Hillary Clinton made a huge blunder when she signaled Debbie Wasserman Schultz, head of the DNC, that allowing Bernie Sanders to run for the Democratic nomination was OK, even though he was not even a Democrat.  

Obviously, she figured that an elderly socialist Jew from a tiny state had no chance whatsoever of being more than token opposition. After all, it would be embarrassing evidence of machine control over the party if nobody ran against her.  So sure, let him do so.

But it turned out that the Democrat establishment was as out of touch with the anger of its base as the GOPe.  And Sanders, having the time of his life promising free stuff and revenge against the wealthy, caught fire as an authentic foe in contrast to the transparent phoniness of Hillary.

At least partially as a result of Sanders exposing her role as a tool of Wall Street, Hillary’s support among Democrats has plummeted. Natalie Johnson of the Free Beacon notes that Gallup has found a 27% decline in Hillary’s net approval (favorable minus unfavorable).  Frank Newport of Gallup writes:

Recent activity in the presidential election campaign is clearly taking a toll on the images of the leading presidential candidates, as Hillary Clinton drops to her lowest net favorable rating among Democrats since Gallup began tracking her in July (snip).

Clinton's current net favorable rating of +36 among Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents is based on 66% who give her a favorable rating and 30% who give her an unfavorable rating.

Clinton's image has undergone ups and downs over the course of the campaign season, just as it has over her entire 25-year career in the national spotlight. Overall, however, April so far has not been kind to the former secretary of state. Her net favorable rating has descended steadily to her current low point -- in the midst of a crucial stage of the primary season, which will help determine whether she'll emerge the clear winner over Bernie Sanders before the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia this July.

The consensus among pundits remains that Hillary has a near-lock on the nomination. Maybe so. But Sanders may surge in New York, and if he pulls off a victory there, it will be time for real panic on the Hillary side. And when Hillary gets angry and emphatic, it ain’t pretty. Those superdelegates have to be looking at polls showing Sanders doing way, way better than Hillary in hypothetical matches against the GOP field.