republican side because he is tapping into a large percentage of the public's discontent with matters like immigration and jobs the party elites ignore.
   Clinton is the frontrunner because she's well known.

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   1. 77

      jackclee lmposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      Why do Republican establishment politicians endorse Trump? You think they would know better. Why there are no better candidates on the Democratic side?

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   2. 82

      tamarawilhiteposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      Trump's focus on jobs resonates with poor blacks crowded out of the job market by illegals, hence their 25% support for him, 5x more than Romney. Ditto for many Hispanics focused on jobs over gay rights and social justice, voting Trump.

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3. 51

   bradmasterOCcalposted 8 years ago

   Jack
   A good question, and the answer is from Dickens. It was the best of candidates, and it was the worst of candidates.
   
   I find that the recycled Hillary Clinton is the best that the democrats could come up with this election. Trump and the republican party have spread themselves thin with the lack of focus resulting from too many candidates.
   
   The republicans lack definition and Trump has taken positions that the other candidates find difficult to challenge. As for why establishment politicians endorse Trump, the answer is political. These politicians are hedging their bet, as they see that none of the other candidates are doing well against Trump. Whether these politicians believe in Trump is less likely then he might win. If he wins, then they get swept up in that win. If he loses, they can jump ship and barnacle themselves to the winner.
   
   The republican party should use Trump as a diving rod to find the unification of the party.
   The debates, as they are from election to election, don't define the issues. It is the issues, and the position of the candidates that should be used as the basis of voting, and not personality, and polling to pick the president.
   
   It is well over a year into the presidential campaign, and what has been discussed about the real issues of the US? Not much, and what we have is a meatless hamburger, and the bun is full of air.
   
   We would need a serious tracker with an experienced hunting dog to find the real issues in this campaign.
   
   We keep hearing about how Trump, if he becomes president, would take us down a dangerous road. Yet, no one describes the danger or the road. How could it be any worse than the road well traveled during the last several decades.
   
   Remember that in 2008, we also had the meatless debates, and no candidate then thought that the economy was a real issue. To their amazement and total surprise the economy would fail before the election took place. The country today has not recovered from that failure, and it would take less of a jolt to topple it today. Instead of talking real issues, the debates, and the polls lead us into another box canyon.
   
   Point is that intelligent people, and voters shouldn't use the polls or the meatless debates to make their choice for the next president. The debates, and polls brought the country to its knees, and that is where we are today?
   My opinion..

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   1. 77

      jackclee lmposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      Great insight. It is my belief that we get the government we deserve. If we continue this path, our republic is going downhill.

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   2. 71

      dashingscorpioposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      It appears the establishment misjudged how {angry and unhappy} their voters are. The standard spiel about cutting taxes, government regulations, and entitlements to stimulate the economy isn't enough to pacify the rank & file Republican anymore.

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   3. 51

      bradmasterOCcalposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      Jack
      Whee, the sound of going downhill
      dashingscorpio
      They have become Rank, and now they can't even File. lol

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4. 71

   dashingscorpioposted 8 years ago

   
   
   Establishment Republicans are choosing Trump by default.
   In any other election they would have preferred to go with Jeb Bush, John Kasich, or Scott Walker, possibly Marco Rubio.
   However when you start off with 17 candidates in one party seeking the nomination it spreads the support very thinly.
   Donors also aren't going to keep throwing money at candidates who are polling in the single digits!
   Trump tapped into a (solid block of angry voters) who feel the "establishment" has let them down and they simply did not want any candidate who had political experience.
   This explains why Trump, Carson, and Fiona were loved early on.
   Cruz is also considered anti-establishment although he is a sitting Senator. However his attempts at "shutting the government down" rather than make compromises along with calling the Senate majority leader a liar on the Senate floor hasn't garnered him any real love or endorsements from the very people who work with him.
   When Trump was at 25% percent people were saying that means 7 out of 10 people want someone else. With that being true what does that mean for the guy polling at 10% (9 out 10 people want someone else!) Trump also makes a case for being the only candidate who has actually created jobs. People identify with his wealth and they like his personality and buy into the belief that he can facilitate change since he is not being funded by lobbyists, big banks, oil, or insurance companies.
   There are only two ways things get done Washington D.C.
   1. One party has the white house and a veto proof number in congress.
   2. Bipartisan bills where both parties work together and compromise.
   Odds are number one is out of the question. Thus Trump who brags about being a great "deal negotiator" has more appeal than someone like Cruz.
   Since Trump's campaign is a mix of conservative and liberal stances it's only natural that he might pull some independents and liberals into his camp. He stated Planned Parenthood does some great things and wants to protect Social Security/Medicare as well as a form of universal healthcare. While at the same time wants many conservative things enacted.
   As for Democrats most are not as angry as Republicans. They don't want to blow up the system! They also have fond memories of the economy under President Bill Clinton and she's a woman.

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   1. 77

      jackclee lmposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      Very good summary of where we are. I agree with most of what you said. Why are there so few choices on the Democratic side? you can tell me a 74 year old socialist and a 69 year old grandmother who was part of the Obama Admin. is the best they have.

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   2. 71

      dashingscorpioposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      Well there were a couple of other Democrat candidates such as Jim Webb (former U.S. Senator of Virginia) and Martin O'Malley (former governor of Maryland). Once they realized they weren't getting traction/voter support they dropped out.

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5. 74

   tsadjatkoposted 8 years ago

   
   
   Why are establishment politicians endorsing Trump? Does this make any sense?
   
   It makes tons of sense however the real Republican establishment, the donor class, is backing Rubio, they need someone they can control and Trump isn't it.
   
