Parallel universes: Western propagada from the Guardian

Clinton campaign dismisses polls putting Donald Trump in the lead

A senior Clinton campaign official says a new ABC News/Washington Post tracking poll which put Trump one point ahead is ‘not what we see at all’

Clinton campaign officials have dismissed a poll suggesting that Donald Trump may have taken the lead in the final days before Tuesday’s election, insisting they see no evidence of a negative impact from Friday’s new FBI email disclosures.

Speaking as Hillary Clinton flew to Florida for a whirlwind series of campaign events, a senior campaign official conceded there was a tightening in the polls but only what they had already expected would happen after the debates finished.

Asked by reporters on the campaign plane to respond specifically to a new ABC News/Washington Post tracking poll which put Trump one point ahead, the aide described it as “bad polling”.

“It’s not what we see at all,” said the official. “There seems to be something about that model that seems odd. The race has tightened the way that we thought it would tighten, but we do not see anything that would suggest [the new tracking poll] is right.”

Democrats also dispute the findings of several polls since Friday that the letter from the FBI director, James Comey, saying his staff were examining emails that may be related to the previous investigation into Clinton’s private email server has had a negative marginal affect on voter enthusiasm for the Democratic candidate.

“We do not see any evidence that the Comey story has had an impact,” said the aide. “We’ve seen anecdotal evidence about turnout and our voter registering, volunteer numbers, etc, that suggests that if anything it has encouraged our supporters.”

Clinton is not expected to address the email question again on Tuesday during her three scheduled events in Florida, but aides defended her decision to begin two speeches in Ohio on Monday raising the issue. “Obviously it is something that has got a lot of attention in the last few days, so we did think it was important for her to address.”

Instead, the focus in Florida is expected to be on reminding voters how much is at stake in next week’s election.

“There is no state that is more important and we think it is a state that she will win and Donald Trump has to win,” said the aide. “If she wins Florida, that … will put her over the top.”

Voters should also brace for a deluge of new advertising nationwide, however, as the Clinton campaign spends its remaining money on television commercials across the US.

“You’ll see us back on the air in a lot of states over the last week or so,” said the aide, who agreed only to speak anonymously to reporters on the plane. “We’ve been able to raise a lot of money and it’s the last week to spend it. So you’ll see us spending in a lot of states where we haven’t.”

Donald Trump, in a rally in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, renewed his attacks on Clinton over the email investigation. He warned the crowd of thousands that if his rival were elected “it would create an unprecedented constitutional crisis and the work of government would grind to an unbelievable, unglorious [sic] halt.”

He also reminded Clinton voters in the Badger State that they can change their ballots if they have already voted absentee and now feel “a bad case of buyer’s remorse.”

The event carried all the trappings of a normal presidential rally as Republican elected officials like Senator Ron Johnson, facing an uphill fight for re-election, and Governor Scott Walker appeared with their party’s nominee. It marked the first time that Johnson who is considered an underdog in his Senate bid against former Senator Russ Feingold appeared at an event with Trump.

The Republican nominee also unveiled his closing ad on Tuesday entitled Choice. It cast the election as referendum between staying “on the road to stagnation” with Clinton, or getting “the change we’re waiting for” with Trump.