Jim Rosica
David Plouffe, President Barack Obama‘s 2008 campaign manager, says the lasting popularity of Republican presidential candidates Donald Trump and Ben Carson shows that “the old (political) rules don’t apply” anymore.
Plouffe, now chief adviser to the Uber ride-hailing service, appeared on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” program Wednesday.
Trump, the real estate tycoon-turned-reality TV star, and Carson, a retired pediatric neurosurgeon, are at first and second place respectively in the Huffington Post average of national polls.
“Carson’s getting dismissed, but here’s someone who’s leading in all the polls, who’s building a large following … apparently a lot of grassroots support that should materialize,” said Plouffe, who is supporting Democrat Hillary Clinton for president in 2016.
“So I think sort of in the Acela corridor, there’s a dismissive approach to Carson and Trump, but they’re both sitting there, if you combine them, over 50 in most national polls,” he said.
“They’re the strongest leaders in those early states,” Plouffe said. “And they’re running completely unconventional campaigns. That’s one of my questions as a former political practitioner. There’s something changing out there because it seems like the old rules don’t apply.”
Carson in particular is “very strong. And I don’t think his support is going to drop from 30 to 10 overnight. I mean, I think he’s going to be a force throughout this. I think they’ve (both) got staying power.”
Here’s the video: http://on.msnbc.com/1P96cBl
