Just a couple reasons Bernie can win the nomination IF he even runs

[Jim Lane]

44. While we're restating the obvious...

Bernie Sanders has demonstrated that, outside the cloistered halls of DU, he has widespread support among Democratic voters (as well as many independents and even some Republicans).

Here's an actual poll, from Quinnipiac earlier this year. Question 9 (on page 6) asks: "Is your opinion of Bernie Sanders favorable, unfavorable or haven't you heard enough about him?" Among Democrats, the numbers were:

Favorable 76%
Unfavorable 11%
Haven't heard 10%
Refused to answer 2%

Obviously, that doesn't mean that, in a hypothetical primary matchup between Bernie and Politician X, Bernie would get 76% of the votes of Democrats. Plenty of other politicians also have high net approval ratings among Democrats. It does show, however, that the Democratic electorate as a whole is not unremittingly hostile to Bernie Sanders.

My point is that, of posts on DU concerning him, the percentage that is hostile is quite high -- at a wild guess, somewhere around 80%, but certainly far higher than 11%. I offer this as evidence for my assertion that posts on DU are not a reliable barometer of the overall temperament of the grassroots members of the Democratic Party.