   The whole problem is the establishment Republicans (these are represented by Jeb, Mit, Mc Cain, Nikki Haley, you know the "moderates") are becoming the minority except that in the money category they are the majority.
   
   In this race the so called "conservatives," would actually have had a lock on the nomination were they interested in putting conservatism, the country and unity in the forefront of this race. And Trump, shrewd businessman that he is has rightly calculated that the right is not so really conservative or smart or they would have united around one candidate to oppose him. Trump has only to watch the right engineer their own defeat and hand the nomination to Trump on a silver platter.
   
   From the very beginning it was clear Trump couldn't muster more than about 35% of the Republican vote while all the rest getting divided between to the opposing candidates all "conservatives." If there was a real leader among them they'd have gotten together and agreed on a path for one of them to get the presidential nomination easily garnering 2/3 of the votes leaving Trump in the dust. They could have agreed to unite and cut up the victor's pie so that they all would have positions of influence in the future administration.
   
   But NO their stupidity and egos have given the nomination to Trump who will get it with less than a majority of Republican support. Support that probably won't even vote if it is Trump, despite Trump will run against the most immoral, untrustable, evil woman to ever hold an elected office. Worse than that, eeevennn, we all will have to listen to a nagging, screaming hair raising nail scrapping voice for four, maybe 8 years (and I'm not talking about Bernie Sanders). I can't even imagine that, people will go deaf, hearing aid sales will sky rocket, buy those companies...
   
   This whole primary has unraveled to reveal that there are no true leaders or unity in the conservative movement but only a bunch of self motivated power hungry charlatans hijacking the mantle of conservatism to try and attain their own personal gain and I really believe that.
   
   Trump? Who knows, if by some miracle Hiliary implodes and Trump wins all we can do is pray he can run the country as well as he has run his business empire. Like his business maybe he's the one man who can declare us bankrupt first (cause we are in more ways than one) then make "America Great Again."

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   1. 77

      jackclee lmposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      Actually, I believe it;s going to be a Republican landslide this year regardless who is on either party's nomination. Never the less, it is curious why some politicians like Sessions and Cristie endorsed Trump.

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   2. 74

      tsadjatkoposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      Christyendorsed because the establishment has picked Rubio,that's obvious,&Sessions is the man Trump already picked to engineer his immigration policy,Sessions has always been against amnesty &this is his niche.Believe me estbnt.not going tru

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   3. 60

      fpherj48posted 8 years agoin reply to this

      Jack....I don't consider myself terribly savvy when it comes to politics.  However,, the first thought that entered my mind when I saw that Christie endorsed Trump, is his hope to be asked to run as VP.  Think I'm totally off-base?

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   4. 77

      jackclee lmposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      I think Christe is looking for a position in Trump's administration. Perhaps Attorney General, maybe VP but I doubt it, he is not going to be 2nd place to Trump..

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   5. 71

      dashingscorpioposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      TSAD, The strategy you mentioned might have worked if it wasn't for the egos of other establishment candidates. Scott Walker suggested others follow his lead & drop out early on to allow one of theirs to win.
      Jack a R. landslide is unlikely.

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6. 64

   breakfastpopposted 8 years ago

   Trump is the frontrunner because he is tapping into the anger and discontent felt by so many people. The status quo is unacceptable and people want to tear things down and start over. As for Clinton, the choice is very limiting. It's either a self avowed Socialist or a Socialist who doesn't know she's a Socialist. How wonderful it would be if Americans really wanted a candidate with talent and integrity. If they did I suppose they would vote for Kasich.

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7. 0

   savvydatingposted 8 years ago

   Although Clinton is more of the same ole,' same ole,' she is strongly established with minorities, and I presume they don't want to take a chance on an "outsider," though truth be told, Sanders is more concerned with the plight of the poor and minorities than Clinton has ever been. In fact, she does not care about them apart from the votes they will give her.
   As for Trump, he is the male version of Hillary, since he is a Democrat with a lot of baggage, to say the least. But for now, he is disguising himself as a pseudo-Republican even though he is doing his utmost to splinter the GOP into a million pieces. He's doing a good job of it, and is now threatening to become an Independent. Christie is backing Trump because he has an axe to grind against Rubio. Stupid, childish stuff.
   If people would actually bother to study these politicians records, they would understand who may actually have a record of solving problems in a way that is not criminal.
   But to answer your question....In a nutshell, the reason all of this nonsense is happening is because "voters" are choosing to believe the untruthful sound bites they hear without taking personal responsibility to do proper research---so that they can discover the truth about any given candidate.

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8. 0

   Sherry Thornburgposted 8 years ago

   Excellent question.  I've asked it myself often. 
   
   Trump used to be a Democrat and had said some very unflattering things about Republicans when he was. Besides that, he shows no ability to be diplomatic, civil or polished enough to project the right presence needed for a holder of the office.
   
   Clinton really should have been put in jail long ago over her various crimes, but being a past first lady, I guess, has kept that from happening. I don't trust her.  I don't like the way she has acted in the past. I don't like her campaign tactics and the way she tries to shame women into voting for her. My husband can't stand to listen to her speak.  He calls her shrill. 
   
   If these two become the final choices on the ballot, I may have to write in Mickey Mouse for the first time.

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   1. 51

      bradmasterOCcalposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      Of course Trump was a democrat at one time because like CA, NY is democrat territory, as are most of the unions. Do business in NY be a dem.
      All the candidates are off the leash, and they are all doing the same thing. Obama had no real political exp

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   2. 74

      tsadjatkoposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      Ronald Reagan was a Democrat too, probably because he worked in Hollywood, then he grew up.

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