Scott Rasmussen and Doug Schoen express the conventional wisdom on Obamacare, which strengthens the meme that there is nothing that Obama can't do for the American public has already made up its mind:
(...) the overwhelming majority of voters have insurance coverage, and 76% rate their own coverage as good or excellent. Half of these voters say it's likely that if the congressional health bill becomes law, they would be forced to switch insurance coverage—a prospect hardly anyone ever relishes. These numbers have barely moved for months: Nothing the president has said has reassured people on this point.
The reason President Obama can't move the numbers and build public support is because the fundamentals are stacked against him. Most voters believe the current plan will harm the economy, cost more than projected, raise the cost of care, and lead to higher middle-class taxes.
That's a tough sell when the economy is hurting and people want reform to lower the cost of care. It's also a tough sell for a president who won an election by promising tax cuts for 95% of all Americans.
Boy do I disagree with this analysis ! I don't think that polls tell the truth about healthcare, but rather just demonstrate the degree to which the electorate is confused and disheartened by a debate that is incomprehensible and that doesn't address their concerns. I have to admit that when I listen the debate, all I hear now is "Democrats want the Government to do everything" and "Republicans are hypocrites" all of that after all gets tiresome because it neither not clarifies the issue nor makes essential points about the future direction and the needed changes. The mistake of Obama was precisely to think that healthcare was about numbers as Rasmussen and Schoen believe, when it is about people.
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