More than any other option available to them, a majority of the people in the United States of America prefer the socialist—the one who calls for Medicare for All, tuition-free college, higher taxes on the wealthy, a speedy transition to renewable energy to fight climate change, and an end to the corporate takeover of democracy—most of all.
But The Hill buried the lede.
Provided an exclusive look at a new Harvard-Harris poll (pdf) on Tuesday surveying the popularity of elected officials with a national profile, the news outlet chose to highlight the nation’s most unpopular lawmaker—who turns out to be Republican Majority Leader in the U.S. Senate Mitch McConnell of Kentucky—instead of the person who is now the most popular, the self-identified socialist and Independent senator from Vermont, Bernie Sanders.
And it’s not the first time.
According to the poll—conducted online from Aug. 17-22 with 2,263 Democrats, Republicans, and registered Independents—Sanders is currently the only politician in the whole country who “a majority of Americans actually like.” Among the respondents, 54 percent view Sanders favorably with just 36 percent taking the opposite view. Compared to others included in the survey—including Republicans like McConnell, President Donald Trump, and Vice President Mike Pence as well as top Democratic leaders like Hillary Clinton, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York, and Rep. Nancy Pelosi of California—it wasn’t even close.