Why Obama Can't Move the Health-Care Numbers

Wall Stree Journal ^ | 3/9/10 | Scott Rasmussen and Doug Schoen

[advance_copy]

For every voter who strongly favors the plan, two are strongly opposed.

One of the more amazing aspects of the health-care debate is how steady public opinion has remained. Despite repeated and intense sales efforts by the president and his allies in Congress, most Americans consistently oppose the plan that has become the centerpiece of this legislative season.

[RayChuang88]

The answer is simple why The Zero has trouble with the health care legislation:

1) It takes over 1/7 of the US economy.
2) The various bills are fiendishly complicated and almost as hard to interpret as our income tax laws!
3) The cost could be as high as US$2.1 trillion.

[TruthHound]

These numbers are heartening. The vast majority of Americans recognize this bill for exactly what it is:

[okie01]

...they do not fear the electorate.

That can and should change.

It must. And it will.

Even if the Republicans rout the Democrats in November, taking over majorities in both Houses, it is essential that their feet be held to the fire!

They must go to Washington to do what they've been told to do. Or we'll find some new guys next time...

[kempster]

When health care passes they will be able to lead us by the nose wherever they want to.

[gov_bean_ counter]

The damage he is doing to his party and his place in history will be beyond repair.

He is to the point where even the banjo can't save him. (Steve Martin/Richard Nixon reference)

But how about a little Foggy Mountain Breakdown, anyway.

[arthurus]

The damage he is doing to his party and his place in history will be beyond repair

But if he gets this thing passed in any form at all he has secured the complete reorientation of this society and Western Civilization. It will be ever after a left wing socialist country with the preponderance of the economy and ultimately the entire economy run from government agencies. It is NOT just imitation of Europe. The American economy has propped up Europe since WWII. When this economy goes into endless decline, then Europe will fall much faster. We will have famine in our national future, not just impoverishment of all but the nomenklatura.

[arthurus]

I don’t think he misreads anything. He has bet all his chips on this. If he wins it the Left cleans the table. He could have approached it more efficiently and we should be thankful he has the instincts of a schoolteacher rather than of a salesman.

[Jmouse007]

"President" Obama can rant and rave about "health care" (read, deathcare/CONTROL), he can continue to hold all of the phony "town hall" meetings, and college campus speeches filled with sycophant Obamessiah groupie "Yes we can", communist, socialist, ACORN PLANTS that he wants. He can continue to set all of the end of the world if it does not pass deadlines he wants. Heck he can dance naked in the street screaming at the top of his lungs: "I will get 'health care' passed if it is the last thing I do even if it kills me!" and "Please, do it for Wellstone and Teddy," all he wants. He can continue to plant his angry face on TV every day of the week, and give teleprompter diatribes on "healthcare" (read DEATHCARE/C O N T R O L)that no one will watch (because frankly, the American people are sick and tired of seeing this angry, LITTLE, black man-child who has never run or accomplished ANYTHING in his entire life belittle, berate and blame everyone from George Bush to the "evil" doctors and insurance companies, but himself, for his own failures for the remainder of his so-called "presidency". Obama can do ALL of the above ad infinitem while being lauded by the state run media and it will make no difference because the overwhelming majority of Americans want nothing to do with Obama and the democRATS deathcare bill; WE ARE AMERICANS, WE DO NOT WANT OR BELIEVE IN COMMUNISM, we DO NOT WANT OR BELEIVE IN SOCIALISM, we DO NOT WANT OR BELIEVE IN MARXISM, and that is exactly what Obamas so-called "healthcare" (read DEATHCARE/C O N T R O L)" bill really is. The more Obama, Pelosi and Reed rant and rave and threaten, the more we are opposed to this monstrosity. The more the democRAT socialist/ "progressive" communists try and shove this down our collective throats, the STONGER WE WILL RESIST THEM.

America and the world see you for what you are: Mr. Obama, YOU are a failure, YOUR "progressive" communist/socialist/Marxist "health care" bill is a colossal FAILURE; it is evil, it is UNCONSTITUTIONAL and Americans will never support it no matter who you BRIBE, who you threaten, who you manipulate into supporting it.

[arthurus]

I don’t think he misreads anything. He has bet all his chips on this. If he wins it the Left cleans the table. He could have approached it more efficiently and we should be thankful he has the instincts of a schoolteacher rather than of a salesman.

[lonestar]

I agree.

[elisheba]

Obama has lived all of his life surrounded by leftists and leftist ideas and values. He truly believes that’s the norm, at least among those in this country who “matter”. He can’t think outside of his leftwing bubble and he will never be able to. Contrast Obama with Clinton in this regard. Clinton got tons of leftism from the Ivy League, but he grew up in Arkansas, so his earliest and most basic formative ideas and values are not hard left, and he does not hate this country as Obama does.

[IncPen]

I see it differently, but I don’t think you’re wrong.

I think he thought that his election meant the country desired a hard-left turn (I don’t have million-dollar pollsters behind me, but I thought that’s what the country wanted too).

His great miscalculation may be that he ran utterly without a platform. Since he ran as ‘tabula rasa’, everyone projected their own ‘hope for change’ onto him. He’s managed to piss off EVERYONE. Hard to believe. Hard to do.

While he may have had the momentum a year ago to force this down our throats, he’s now got a party on the verge of open revolt and an electorate that could boil over. For the first time today it occurred to me that there might be riots over this healthcare nonsense.

My own view? I think this is nothing short of an actual coup: I think that this is, in essence, an unconstitutional act; it’s treason.

These a-holes mean to take something from us— the best healthcare that man has ever devised— and actually SELL it back to us.

Can he force this on us? Maybe.

Buy a gun.

[FastCoyote]

Wow, coming from Doug Schoen this is news.

[barb-tex]

Maybe the one needs some backup for the state troopers to flag down more traffic.

[Windflier]

When health care passes they will be able to lead us by the nose wherever they want to.

Please do not speak for me. I'm not going to be "led" anywhere by these traitors and tyrants.

[arthurus]

My own view? definitely in the same category. To the Left this IS the Revolution and their leader may be muffing it.

[HiTech RedNeck]

Not a misreader, a marxist dictator.

[FormerACLUmember]

Never in American history has a government been in such opposition to the will of the people.

[Aria]

No, if this passes it will beat us into subservience. He knows it .... we’ll come around because we’ll have to.

He figures this is his chance - between now and the next election - a small window to destroy the USA as we have known it. Healthcare, the power of life and death, is the lynchpin to move his agenda forward. Then we’ll have “immigration reform”, 401k “reform” (government taking them) cap and tax for the global warming that doesn’t exist. He wants all power and isn’t giving up easily.

[Frohickey]

Not trying to be a troll or anything but how can we solve this health care insurance problem? Are the requirements just that so incompatible with each other that this problem cannot be solved?

Here are my requirements:
1) Solution must be sustainable from day 1. This would also mean that its sustainable in the long run. Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid are not sustainable from day 1, as we are finding out now after several decades of declining population growth.
2) Solution must not include any new mandates. If someone does not want to pay for health care insurance, they don't have to be forced to do so.

Obama talks about insurance companies denying coverage to people. Can't this be solved by stringent contracts that spell out when and how coverage starts and ends?