CNN Analyst Downplays Network’s Own Poll Showing Trump Closing In on Biden
CNN senior political writer and analyst Harry Enten attempted to downplay the network’s latest 2020 election poll on Monday after it showed President Donald Trump closing in on Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden.
After CNN Newsroom anchor Jim Sciutto asked Enten about the poll, which showed “Biden’s lead over Trump narrowing” with Biden at 50 percent and Trump at 46, and how it’s “a big change in CNN’s own polling in just a few weeks,” Enten replied, “We still have Biden getting a large percentage of the vote, 50-46, and that I think is something so important to point out, is that 50 percent number for Biden.”
“In fact, if you go back over time, what’s so key in all of our last few polls is that Biden is consistently at 50 percent or greater,” he continued. “The other thing obviously we should note is there has been that tightening of the race since June, and that is largely consistent with what a lot of the other polling has generally showed, which is that there has been some slight tightening, though Biden is still certainly ahead at this point.”
Sciutto noted, “There are other polls out with starkly different numbers. Help put us in the context, because you and I when we talk about this, you always say look at the averages.”
Enten said that CNN’s numbers — while different from other recent surveys — still fall within the expected range.
“Yeah, so you know, there have been a bunch of polls that have been released over the last week, and what’s so important to point out is there’s been a range in those results, right, and that’s what we should generally expect: a range,” Enten argued. “Whether that be on the low end with CNN with a four-point lead, or you go all the way up on the ladder at ABC News, [which] has a 12-point lead for Joe Biden, and that’s generally what we should expect.”
Rather than dwelling on his own network’s survey, the CNN analyst instead emphasized an average of all polls — a metric which shows Biden up by a much cozier nine-point margin.
“There’s a margin of error and this kind of basically runs the gamut of what you generally expect in say an eight or a nine-point race given the margin of error, and indeed if you look at the CNN Poll of Polls, what you see is that Joe Biden at this particular point does have the advantage,” Enten concluded. “He’s up by nine points and that is very consistent with the range of polls that we’re generally showing at this point. Biden has a clear lead and is over 50% of the vote.”
Watch above via CNN.
