Yes, in 1980 the media did their darnedest to portray Reagan as a loose cannon who would take America to a dangerous place. They did their best to re-elect Carter and yes, the polls had Carter up by 8 points in mid-October.
We know now that this was impossible and that Reagan’s election was a near certainty all along. But the media had the power to establish a different narrative all through the election cycle.
We are seeing the same tactics this year, only with more vigor, as the stakes are even higher.
Priorities, ClInton's super PAC, has been regularly polling AZ MO GA IN, & is actively considering expanding its map https://t.co/yECJWZS7Tb— Gabriel Debenedetti (@gdebenedetti) August 4, 2016
Clinton and Priorities USA are now scaling back in both Colo. and Va. -- two formerly long-time GOP strongholds. https://t.co/fnnT7IXFVJ— Steven Shepard (@POLITICO_Steve) August 4, 2016
I interviewed Donald Trump for my @GQMagazine profile of Hope Hicks, out today and on newsstands in the July issue: https://t.co/wywfkrfKqo— Olivia Nuzzi (@Olivianuzzi) June 20, 2016
Remember this election well, it seemed to be a nail biter right up to election week. There were some differences, the big one being inflation running about 15% and Paul Volker using the Fed Funds rate to combat it. This was when the government was considerably more honest in reporting economic/financial data.