HILLARY WOBBLY – AT 12:18 P.M. ET:  Hillary Clinton's campaign appears to be stalling, in the face of a challenge by an olderly socialist from Vermont who honeymooned in the old Soviet Union.  You can't make this up.  From Fox: 

New national polling is showing Bernie Sanders gaining ground on Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton, casting into doubt Clinton as the inevitable nominee for the party, and recalling the 2008 race where Clinton was eventually beaten by underdog Barack Obama.

Despite a 30 percent-plus lead over Sanders in the summer in many polls, Clinton's lead has shrunk drastically in recent months as she continues to be dogged by doubts about her candidacy, while Sanders continues to gain strength in key states and across the U.S.

With key votes in Iowa and New Hampshire just weeks away, Clinton's apparent firm hold on the nomination seems to be slipping away.

Polls now show Sanders with a comfortable lead in New Hampshire. A Fox News Poll released last week showed Sanders with a commanding 13 point lead in the Granite State, with a 50-37 point margin. The poll shows a stunning increase for Sanders, who was only one point ahead in a similar poll in November.

Meanwhile in Iowa, Clinton's once solid lead is dwindling and it seems the Hawkeye State is up for grabs. The Real Clear Politics average shows Clinton with a four point lead, with some polls showing the two tied and a recent Quinnipiac poll actually showing Sanders with a five point lead.

Should Sanders win the coveted prizes of both Iowa and New Hampshire, it would hand him momentum going into trickier states such as South Carolina, and would raise serious questions about Clinton's ability to secure the nomination.

It isn’t just in the vital states of Iowa and New Hampshire where Clinton’s lead is narrowing – polls are showing Sanders gaining ground nationally.

The latest Fox News Poll showed Clinton with a 15 point lead nationally. That’s down from a 25 point advantage as recently as two months ago, suggesting the race is tightening and that Sanders may be a serious concern for the Clinton camp.

COMMENT:  Conventional wisdom holds that Sanders is strictly a northern candidate, and that Clinton will catch up and defeat him as the primaries move south, into states, like South Carolina, which have large black populations.  Sanders currently has little standing among African Americans.

But there is the matter of that FBI investigation into Clinton's activities at the State Department.  If that turns out badly for Hillary, Dems will look around urgently for an alternative.  I doubt if they'll look closely at Bernie.  More likely, as we've noted here before,  they'll turn to Joe Biden, at Obama's insistence. 

What is striking is Hillary's weakness.  The stories picturing her as dishonest and greedy have taken their toll. 

January 16, 2015