Either Bernie is a real threat, or Hillary is being paranoid. Which do you think? [View all]
The reality is, they're running out of patience. So they're going to begin deploying a new strategy. It's going to be called "Disqualify him, defeat him." And then they can unify the party later. For the last several months, the Clinton campaign has been first ignoring Bernie Sanders, then dismissing him. Now they're going to go head-long into him.
A lot of people here think Sanders has no chance. (The math is impossible! He should drop out!) It seems that Hillary may disagree. Why pull out the guns against someone you genuinely see as no threat? What is there to be "impatient" about if you are confident in the outcome? Why not just wait, try to be statesmanlike and stay above it? What's to be gained in risking dragging the campaign into negative territory (which has a risk of backfiring), if there is no actual threat from the other side? This change of strategy would seem to make no sense unless he is actually perceived as a threat.
If she perceives him as a threat, I see two possibilities: either Bernie actually has a chance, or he doesn't and Hillary is just being paranoid. Anyone want to suggest a third possibility?
With that in mind, here's a poll:
Q: Why do you think Hillary is adjusting her campaign to more forcefully attack Bernie?