Opinion does not mean squat without willingness to act which in turn hinges on courage.
A politician will not care if the public opinion is to the right of Attila the Hun if no courage accompanies it.
We are essentially saying the same thing. The politician has read the public like a book. Passing and implementing obamacare was perceived, before the fact, one heck of a fight. The public essentially said, who cares, I am too wrapped up in whatever entertains me. When they come after the guns in earnest, it will be the same thing. The public will be too addicted to its pleasures to make the sacrifices that will be necessary. The politicians realize this and are just biding their time. Actually, generation by generation, they are winning.