Exactly. I highly doubt even a simple majority would vote for it.
Lormand, you ask how it costs the President political capital. How long do you think the media would have harped on Bush's inability to get a bill through a GOP-controlled Congress? Right off the bat, the American electorate would have an image of some bumbling, politically inept fool living in the White House. I believe the President understood this, and understands that there is a proper time to address sensitive issues (that time was not in the first six months of office under the current Congress).
How do they know the results without even trying? It takes leadership to pursuade the electorate and opposing politicians. With your view of it, say goodbye to banning partial birth abortions forever.