How Gary Johnson and Jill Stein Helped Elect Trump

CNN ^ | 11/10/16 | Eli Watkins

[ek_hornbeck]

either Libertarian Party nominee Gary Johnson nor the Green Party's Jill Stein managed to make a dent in the Electoral College, but they did post a significant enough showing in several states arguably to help elect Donald Trump.

Trump won 290 Electoral College votes to 232 for Hillary Clinton, as of Wednesday evening, with Clinton topping him in the popular vote. But had the Democrats managed to capture the bulk of third-party voters in some of the closest contests -- Wisconsin (10), Pennsylvania (20), Michigan (16) and Florida (29) -- Clinton would have defeated Trump by earning 307 Electoral College votes, enough to secure the presidency.

[ek_hornbeck]

When Gary Johnson entered the race and polled higher than any other Libertarian candidate, the media promoted him as the best thing since sliced bread, because they assumed that all of his votes would have otherwise gone to Trump. When they came to realize that he was attracting at least as many Democrat-leaning voters as Republican-leaning voters (often more according to polls), the media stopped promoting him. Instead, they went on to talk about how Bill Kristol's little dancing Mormon puppet was going to win Utah.

However, I have this to say to Democrats whining about how Johnson and Stein cost them the election. It's the same thing I say to people who blame Perot for Bush and Dole's losses: If you don't want voters to turn to third parties or stay home, don't run and nominate such terrible candidates. If Bush and Dole were decent candidates, nobody would have voted for Perot to begin with. If Gore and Clinton weren't such uninspiring candidates, nobody would have voted for Nader, Johnson, or Stein.

Losers always need a scapegoat.

[Nifster]

Precisely

[wastoute]

Let’s back up to how Zero CREATED Trump.

[Obadiah]

The effort to deligitimize the election of Trump has begun.

[Salvation]

Give it up, CNN and Watkins. If Hillary can accept it why can’t YOU?

[TADSLOS]

Let’s back up to how Zero CREATED Trump.

The REAL Obama Legacy. Thanks, Barry!

[God luvs America]

so in essence a third party candidate got the first clinton elected to the WH in 1992 and third party candidates kept the second clinton out of the WH in 2016?

[ek_hornbeck]

The effort to deligitimize the election of Trump has begun.

Wish I had a nickel for every time I heard some talking head remind us that Hillary is ahead in the popular vote. If the situation were reversed, we'd never hear about Trump being ahead in the popular vote from the same people.

[grania]

Why are they assuming that those third-party votes would've gone to Mrs. Clinton? I thought of them mostly as people who despised hillary as much as we do, but felt they had no place to go. If they hadn't chosen one of them, they mostly would've written in Sanders, Kucinich, some backstabbing globalist, world peace (or whatever) or stayed home.

I'd suspect that some of Trump's margin of victory in a few close states are people Trump won over, and that's why Johnson and Stein weren't left with many votes. (These analysts haven't improved after their total humiliation)

[petercooper]

Someone was saying yesterday how in 2011 I think, that Obama destroyed Trump at a dinner or a roast or something. And this guy, I think it was Eric Bolling said that’s why Trump decided to run for president. Anyone know about this?

[Flick Lives]

When Gary Johnson entered the race and polled higher than any other Libertarian candidate, the media promoted him as the best thing since sliced bread, because they assumed that all of his votes would have otherwise gone to Trump.

The media are like Wile E. Coyote, setting a trap which inevitably blows up in their own face.

[Ragnar54]

CNN continues to promote this lie:

"Clinton topping him in the popular vote"

Without the corrupted California vote, Trump wins by 2 million. Other Democrat-controlled states have similarly corrupted votes. As has been pointed out in previous elections, it takes a landslide to overcome Democrat fraud. Trump won by a landslide.

[Trump20162020]

Conversely, Trump lost Minnesota by about 43,000 votes.

Egg McMuffin received over 53,000 MN votes.

[TADSLOS]

Never heard that story. Trump was pounding Obama’s actions on TV as early as 2010 from what I recall.

[ek_hornbeck]

Why are they assuming that those third-party votes would've gone to Mrs. Clinton? I thought of them mostly as people who despised hillary as much as we do, but felt they had no place to go. If they hadn't chosen one of them, they mostly would've written in Sanders, Kucinich, some backstabbing globalist, world peace (or whatever) or stayed home.

The political establishment believes that they own our votes, so that any vote for a third party is "taken" from their candidates. You're absolutely right that many (perhaps most) people who vote for third parties would just stay home if they didn't have that option. When they insist that these votes would have mostly gone to Hillary, they're just assuming that liberal votes somehow belong to the Democrats and conservative votes belong to the GOP. For me at least, Perot was never a spoiler since I wouldn't have supported Dole or Bush regardless.

[BRL]

They gave a choice to idealogical college kids who could not vote for either. This was the voting bLock that went for obama so I was good with it.

[ek_hornbeck]

Egg McMuffin received over 53,000 MN votes.

Did Bill Kristol throw his little pet Mormon a milkbone dog treat in return for his good service?

[Ebenezer]

Let’s go for full accuracy. It was Hillary Clinton who helped elect Trump.

[Sans-Culotte]

When Gary Johnson entered the race and polled higher than any other Libertarian candidate, the media promoted him as the best thing since sliced bread, because they assumed that all of his votes would have otherwise gone to Trump.

I think we've reached a point in which "libertarian" no longer has any relation to conservatism. I see it as the last refuge of a bunch of pot-smoking drop-outs. If Johnson helped anyone on the ballot, it was the people pushing pot initiatives.

[mellow velo]

Newsflash for all you liberals: Hillary didn't lose because of Gary Johnson. Hillary didn't lose because of Jill Stein. Hillary didn't even lose because Obama waited too long to hit the campaign trail for her.

Hillary lost because of who SHE is .. a corrupt & vile person, and a terrible candidate (just like in '08). She couldn't close the deal. Trump could, and did.