TRUMP DOMINATES NEW FOX POLL – AT 11:18 A.M. ET:  The new poll confirms what other polls have been telling us, that Trump's strength atop the GOP field of candidates continues, when the question involves the nomination.  The poll produces a very different result when dealing with the general election.  From Fox: 

Donald Trump, a candidate even Republicans once considered a side show, increases his lead yet again in the nomination race, according to the latest Fox News national poll.

The poll also finds Ted Cruz ticking up, Marco Rubio slipping, and Ben Carson dropping.

Trump hits a high of 39 percent among Republican primary voters, up from 28 percent a month ago. The increase comes mainly from men, white evangelical Christians, and voters without a college degree -- and at the expense of Carson.

However, the poll is not all good news for the Donald. Despite his increasing advantage in the primary, his support in the general election is down.

And...

Despite Trump’s strong showing among primary voters, other Republicans perform better when all registered voters are asked their preference in hypothetical general election ballot tests.

When matched against presumptive Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, Rubio has a two-point edge (45 percent vs. 43 percent), and Cruz and Clinton tie (45 percent). Carson is down by two.

Clinton now overtakes Trump: 49 percent vs. 38 percent. Her 11-point advantage is outside the poll’s three-point error margin. A month ago, Trump was up by 5 points (November 16-19).

COMMENT:  That is a warning for Republicans.  In recent years the GOP has suffered considerably by nominating unelectable candidates.  Will that now continue?  Obviously, this is only one poll, but what will Republican voters do if other polls show Trump unelectable against Clinton?  That may be the most important political question of 2016. 

December 19,  2015