Dem candidate who went after KKK surges ahead of accused pedophile in AL Senate race

Immediately after the Washington Post published its bombshell report about Moore having preyed on teen girls when he was in his 30s, the polls tightened up, putting Moore and Jones in a dead heat in the race to fill Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ former seat.

Just two days later, as Jones receives a windfall of donations, the numbers have shifted even further.

A new JMC Analytics poll shows Jones leading Moore 48 percent to 44 percent. And as the pollster Harry Enten pointed out, these results can’t be blamed on bias or a skewed respondent group:

One thing I want to note is this JMC Analytics poll and the prior one have Trump's approval in the low 50s. Suggests that non-response bias isn't an issue here. (Of course, we'll see.)

— (((Harry Enten))) (@ForecasterEnten) November 12, 2017

Republican lawmakers have largely been weak-willed or even defensive about the horrifying allegations against Moore. Many of them are relying on the “if true” cop-out, casting aspersions on the accusers and defaulting to the “he said” side in the issue.

And some have been downright repulsive, blaming the young accusers, insisting there’s nothing wrong with the idea of what Moore may have done, and even making ham-fisted attempts to use the Bible to excuse pedophilia.

But voters in Alabama apparently have stronger consciences than many in the GOP, and realize that a man like Jones, who successfully prosecuted the Klan members responsible for the 1963 church bombing in Birmingham, Alabama, is a vastly superior candidate and person than a man who thinks it’s okay to prey on a teenager so long as her mother was fine with it.