Letters to the Editor
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The Poll is being misread.
In all of the back and forth, here is the most important problem with this poll, which Joan only mentions parenthetically:
"(One limit of the poll is that voters weren't asked if they would support a black or a woman president, only if they think others would.)"
This poll is about what people assume about other voters, not how they'd vote themselves.
So it does NOT reveal if Americans are more ready for one or the other. IT ONLY SHOWS THOSE BEING POLLED THINK OTHER PEOPLE ARE MORE SEXIST THAN RACIST.
Which I think is a good thing. In fact it might mean the exact opposite of what Joan tries to argue. People are paying attenton to the sexist attacks on Clinton and it does disturb them more than the racist attacks on Obama, to the point they believe the country is too sexist to elect her.
This is still not a good thing for Clinton, since people make assumptions based on electability. But it does mean people do recognize the obstacles she's against, and they may not think it's right.
It is also not a good thing for Obama, because it might mean people refuse to believe racism is an obstacle, which might mean they won't recognize racist tactics when used against him.
Anyway, Joan downplays what I think is the most key factor in the poll because it's harder to fit into her bias. She treats it like an afterthought, when it's vital to the discussion. More importantly, she could include this factor and still provide analysis which supports Clinton. This is why these posts are so infuriating - one can be honest and supportive, instead of just the latter.