Election Day is fast approaching, and Fox News is going into panic mode. Like the incredulous Karl Rove in 2012, who stormed the control room when Barack Obama was declared the winner, they’re pulling the blanket over their eyes and attempting to show their viewers how Trump has many possible paths to victory. Sorry, Fox News fans – it’s simply not true.
The Math Just Doesn’t Add Up
Fox News host and Trump lapdog Eric Bolling made a little whiteboard chart the other day to try and prove that Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has a real shot at winning the election.
Here are all the possible paths to Electoral College victory for Trump.. in less than a minute. pic.twitter.com/2yr5p9RZz9
— Eric Bolling?? (@ericbolling) November 3, 2016
He started by handing Trump every state that Mitt Romney won in 2012, which proves he hasn’t been paying attention. Included in that 206 is North Carolina, which is definitely not a sure thing. In fact, Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton is favored to win North Carolina by approximately 70 percent as of today. North Carolina has 15 Electoral College votes. Aside from North Carolina, though, I think it’s fair to pretty much give Trump the other Romney states.
So now we’re down to 191. Ohio is looking more and more like it will swing in Trump’s favor, so let’s give him that one. Aw, heck, I’ll give him Iowa, too. Romney also didn’t win any of Maine’s Electoral College votes, and they’re one of two states that can split their votes. One district in Maine is looking like it might turn red, and that would mean one more vote for Trump. So, adding that one Maine vote, Ohio (18), and Iowa (6), we’re at 216.
Here’s where things start to get messy.
Bolling not only gave Trump every state Romney won, including North Carolina, but he also hands him Florida in his attempt to show how easy it will be for Trump to win. Clinton is currently favored in Florida at 69 percent. But, OK, let’s give Trump Florida’s 29 votes. The count is now 245. That is still 25 short of a victory. Even if we go ahead and throw North Carolina back in there, he’s still 10 short. And the possible states Bolling throws out as possibly going to Trump are laughable. Minnesota? New Hampshire? Come on, Eric. You know better than that. If you really think those states are going to be red this election day, I have a bridge to sell to you.
Even Fox News Knows An Electoral Victory Is Near-Impossible For Trump
The funniest part about the chart that Bolling used is that he wasn’t trying to show Trump’s “easy” path to 270. Nope – he was trying to show how Trump might be able to eke out 269 Electoral College votes, which means a tie. This, despite the fact that he tweeted it as “possible paths to Electoral College victory.”
From Nate Silver’s website:
An Electoral College tie sends the election to the House of Representatives, which is currently controlled by Republicans. Granted, that would almost certainly mean a win for Trump, but not an Electoral College victory.
The reality is that Trump would have to flip some pretty dark blue states to the red column on election day if he was to pull out an Electoral College victory. He might get closer than any of us thought, but it would take a nigh-on miracle for him to win.
VOTE BLUE ALL THE WAY ON NOVEMBER 8.
Featured Image via screenshot from YouTube video
