Former Democratic Massachusetts governor Michael Dukakis warned Joe Biden not to consider his current lead in the polls as a sign of impending victory, recalling his own failure in the 1988 presidential race as an example. Dukakis lost his White House bid to former vice president George H. W. Bush.
The presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden currently leads Donald Trump 50-38, a Fox News poll shows, while Real Clear Politics data suggests the former vice president is leading Trump by an average of 8.8 percentage points. Dukakis, who was in a similar position during his 1998 presidential election against George HW Bush, warned those numbers do not necessarily translate into votes in Nov.
In an interview with Boston Globe columnist Alex Beam, Dukakis said this year's polls need to be studied carefully. The lead is a result of nation-wide protests, unemployment, and growing concerns over the pandemic. In July 1988, Dukakis was leading Bush by 55-38, according to a Newsweek/Gallup poll.
Stating that Biden should and can win, Dukakis said being at 50 doesn't guarantee success, regardless of how weak the opponent is. The former Massachusetts governor's number dropped following a slew of public relations blunders, coupled with what can be described as a disinterested performance in his second debate with Bush.
CNN anchor Bernard Shaw asked him if would approve the death penalty if his wife were raped and murdered, Dukakis said no, sticking to his belief that capital punishment doesn't stop people from committing crimes, but many thought his answer was cold.
Dukakis’ campaign director, Susan Estrich said the question was about his values and emotions, adding that she knew they lost the election when he answered by talking policy. His numbers continued to decline after a Bush campaign attack ad featuring a black man, Willie Horton, who raped and killed a white woman and stabbed her fiance in Maryland in 1987 was released.
Horton was on a weekend furlough at a Massachusetts prison when the killing took place. The furlough program was active when Dukakis was governor. The attack ad accused him of being soft on crime while condemning him of fueling racial divisions.
The incumbent president at the time, Ronald Reagan raised questions over Dukakis' mental state, later claiming he was joking. In an email to Globe, Dukakis admitted that he thinks he lost eight points when Reagan called referred to him as the invalid, claiming that he never took those early polls seriously.
Likewise, Trump's supporters have questioned Biden's mental acuity. The president did the same by calling Hillary Clinton unhinged in 2016, and suggesting she was unfit for the job of being president.