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You are here: Home / 2016 Campaign / Why Trump Could Be for Real

Why Trump Could Be for Real

July 23, 2015 at 9:56 am EDT By Taegan Goddard 43 Comments

Rick Klein: “We can only speculate about what kinds of props or insults Donald Trump is bringing with him to the Texas-Mexico border today. But the new ABC News/Washington Post poll out Thursday suggests the extent to which he may not need them. Roughly half of Republicans in the poll oppose a path to legalization for undocumented immigrants – and Trump gets support from a third of those voters. Think about that: In a 16-person field, the idea that any candidate could get 34 percent of that large a slice of potential voters suggests an extraordinarily powerful issue.”

“That’s a much tougher sell in the general election, of course. But it’s a useful reminder that Trump isn’t operating in a political vacuum, or that his support is manufactured or meaningless. It also suggests that if Trump could go a news cycle or three without being, well, Donald Trump-ish, he could settle into a campaign trajectory that could last.”

Wonk Wire: Why Trump matters

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About Political Wire

goddard-bw-snapshotTaegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.

Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.

Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.

Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.

Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.

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