About That Supposed Rise in Health Care Law’s Popularity…
Amidst a variety of attempts by Democrats to portray their health care law as gaining political momentum, I wanted to reference a few useful data points:
- The Washington Post poll released this morning shows that the President ‘s handling of health care remains unpopular – 50 percent disapprove, while only 45 percent approve. Strong disapproval outweighs strong approval by an even larger 40-27 percent margin.
- Politico reported yesterday that “few Democrats held health care-related events in their districts last week, despite a request from the Speaker’s Office to hold three events at home, including one on health care. A House Democratic aide attributed the drop to a decline in the number of constituent questions and comments on the subject and more interest in the economy and jobs. The few Dems who did hold health events— among them Andrews, Dingell, Hill and Sens. Carper, Sherrod Brown and Sanders— stuck with “safe” audiences, such as seniors and health care workers or business groups, and outlined how to take advantage of the law.”
So if the President remains “upside-down” on health care, and Democrats in Congress don’t want to talk about the new law with their constituents – despite being asked to do so by their leadership – how popular can the legislation really be?