The One Way Trump And Sanders Have Changed America For The Better

Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders are not expected to win the presidency.

In Donald’s case, he’s expected to go down in flames during the general election. In Bernie’s case, it’s supposed to happen long before that.

But polling hasn’t always played into the popular theories on their political fates. Trump has done surprisingly well in some polls going head to head with Hillary Clinton.

Take the one from January 8, reported here by U.S. News and World Report. In it, James Warren notes that a surprising number of Democrats were ready to go from Team Clinton to Team Trump in a general election.

The survey was of 916 self-described “likely voters” and was conducted by Mercury Analytics out of Washington. It featured a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percent.

“Nearly 20 percent of likely Democratic voters say they’d cross sides and vote for Trump, while a small number, or 14 percent, of Republicans claim they’d vote for Clinton,” the report stated, adding that when the groups were broken down further, “a far higher percentage of the crossover Democrats contend they are ‘100 percent sure’ of switching than the Republicans.”

In an election that could be decided by four to five percentage points, that’s good news for Clinton haters.

Switching from Trump to Sanders, the Vermont Senator is neck and neck with Hillary in Iowa, with some polls showing him with a slight lead.

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And if this CNN report is to be believed, New Hampshire voters are ready to cast their votes for Sanders ahead of the former First Lady, New York Senator, and Secretary of State.

“In the Democratic race,” CNN’s Jennifer Agiesta writes, “Sanders continues to lead Hillary Clinton by a wide margin, 57 percent to 34 percent in the new poll” from CNN/WMUR.

She continued.

“Those likely to vote in the Democratic primary are more apt than those on the GOP side to say they have made up their minds about whom to support (58% of likely Democratic voters say their choice is locked in vs. 39% of Republican likely voters).”

This poll has some good news for both Trump and Sanders, but given the certainty of the Democratic voters, Bernie seems more secure in his New Hampshire lead than “the Donald.”

Both of these guys — Trump and Sanders — are incredibly polarizing. People who love them, love them; those who don’t, seem to dislike them with an almost burning hatred.

They essentially represent the deep divides between Americans in the 21st Century, but no matter which you prefer — or if you dislike both — they have done one thing to make America a better place.

They have destroyed the power of money in politics, at least for this election; and they have managed to do it in completely different ways.

Trump uses his own money; Sanders inspires more grassroots donations and turns back money from major corporations.

Beyond that, they are getting out their messages in ways that don’t require the ridiculous spending of a Barack Obama or Mitt Romney.

Take Trump, for instance. A report from the Washington Post pointed out that he had amassed much of his lead in the primary spending just $2 million on his campaign. Compare that to Hillary Clinton’s spending at the same point — $18.2 million — and the message is clear.

You don’t have to spend to get your message out; you just have to have a message that resonates with people and promises significant change from the status quo.

This is huge for politics, and the only way it can be sustained is if voters actually back up their talk and elect either Trump or Sanders to the White House.

This is your chance, America. If you vote for anyone else, you don’t really want change. In fact, you’re a bigger part of the problem than the politicians themselves.

[Image via Crush Rush / Shutterstock.com]