The Corporate Media Mocks ‘Double Haters’

During the past several months the corporate media have devoted a lot of coverage to a species of voter they describe as “double haters.” This pejorative label notwithstanding, such voters are neither unique to the current election cycle nor particularly hateful. It’s probably more accurate to call them double dissenters. They disapprove of the presumptive presidential nominees offered by the two major political parties and decline to choose the “lesser of two evils.” Some may sit out 2024 and others may vote for an independent like Jill Stein, Cornel West or Robert F. Kennedy Jr. This has earned them the derision of a pundit class that fears most third-party votes will be cast at the expense of President Joe Biden.

Consequently, legacy news outlets have been publishing snide opinion pieces that openly insult these errant voters. The Los Angeles Times, for example, ran a column last week about a woman named Victoria Thompson who says she may vote for Kennedy. Its author, Mark Z. Barabak, refers to her as “crazy” and “nutty.” He describes her political views as “conspiratorial” and “far-fetched.” And what are those views? She’s been a Democrat most of her life, but doesn’t believe she owes her vote to any party: “As for Biden, she’s convinced — like many Republicans — that he is well past his sell-by date and lacks the mental capacity to be president.” This is nutty? A recent NYT/Siena College poll found that most voters agree.

As Niall Stanage writes in The Hill, “Kennedy has some fertile ground to plow among disaffected Democrats, given the widespread concern about Biden’s age.” And the number of double dissenters is significant. Catherine Kim points out in Politico that they constitute roughly one-fifth of the electorate. They were a negligible factor in 2020 but in 2016 they made up about 18 percent of the voters, many of whom cast ballots for third-party candidates. As Matthew Xiao reports in the Washington Free Beacon, the Democratic National Committee held a conference call that revealed who the Democrats believe will be the beneficiary of their votes this year.

Democrats slammed Robert F. Kennedy Jr. after he announced Nicole Shanahan as his presidential running mate on Tuesday, with lawmakers expressing worry that the pair’s campaign will siphon votes from President Joe Biden in his rematch this fall with Republican nominee Donald Trump … The DNC hosted the call with several Democratic officials from swing states after Kennedy on Tuesday ramped up his independent White House bid by announcing his running mate would be Shanahan, an attorney who donated $4 million to Kennedy’s campaign for Super Bowl advertising.

That Super Bowl ad highlighted one of the most important strengths Shanahan brings to Kennedy’s campaign — money. She is a billionaire who can help cover the costs associated with a multi-front legal war coordinated by the DNC to keep him off state ballots. NBC reports, “The Democratic National Committee is building its first team to counter third-party candidates, while outside groups stockpile money for a wider campaign.” The Kennedy campaign has sued Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows, according to a report from Spectrum News. Bellows, who attempted disqualify former President Trump from running in Maine, has now barred Kennedy from collecting the necessary signatures to get on the state’s ballot. (READ MORE: Will the 2024 Election Get Lost in the Mail?)

Kennedy may have to sue the state of Nevada pursuant to his petition to get on its ballot. State officials say it is invalid because it lists no VP candidate. Kennedy’s attorney told CBS News, “After successfully collecting all of the signatures we need in Nevada, the DNC Goon Squad and their lackeys in the Nevada Secretary of State’s office are outright inventing a new requirement for the petition with zero legal basis … The petition does not even have a field for a VP on it.” This collusion between the DNC and Nevada officials suggests that the Biden campaign believes most double dissenters will vote for anyone but the President if they have a choice. A USA Today/Suffolk University poll indicates they may well be right:

Twenty-five percent of the double haters supported Trump in the survey, compared to 18% for Biden. About 44% of the double haters currently back various third-party candidates. Kennedy drew more of these voters, 21%, than Biden did. Green Party candidate Jill Stein had the backing of 7% of double haters, while independent Cornel West was supported by 6% … In the 2016 election, Trump performed 17 percentage points better than Hillary Clinton among the double-hater voters — who made up about 20% of the vote — steering him to victory.

Assuming these percentages are reasonably accurate, the double dissenters are not merely an important voter bloc, they may well send Trump back to the White House. The corporate media would be wise to stop mocking these voters. Snide columns like the one quoted above from the Los Angeles Times are unlikely to motivate dissident voters to support any candidate offered by the two major parties. Moreover, if the DNC continues its election interference strategy — and that’s the proper definition of its effort to bar Kennedy from state ballots — it will blow up in Biden’s face. If voters like Victoria Thompson are denied the right to vote for the candidate of their choice, they will sit home. That’s just as good as a vote for Trump. (READ MORE: The State of the President)

A majority of the voters are less than enthusiastic about the presidential candidates the two major parties will offer them in November. Most will cast ballots for the least worst of the two. Some will sit home and others will vote for a third-party candidate. If the Democrats and the corporate media continue to deride the latter group, the larger it will become. Insulting the customer is a losing strategy. Let’s hope, for the good of the nation, they keep doing it .

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