The Party of Cray Cray: 41% of Republicans Think Benghazi is The Biggest Scandal in History

The Republican Party is so far off the sanity cliff that according to a new PPP poll, 41% of them think that Benghazi is the biggest scandal in history.

The latest PPP poll on Benghazi revealed just how far off the reality beaten path the Republican Party has strayed. In the country overall, the Benghazi scandal is failing to catch on. Voters trust Hillary Clinton more than congressional Republicans on Benghazi by a margin of 49%-39%. Majorities of voters said that Congress should be focused on passing background checks and immigration reform instead of investigating Benghazi, and 65% of voters polled did not think that Benghazi was the biggest scandal in American political history. Seventy nine percent of Democrats, and 69% of Independents don’t think Benghazi is the worst scandal in American history.

Republicans are divided. Forty one percent think Benghazi is the worst scandal in American history, while 43% believe that it isn’t. Within the conservative movement, there is also division on the question of Benghazi. By a margin of 48%-29%, voters who consider themselves somewhat conservative didn’t think Benghazi is the biggest scandal in American history. However, by a margin of 55%-31% very conservative voters believed that Benghazi is the biggest scandal ever.

To get more stories like this, subscribe to our newsletter The Daily.

Congressional Republicans are continue to beat the Benghazi dead horse, because that is what half of their base wants. House Republicans are pushing Benghazi because they are the embodiment of the fact that close to half of the Republican Party has gone bat crap crazy. Driven by what looks like irrational hatred of this president, a sizable portion of the Republican Party has lost all perspective.

Voters at large want Republicans to move on to issues that matter, but the Republican Party is now operating a separate entity outside of American politics.

These numbers reveal that Republicans are hurting themselves by catering to the cray cray in their party. Instead of pulling people into their Benghazi conspiracy, Republicans are alienating voters by refusing to focus on more important issues.

The best way to understand why Republicans keep losing presidential elections is to examine the disconnect between a majority of voters and the party’s supporters. Benghazi is the just the latest example of the fact that the Republican Party is not on the same page with the majority of America. As long as these 41% make any Republican presidential candidate say insane things in order to win their party’s nomination, the Republican Party will not win the presidency.

It’s simple. When a Republican member of Congress screams Benghazi at a television camera instead of talking about issues that really matter, Hillary Clinton, or whoever the Democratic nominee ends up being, picks up more votes. Republicans are catering to Fox News and Rush Limbaugh, while losing the rest of the country.

The longer Republicans let the crazies steer the ship, the more likely they are to keep hitting icebergs.

Jason Easley

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.

Awards and  Professional Memberships

Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association