Dems run away from health care

[WestVirginiaRebel]

Politico:

A handful of House Democrats are making health care reform an election year issue — by running against it.

At least five of the 34 House Democrats who voted against their party’s health care reform bill are highlighting their “no” votes in ads back home. By contrast, party officials in Washington can’t identify a single House member who’s running an ad boasting of a “yes” vote — despite the fact that 219 House Democrats voted in favor of final passage in March.

One Democratic strategist said it would be “political malfeasance” to run such an ad now.

Democrats have taken that advice to heart; it appears that no Democratic incumbent — in the House or in the Senate — has run a pro-reform TV ad since April, when Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) ran one.

Most of the Democrats running ads highlighting their opposition to the law are in conservative-leaning districts and considered the most endangered. They’re using their vote against the overhaul as proof of their willingness to buck party leadership and their commitment to watching the nation’s debt.

Rep. Glenn Nye (D-Va.) says in an ad that went up last week that he voted against the law “because it cost too much.”

Rep. Stephanie Herseth Sandlin (D-S.D.) says she voted against “all the bailouts and the trillion dollar health care plan” because “it wasn’t right for South Dakota” or for children anywhere.

And an ad for Rep. Jason Altmire (D-Pa.) quotes constituents who say, “I like that Jason Altmire is not afraid to stand up to the president … and Nancy Pelosi.”

More “no” voters are expected to release similar ads as the November midterm elections approach.

It’s a far cry from where Democrats hoped they would be when they passed the landmark legislation in March. Many senior Democrats said last winter that the law’s popularity would increase as Americans were able to better understand the complex law and take advantage of its benefits.

But the public’s views on the legislation may have been more settled than anyone thought.

Public support for the overhaul ticked up a few points shortly after the legislation passed, but all of those gains have since disappeared.

A Kaiser Family Foundation poll released Tuesday showed 43 percent of the public supports the overhaul and 45 percent are opposed. Much of the disagreement falls along party lines.

Party officials insist they’re not bothered by the ads boasting of “no” votes. They know that members in more conservative districts need to put distance between themselves and their party’s leadership, and they say rank and file should be out telling voters that they’re willing to vote their consciences and put their district’s wishes above all.

“We have a big tent party, and we’re going to have a lot of districts that don’t necessarily agree on all the issues,” said a Democrat aide. “There’s no one in leadership who takes anything personally about these ads.”
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Adios, Obamacare...

[saveliberty]

[AceRimmer]

 

That has always been one of my favorite Monty Python scenes! I'm bookmarking it, but the Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch has a special place in my heart.

[Chickadee]

HAPPY BIRTHDAY Argyle58! Wishing you a fabulous day!

[Argyle58]

A Kaiser Family Foundation poll released Tuesday showed 43 percent of the public supports the overhaul and 45 percent are opposed. Much of the disagreement falls along party lines.

 

The Kaiser Family Foundation polling is skewed to the max. Their data been showing pretty much the same information, even though other, more unbiased, organizations have the opposition figures as MUCH higher. But, then, the Kaiser Family Foundation has been involved in Health Care propaganda since the mid-1960's, totally changed their business model to promote healthcare "reform" since 1990, and became a prime lobbyist organization for Obamacare in 2009. Although they promote themselves as bipartisan and unbiased, they never publicly disclose that they have large holdings in the media outlets in which they publish their "studies" (including 32% of Fortune Magazine, among others).