Just generally, the initial trough is absolutely not where it needs to be for anything close to an US EC close approach. It doesn’t take much to kick an MDR system away from the coast. Respect the hell out of Walt but this can’t even get within 1,000 miles of the Carolina coast with that trough as depicted.
Atlantic Canada is a different story because like Fiona and some other recent storms it’s no guarantee the initial trough is enough to pull it all the way NE into the North Atlantic.
Initial trough is there at relatively short range to scoop future Ernesto up
Critically, that prevents a more westerly track in advance of the second trough, which would’ve been in the general location that favors some type of close approach or EC hit. Ernesto is simply too far east to be pulled off its recurve path toward the U.S., but not far enough potentially for Canada.
Like Will would say in winter, you need changes in the initial trough to start showing up immediately…for any U.S. close approach to be in the realm of possibility.