The ones showing Obama going into New Hampshire with a 7-10% lead across the board, as of last night? They were crap. Even worse, some people are starting to cite The Bradley Effect.
No, I'm not referring to Bill Bradley's negative impact on anyone he endorses in the 11th hour of a tight race (though he did endorse Howard Dean in 2004, two days before his steep loss in the Iowa Caucuses, and Barack Obama just two days ago. Hmmm).
I'm referring to The Bradley Effect, in which white voters give inaccurate polling responses in order to conceal a racial prejudice to pollsters asking for their voting preference in a contest pitting a black candidate against a white one. It famously took down Los Angeles mayor Tom Bradley in a 1982 California gubernatorial race, and it almost took down Doug Wilder in his Virginia race for governor in 1989. Both men were polling well ahead of their opponents up till Election Day. That changed in the booth.
Let's hope our country has moved beyond this bullshit.
