SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE:

THE FIGHTING DONALD:  Whether you like him or not, it is impossible to deny the fight in Donald Trump.  The man does not give up, or give an inch.  Attitudes like that can have positive uses.  From Fox:  Former President Donald Trump has expanded his lead in the Republican primary race, while President Joe Biden continues to face uncertainty among Democratic primary voters, according to the latest Fox News national survey. 
Republican primary voters were read a list of 15 announced and potential candidates for the 2024 nomination. The survey, released Wednesday, finds Trump has doubled his lead since February and is up by 30 points over Ron DeSantis (54%-24%). Last month, he was up by 15 (43%-28%).
No one else hits double digits. Mike Pence comes in third with 6%, Liz Cheney and Nikki Haley receive 3% each, and Greg Abbott comes in at 2%. All others receive 1% support or less, and just 3% are unsure.   Trump made gains among almost every key demographic except for White men with a college degree, where DeSantis is up by 12 points.  Among the subgroup of voters who backed Trump in the 2020 general election, 60% support him in the GOP primary, while 25% go for DeSantis and 5% for Pence.  When asked who their second choice would be, Trump primary voters would back DeSantis, and the Florida governor’s primary voters would return the favor and go for Trump.  Look, it's early, and I always warn about taking early polls seriously.  But remember that Trump is a former president, thoroughly known by voters.  They can make a knowledgeable judgment about him.  Unless he's brought low by a legal proceeding, he will be hard to beat.

March 29, 2023