Splits Plague Parties as Fall Campaign Starts

Ho hum.

I can see that the summer upheavals are still being reported in "plague-like" terms.

At WSJ, "Splits Plague Both Parties as Fall Primary Campaign Starts":

HOOKSETT, N.H.—The 2016 White House race barrels into the fall feeling at times more like a reality-television spectacle than a presidential campaign, with a crop of unconventional candidates upstaging their politically pedigreed rivals.

This split between the outsiders and their more traditional counterparts reflects a deeper rift in the country between those who continue to trust government and the elected officials who run it, and the ever-growing share of Americans who don’t and pine for someone new.

Both parties enter the post-Labor Day phase of their primaries with lineups that have taken on an unexpected shape. The 2016 field was billed as one of the most accomplished in a generation, particularly on the Republican side, so the rise of celebrity real-estate mogul Donald Trump in the GOP contest and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders in the Democratic race have come as a surprise to some party insiders and voters.

Yet the underlying dynamics spurring some form of a voter revolt took root years ago and they continue to spread through a dissatisfied electorate. The outsider candidates dominated the summer; this fall will test whether the political veterans can sell voters on the benefits of their experience or succumb to the exasperation fueling their rivals.

Gallup polling shows a steady erosion of confidence in government institutions. The last time more Americans thought the country was headed in the right direction rather than the wrong one was January 2004, according to Wall Street Journal/NBC News surveys. In the latest survey, Americans who were pessimistic about the future of the country outnumbered optimists by 2-to-1.

“I have no trust in the government,” said Keith Whigham, a 68-year-old retired insurance-claims adjuster in Greensboro, N.C., who listed Mr. Trump as his top GOP pick in a Journal poll conducted at the end of July. “The little guy has no shot. Everything is rigged for the big shots.”

A year ago, bipartisan majorities said they would replace every single member of Congress, including their own, if they could, according to a Journal poll weeks before the 2014 elections. The same share of voters said they would rather support a first-time candidate over one with experience. Independents were particularly resistant to veteran politicians.

This anti-insider bias is weighing on the once-presumed front-runners, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for Democrats and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush for Republicans...

Still more.

Jeb Bush is washed up, as far as I can tell. Hillary's looking flaccid as hell, but I think she's got so much of the establishment lined up it's going to be hard for Sanders to really shake loose the detritus. But we'll see. We'll see.