Why is President Trump so nervous about the 2020 race?
He has a record amount of campaign cash. Russian bots are still working for him. And he still has the backing of more than 80 percent of his party.
So, how do I know he’s so nervous?
As Trump loves to say: Read the transcript.
At the heart of the phone call that has led to impeachment hearings is Trump going out on a shaky limb to ask Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for a “favor.”
That “favor” included a request for Zelensky to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden and Biden’s son, Hunter.
The only reason for Trump to risk asking a foreign leader for help getting political dirt on an opponent is that he feared that rival’s power. And that November 2020 powerhouse in Trump’s mind is Biden.
Recall that in June, Trump’s anxiety was on display when he insisted his campaign fire some its pollsters after internal polls showed him losing in Michigan and Wisconsin to Biden.
Trump’s shaky nerves went public again in July when a Fox News poll showed him losing to Biden — by a lot. Trump went ballistic and attacked Fox.
The president still has every reason to be nervous about a possible match-up with Biden because polls continue to show the Democrat beating him badly.
If Biden, a well-liked moderate, is the nominee the election becomes a referendum on Trump. With an approval rating hovering in the mid-to-low 40s, that is not good news for the president.
Take a look at the latest Washington Post/ABC News poll. It has Biden leading Trump by 17 percentage points.