‘Just Gross’: CNN’s Dana Bash Taken Aback By Poll On How Many People Would Not Vote For a Muslim

CNN anchor Dana Bash lamented on Thursday the findings in a new poll out of Michigan that 45% of the electorate would not vote for a Muslim candidate, calling it “just gross.”

During a panel discussion on the U.S. Senate race between Democrat Abdul El-Sayed and Mike Rogers, Bash noted, “We have new data about that that I do want to get to. First, let’s just look at the overall polling that Erin, you were talking about. There’s a brand new poll out from The Washington Post this morning that shows El-Sayed at 48, Rogers at 45. With the margin of error, it’s a statistical dead heat.”

“And then the question, which kind of goes to the strategy here, perhaps, by some voters who are thinking about the balance of power in Washington: ‘What is your preference for party control in the US Senate?’ Democratic, 53. Republican, 45,” Bash said, adding:

Now let’s get to what you were just talking about, Nia. “Would not consider voting for a presidential candidate who is…” Atheist, 46%. Muslim, 45%. Jewish, 20%. Christian, 7%. These are Michigan voters, the people who are going to go to the polls to decide between Rogers and El-Sayed. 45%?

“Yeah, I mean, listen — Barack Obama had to deal with this, right? I mean, he had to deal with the reality that some people in 2008 were not comfortable voting for a Black man for president, a Black man that people thought was Muslim, and all that kind of stuff,” replied Bloomberg columnist Nia Malika-Henderson, who added:

So, you know, if you listen to Abdul El-Sayed, he says, “Oh, there are many Abduls in Michigan, and take my name out your mouth if you can’t say it correctly.” But the reality is there are biases out there, and he’s got to figure out a way to address them. It doesn’t help that he is essentially campaigning with Hasan Piker.

“Well, yeah, I mean, he did — he did one time. Now he’s trying to distance himself-ish. It’s one thing to sort of suggest that; it’s another thing to say — to have respondents from this poll, 45% say they would not consider voting for a Muslim. First of all, it’s just gross, right?” Bash added.

“Right,” agreed Malika-Henderson, who noted, “And what was the Jewish factor?”

“Let’s just say what it is, it’s just gross,” Bash added.

“I mean, what was the Jewish number? Malika-Henderson repeated.

“It’s 20%. I mean, it’s gross, but that is what he’s contending with. And let’s also say that a lot of what Mike Rogers is campaigning on — yes, is the economy — but he’s also not so subtly talking about issues that Hasan Piker talked about, about 9/11 and so forth,” Bash concluded.

Watch above via CNN.

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