Public support for a massive revamping of health care has been slipping as the effort has slowed.That's right. Failure: Massive. Epic. Fail.
With Congress heading off on August recess, opponents have the chance to mount local campaigns against the plans while lawmakers are home.
President Barack Obama had hoped to have sweeping legislation to overhaul the nation's health system in hand by the summer break. But the effort has been hindered by infighting among Democrats and his failure to effectively sell the plan to Americans.
See also, Scott Rasmussen, "Health Reform and the Polls":
For all the back and forth about the “public option,” Congressional Budget Office estimates and proposed tax hikes, the fundamentals are really what make health-care reform a hard sell to American voters. As members of Congress head home for the August recess, they should take a close look at some poll numbers before they attempt to pass any new legislation.See also, Daniel Henniger, "Why Obama May Fail If Obama Can’t Sell More Government, No One Can."
The most important fundamental is that 68% of American voters have health-insurance coverage they rate good or excellent. That number comes from polling conducted this past weekend of 1,000 likely voters. Most of these voters approach the health-care reform debate fearing that they have more to lose than to gain.
Adding to President Barack Obama’s challenge as he sells health-care reform to the public is the fact that most voters are skeptical about the government’s ability to do anything well. While the president says his plan will reduce costs, 53% believe it will have the opposite effect.
There’s also the reality that 74% of voters rate the quality of care they now receive as good or excellent. And 50% fear that if Congress passes health-care reform, it will lead to a decline in the quality of that care.
Advocates of health-care reform on Capitol Hill are up against something bigger than voters’ reactions to a variety of specific proposals. Our polling in February found that by a 2-1 margin, voters believe that no matter how bad things are Congress can always make matters worse. That’s one reason 78% believe passage of the current congressional health-care proposals is likely to mean higher taxes for the middle class.
More at Memeorandum. See especially, "Health Debate Turns Hostile at Town Hall Meetings."
7 comments:
Our 44th President learned from our 42nd: if he doesn't get this thing done early, it doesn't get done at all. He started the initiative earlier in his term than did President Clinton, and he knows that, the closer the legislation gets to the midterm elections, the less support it will have from congressmen looking toward their re-election campaigns.
So, he had to push it early, but pushing it early opened President Obama up to the usual attacks: it was rushed, it hasn't been thought through, he's trying to ram it through without the public having a chance to debate and understand it.
It was Rush Limbaugh and talk radio and Harry and Louise who defeated ClintonCare. Now we have the internet to help us.
Folks, I hate to be the nay sayer here but, I live in a universe controlled by reality. The political reality now is vastly different than when clinton was the philanderer in chief. Or even when G.W. was in office.
The fact of the matter is this: The socialists in power see the Nationalization of EVERY aspect of our economy and life to be their reason for ever running in the first place. It's a cult, if you will, with the religious teachings of Marx to guid them to utopia.
If they get it passed, and they will, our nation will never be the same. The options are very limited at this point. Look at the last 7 months. Tea party goers were dismissed, both on July4th and April 15th. Protesters are said to be organized or paid by insurance companies. Every counter argument to their agenda is dismissed out of hand and instead of having a debate, they avoid the populous that disagrees with them.
Our options are thus: Bend over and take it, or prepare to be labeled as insurrectionists and criminals and either end up in Barry's internment facilities for civil detainees or fight.
That's it folks. Gear up or sit down and shut up. Those are the options the government is giving us.
The fact of the matter is this: The socialists in power see the Nationalization of EVERY aspect of our economy and life to be their reason for ever running in the first place. It's a cult, if you will, with the religious teachings of Marx to guid them to utopia. Evan Thomas, the vapid Newsweak Senior Editor's grandpa Norman Thomas ran several times for POTUS on the Socialist ticket.
Thomas grandpere famously said that America would become a socialist nation without the word "socialist" entering into the process.....
I hearken back to an earlier "Barry" who almost famously said "When treason rules the land......." You could look it up.
Excellent post, and great comments. Nothing would give me more pleasure than to see this thing go down in flames. Then we could sit down and actually figure out a decent, workable solution to any of our health care problems.
Greywolfe, I agree.
I'd say the chances of this lunacy passing are about 60/40 right now.
And even if it should fail to pass all at once, it will be incremented piece-by-piece.
Sadly, there are just too many societal leeches in this country today who feel that someone else should be responsible for paying for their health care.
I fear that by the time November of 2010 rolls around, Obama will have most of his socialist agenda in place, regardless of what We the People do in the interim.
It is going to be extremely difficult to undo what he is rapidly putting into place.
As for ObamaCare, we will never be able to reverse it.
-Dave
I agree that this will be a very close run thing. The representatives will have to decide whom they fear more, their constituents, whom they've managed to dismiss so far, or Plastic Pelosi, with whom they have to work daily when they're in what they've come to consider their real home. Continue the protests, by all means, but get started on the next step too, which is researching and then initiating recall procedures for your state. Whether the recall will work or not, the point is to keep them on the defensive. Just as empty ethics complaints wore down Sarah Palin, having to react to recall initiatives will begin to wear down the smugness of our "representatives." If they have to constantly defend their job before their constituents, they might begin to remember who sent them to Washington in the first place.
Steven, it's a great thought, but unfortunately the constitution only allows for removal from office for a Congressman under the impeachment proceedings.
The individual states cannot recall a representative or Senator. All we can do, according to the Constitution, is wait them out. Or physically throw them out under force. That's about it.
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