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Almost 60% Of Americans Oppose Health Care Bill – But For Different Reasons

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by Frances Martel | 5:59 pm, March 22nd, 2010

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Washington may be celebrating having miraculously passed a bill that’s been a year in the making, but the majority of Americans are still not happy about the reforms. A CNN/Opinion Research poll conducted Sunday night before the House voted showed 59% of respondents opposed the bill, and 56% believed the bill gave the federal government too much power. But before you bring out the Lipton bags, there is a catch.

While the right will be eager to flaunt this statistic to their advantage (Michele Bachmann already drafted a bill to repeal the one passed last night), not everyone agrees on why the bill isn’t worth it. In fact, around 20% of Americans who oppose the legislation think the bill is not liberal enough, meaning the near 60% drops to 43% when excluding liberals who are upset about the lack of a public option, among other things. Assuming liberals prefer further government oversight, though, it seems to be contradictory that the percentage of people who think the bill gives the government too much power only drops three percentage points.

It also conflicts with the 62% of Americans who believe the bill will increase their personal health care expenses, though one could argue that this is because studies have shown many Americans perceive their financial situation to be better than it actually is.

With the exception of the fact that a fifth of the people who oppose health care are doing so from the left, the poll is precisely the statistic conservatives need to reinforce their “shoving it down our throats” rallying call and, if not pull off the impossible and defeat the already-passed bill, at least gain some major ground in November. Their main problem would be convincing the public now incensed about it to be united in why they hate it, however, rather than focusing on their differences and slowly learning to love it. The disapproval from both sides is a problem the original government-run health care program, Medicare, didn’t have a problem with in Congress, though some already comparing health care reform to the civil rights movement may point out the high demand for gradual implementation that garnered in its day.

[Photo via Portland Mercury]

CNN, Congress, Health Care, Health Care Reform, House of Representatives, Michele Bachmann, opinion research, Polls

http://www.sailrabbits.com Magister

I’m sure the Republican Senatorial Committee and its counterpart from the House are going to trumpet this stat for a few days trying to get some kind of momentum, but it’s basically meaningless.

Other than the oft-repeated meme that when you break the bill down into components and take away the name… you also have to consider that Al Gore won the popular vote, but he wasn’t elected President.

One of the major failings by the cash-strapped media throughout this whole effort is that few, if any, polled on a Congressional district by Congressional district basis and as far as I’m aware, neither Party has done a district by district for the whole country.

IOW: There’s likely large pockets of those opposed in some districts and large numbers of those favoring in others. Yes, a statistical majority of total population is one metric, but just ask President Gore how important it may be in the whole scheme of things.
Jim R

These polls are increasingly misused to fortify an otherwise untenable point of view, health care being only the most recent example; with Republicans grasping at any vestige that leans right and disregarding elements that don’t serve their purposes.

Much like the “center-right” country meme has been repeated in the MSM ad nauseum, when the individual polling on progressive issues polls around 70%, once more the media avoids the right’s wrath by printing unsubstantiated Republican talking points – like in the run up to the Iraq War or the eight-year Clinton coup d’ tat.

I can’t figure out if the media is so scared of the right they avoid printing absolute facts that reflect badly on their potential tormentors, or if the corporate powers that be draw the invisible line and continue getting cover because journalists tend to lean liberal in the main.
Nachi

A lit Murcuhn ignorance here, a lil Murcuhn ignorance there – it all adds up!!