‘Trash Poll’: Republican Senate Candidate Tells Reporter, ‘You Guys Need a Better Pollster’

Michael Whatley, the Republican nominee for U.S. Senate in North Carolina, was not happy about one poll showing him trailing by a wide margin.

Polls have consistently shown Whatley, the former head of the Republican National Committee, trailing former North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper (D) by five points or more. But one survey conducted by the Carolina Journal has Cooper ahead by 15, 49% to 34%.

On the campaign trail Friday, Whatley took questions from reporters, one of whom was Andrew Pomeranz of the offending publication. Pomeranz did not get very far with his question.

“Andrew Pomeranz, Carolina Journal,” the reporter began. “Coming into the–”

“You guys need a better pollster,” Whatley interrupted. “You guys have the worst pollster in the history of North Carolina. It’s absolutely unbelievable.”

Pomeranz started to ask his question again and noted that the polls “show you down,” at which point Whatley interrupted again.

“Well, every single poll has showed this race is tightening, except for yours, which is a trash poll, right?” the candidate shot back. “But the fact is that the polls have shown that this race is absolutely tightening, that we are right at [the] margin of error, and we’re gonna win, because I’ve been to all 100 counties. I have talked to the people on the coast. I’ve talked to the people up in the mountains. I’ve talked to the people in the cities. I talk to people on the farms. And what they want is to know, ‘Who are you gonna stand for?'”

The Carolina Journal describes itself as “a non-partisan news service of the John Locke Foundation.” It is worth noting that the foundation is a conservative think tank that “envisions a North Carolina in which liberty and limited, constitutional government are the cornerstones of society so that individuals, families, and institutions can freely shape their own destinies.”

Watch above via C-SPAN.

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