CBS/NYT: Clinton 48 Sanders 41

[YPestis25]

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/cbsnyt-poll-hillary-clintons-lead-over-bernie-sanders-shrinks/

[The Other Castro]

Wow, IBD is confirmed and this officially a sub-10 point race.

[henster]

If Bernie wins IA/NH he could end up tied or leading her nationally.

[Wells]

I thought Sanders would be stuck at 39 percent, but no.
I am really happy right now. Sanders is surging!

[Mr. Morden]

[EliteLX]

The "Sanders is just contributing to the progressive agenda and has no way to win it" is now officially a myth. The Bernie grassroots movement is getting a reawakening with the news this week and will be going into overdrive the next 60 days. Hillary should be worried.

/r/sandersforpresident is having an absolute holiday.

[The Other Castro]

Clinton's lead on RCP is now at its lowest point ever this election cycle, at an average of 11.6%.

[/]

So I wonder what made his momentum start growing again even after it faltered late last year...

Anyway, great news!

[RFayette]

So I wonder what made his momentum start growing again even after it faltered late last year...

Anyway, great news!

My theories:

1. Activists, particularly students, going home for the holidays and persuading some of their family members.
2. Trump's rise makes a crazy outsider look more viable in general.
3. Clinton made a strategic decision to run a explicitly feminine America's Grandma campaign.  For partially sexist reasons, this is hurting her now that national security is dominating the news.  It's also making it easier for Sanders to counter his age and reminds Democrats of Clinton's support for the Iraq War, intervention in Libya, etc. 

I really think you're onto something with this.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-GzGAW7k2V8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8QFSXdvHD14

Most of the videos Hillary puts on Youtube get far more dislikes than likes.  Obviously this is a miniscule chunk of the electorate that is rating these videos, but I think it shows the general dislike of Clinton among young, white, male, liberal-leaning voters.  The feminine swing of her campaign further exacerbates her difficulty with this bloc.

[Mehmentum]

Well, I have to say I'm disappointed in these recent numbers.  The race certainly looks like it will be closer than what it seemed previously.

[Landslide Lyndon]

So I wonder what made his momentum start growing again even after it faltered late last year...

Anyway, great news!

My theories:

1. Activists, particularly students, going home for the holidays and persuading some of their family members.
2. Trump's rise makes a crazy outsider look more viable in general.
3. Clinton made a strategic decision to run a explicitly feminine America's Grandma campaign.  For partially sexist reasons, this is hurting her now that national security is dominating the news.  It's also making it easier for Sanders to counter his age and reminds Democrats of Clinton's support for the Iraq War, intervention in Libya, etc. 

I don't buy the last reason. Clinton's tenure as SoS and Sanders's unwillingness to talk about national security matters make her a much more appealing choice for the voters who care more about Syria, ISIS, etc.

[The Other Castro]

Clinton's lead on RCP is now at its lowest point ever this election cycle, at an average of 11.6%.

Actually, it just updated and now Clinton's lead is down to 8.6%! This is insane...

[This account no longer in use.]

Clinton's lead on RCP is now at its lowest point ever this election cycle, at an average of 11.6%.

Actually, it just updated and now Clinton's lead is down to 8.6%! This is insane...

[henster]

Sanders upped his ad buys in both states, he's outspending her now and his ads are better than hers.

[Lief 🗽]

Democrats truly are specialists in snatching defeat from the jaws of victory, it seems. TRUMP will be absolutely thrilled!

[Eraserhead]

Is Sanders actually starting to make headway with minorities or is his lead among whites just absurdly big now?

[Flake]

Democrats truly are specialists in snatching defeat from the jaws of victory, it seems. TRUMP will be absolutely thrilled!

Especially if we nominate someone as unelectable as Hillary!

[Frozen Sky Ever Why]

Democrats truly are specialists in snatching defeat from the jaws of victory, it seems. TRUMP will be absolutely thrilled!

Especially if we nominate someone as unelectable as Hillary!

Hillary has serious issues no doubt, and she has run a truly awful campaign. However, Trump would eat Sanders alive. Bernie is way too passive, and is frankly nowhere near as intelligent or pragmatic as Trump.

[xavier110]

Democrats truly are specialists in snatching defeat from the jaws of victory, it seems. TRUMP will be absolutely thrilled!

Especially if we nominate someone as unelectable as Hillary!

Hillary has serious issues no doubt, and she has run a truly awful campaign. However, Trump would eat Sanders alive. Bernie is way too passive, and is frankly nowhere near as intelligent or pragmatic as Trump.

Nope. Against Trump, any Dem would have the non-white voters mobilized and in their pocket. Sanders at least then pulls even more indies and young people into the fold than Clinton.

[This account no longer in use.]

Democrats truly are specialists in snatching defeat from the jaws of victory, it seems. TRUMP will be absolutely thrilled!

Especially if we nominate someone as unelectable as Hillary!

Hillary has serious issues no doubt, and she has run a truly awful campaign. However, Trump would eat Sanders alive. Bernie is way too passive, and is frankly nowhere near as intelligent or pragmatic as Trump.

Nope. Against Trump, any Dem would have the non-white voters mobilized and in their pocket. Sanders at least then pulls even more indies and young people into the fold than Clinton.

Exactly. Sanders' appeal with white millennials and independents, plus the Republicans believing that they can win with white people alone, means that Sanders is legitimately a bigger threat to the Republicans than Hillary.

[DrScholl]

If this idiot ends up winning the nomination, I will seriously not vote in the general election. I can't stand Trump, but I can't stand Sanders, either.

[Ebsy]

How has Clinton run a "truly awful campaign"? From what I have seen, she has made no major errors and has performed well in all of the debates.

[Frozen Sky Ever Why]

How has Clinton run a "truly awful campaign"? From what I have seen, she has made no major errors and has performed well in all of the debates.

She hasn't been inspiring, and hasn't made any news worthy proposals. In an environment like this, that's a poor performance.

[Landslide Lyndon]

So I wonder what made his momentum start growing again even after it faltered late last year...

Anyway, great news!

My theories:

1. Activists, particularly students, going home for the holidays and persuading some of their family members.
2. Trump's rise makes a crazy outsider look more viable in general.
3. Clinton made a strategic decision to run a explicitly feminine America's Grandma campaign.  For partially sexist reasons, this is hurting her now that national security is dominating the news.  It's also making it easier for Sanders to counter his age and reminds Democrats of Clinton's support for the Iraq War, intervention in Libya, etc. 

I don't buy the last reason. Clinton's tenure as SoS and Sanders's unwillingness to talk about national security matters make her a much more appealing choice for the voters who care more about Syria, ISIS, etc.

But liberal voters actually like Sanders' soft pacifism.  It would surely be a liability in the general, but it's a net asset in the primary.  Her hawkishness makes the sweet grandma act look really fake.  If she had gone with a competence-based "I can kick a** better than any of these goofy old men" narrative from the beginning, she would be a lot better off right now.  When you're up 2/1 on strong leader and down 2/1 on cares about people like me, and you're universally known, you emphasize the former!

But Sanders hasn't run a pacifist campaign. He generally agrees with Clinton on national security issues.
Not only that, unlike Obama in 2008 he seems really uncomfortable when he has to talk about foreign policy.

How has Clinton run a "truly awful campaign"? From what I have seen, she has made no major errors and has performed well in all of the debates.

This. I mean what else could she do differently to prevent Sanders's surge?
Start insulting him like TRUMP does with the other Republican candidates?  

[Fmr President & Senator Polnut]

Awful, but this is real now.

Sanders is winning over the undecideds hard and clearly winning over some Hillary backers.