Bill has yet to be bought by the electorate
Voters may not buy it. And that could mean a disastrous mid-term election year for Obama and his fellow Democrats.
“We proved that this government – a government of the people and by the people – still works for the people,” the president said late on Sunday, beginning his sales pitch from the White House one hour after Congress passed the sweeping measure.
“This isn’t radical reform but it is major reform,” he said. “This is what change looks like.”
Obama and the Democrats are certain to look for a much-needed political lift from the legislation, a capstone for a young presidency and a party after decades of trying to remake the nation’s healthcare system. But there’s no guarantee they’ll get it.
For now at least, Obama is savouring victory; he looks strong, principled and effective for getting something huge done in a city many Americans hate.
Still, the near-term reward could easily be forgotten come November.
This campaign season already has been unforgiving for the White House and the Democratic Party, with a monumental loss in the Massachusetts Senate election and a spate of debilitating congressional retirements. And conditions seem ripe for the electorate to punish the party in power.
Voters are furious. They hate Washington. They also detest incumbents. They’re concerned most about the economy. And unemployment that’s hovering near 10%. They’re also split over whether Obama’s health plan is good for a nation with enormous budget deficits and climbing debt.
How those variables play out is anyone’s guess.
Even so, Obama reassured rank-and-file Demo- crats before they cast what he rightly called a tough vote: “It will end up being the smart thing to do politically because I believe that good policy is good politics.”
Nearby, enraged tea party protesters had filled the grounds and the steps of adjacent office buildings, railing against the measure and promising to fire lawmakers who backed it. Some cursed and yelled racial epithets at black lawmakers.
Protesters were back on Sunday, the message the same: “Kill the Bill.”
Ahead of the vote, a Gallup poll showed more Americans believe the measure will make things worse rather than better for the country as a whole and for them personally.
And most polls show most people don’t like the plan although some surveys showed Americans giving high marks to individual elements.
“It’s very unusual that you have a major policy that doesn’t have a majority of support in the public,” said George Edwards, a presidential historian at Texas A&M University. “When they enjoy the benefits of the bill, they may come around. But that may take some time.”
Also unclear is how voters will treat Republicans. Some of the measure’s elements go into effect immediately, such as coverage for children on their parents’ policy until age 26 and prescription drug benefits for seniors. Republicans could be tagged obstructionists if the electorate likes these provisions and if the economy improves.
From now on, Obama and the Democrats will promote the measure’s benefits while countering Republican nay-saying and griping about process.
The president also will focus primarily on voters’ most pressing concern – jobs. And that may endear him to voters more than the passage of his signature domestic issue.
Obama’s immediate concern is holding Democratic majorities in Congress. His own political re-election is a while off, but the White House is almost surely focused on it, too.
