Establishment Democrats are panicking as Vermont socialist Senator Bernie Sanders opens up a considerable lead in early primary and caucus states, such as Iowa.

A New York Times poll taken earlier this week for the first-to-vote Iowa caucus revealed Sanders has opened up his strongest lead thus far in the campaign in the state, leading neoliberal centrist Pete Buttigieg by a solid seven percentage points. Sanders took first place in the poll with 25%, with Buttigieg behind in second with 18%.

Joe Biden and Elizabeth Warren came in third and fourth respectively with 17% and 15%.

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The strong poll is the latest development fueling a general feeling of consternation among establishment Democrats who oppose Sanders’ candidacy.

Fake “conservatives” who have taken their place in the Democratic Party in the Trump era are also voicing their displeasure with the possibility of their new party nominating Sanders, presenting a presidential election in which traditional liberal centrist politicians are not nominated by either major American political party.

A national party could end up nominating an old crank who isn't even a member of their own party, who fires up brainless populists, and is surrounded by a cult of personality.
What could go wrong, I ask you

— Tom Nichols (@RadioFreeTom) January 25, 2020

Democrats, wake the hell up.

— Jennifer Rubin (@JRubinBlogger) January 25, 2020

President Obama himself has been rumored to be nervous about the prospects of Sanders’ candidacy, and reports have surfaced indicating that the Democratic Party kingpin would be willing to make a statement with the intention of kneecapping Sanders.

Although many conventional conservatives appear to dismiss Sanders’ prospects in a general election, President Trump himself is more prescient of the aged socialists’ populist appeal. The President has spoken of Sanders’ resonance on national trade policy, an issue both men have championed with great appeal to American workers.

However, the President believes that the Democratic establishment will likely take measures to rig the primary against Sanders, as it did in 2016. Considering the DNC’s track record of corruption, it’s far from a distant possibility.

A Trump vs. Sanders general election would likely be determined by whichever candidate can effectively channel the populist energies that fuel their respective political bases. Both candidates have  strong trade track records. Sanders has the potential to appeal to working class voters on issues of income inequality usually dismissed by Republicans, but he’s also completely powerless to criticize globalist mass immigration policies that have fueled a cheap labor workforce for the corporate elite.

A general election between the two populists would be unlike anything in recent American political history, and judging from Sanders’ hot polling, it very well could be in the cards.