Welcome to The Lid, your afternoon dose of the 2016 ethos… Americans have fallen in love with Ken Bone, the mustachioed town hall questioner who sported a red sweater for his big moment at last night’s debate, making him the ONLY PERSON whose favorability ratings actually went up after Sunday night’s debate.
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‘16 from 30,000
If you’re a Republican, the toplines from our new NBC/WSJ poll out today probably have you as frightened as those people who keep running into clowns in the woods. (Seriously, what’s the deal with that?)
Trump has plummeted to an 11-point deficit in a four-way matchup, and Democrats lead on the question of which party should control Congress by a seven-point margin, the highest since 2013.
But here’s another wrinkle that further complicates that bleak picture for the GOP: Despite the fact that Trump is now losing by double digits, fully two-thirds of Republicans say that others in their party should stick with the nominee. Just nine percent say that downballot Republicans should renounce their support of Trump, and 14 percent say they should call on Trump to quit. That’s a very, very tough place for Republicans to be right now.
POPPING ON NBC POLITICS
- Trump now trails Hillary Clinton by double digits among likely voters, according to a new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll.
- House Speaker Paul Ryan told Republicans Monday he will not be defending Donald Trump or campaign with him.
- 63 percent of likely voters said they do not think the Republican nominee respects women, according to the latest NBC News|SurveyMonkey Weekly Election Tracking Poll.
- Mike Pence reaffirmed his commitment to Trump on Monday.
- Jane Timm checked 24 facts from last night’s debate.
- And from First Read: The 2016 campaign hit a new low.
FOR THE RECORD…
"I had a really nice olive suit, and my mother would have been very proud to see me wearing on television, but apparently I have gained about 30 pounds."
-- Debate questioner Ken Bone on why he chose to wear his now famous red sweater.
TOMORROW’S SKED
Hillary Clinton, Bill Clinton and Donald Trump are all in Florida.
Mike Pence is in Iowa.
President Obama stumps for Clinton in North Carolina.
