Poll: More Think Health Care Reform Isn't Ambitious Enough

[spiritual_gunfighter]

Could Obama’s dip to new lows on health care be driven partly by the fact that the reform proposal isn’t ambitious enough?

The internals of the new CBS poll suggest that this could be the case: They show that more people think reform doesn’t go far enough in multiple ways than think it goes too far.

The CBS poll finds that Obama’s approval rating on health care has dipped to 36%. But the poll also asked whether people think the reform proposal, in various ways, goes too far, is about right, or doesn’t go far enough:


In every one of those polled — covering Americans, controlling costs, and regulating insurance companies — more think the bill doesn’t go far enough.

http://theplumline.whorunsgov.com/health-care/poll-more-think-health-care-reform-isnt-ambitious-enough/

[T Wolf]

1. But that finding is never reported. Wonder why. nt

[NorthCarolina]

2. The media is careful not to stray too far from conservative ideals. This news would be

contrary to the direction they are trying to steer the debate. I would venture to guess that most of us have been well aware that the unpopularity of Health Care Reform was solidly based in the failure to even discuss Single Payer, the shelving of any hope of a real Public Option, and an outright refusal to rein in prescription drug costs through re importation. Rather, the simplistic view portrayed by the media is just one of public disapproval of Health Care Reform period, thereby giving the false impression that a majority of citizens prefer things to remain the same. The DLC/GOP are running this Health Care Reform show, and the media is their propaganda outlet.

[Igel]

7. Because it's uninterpretable.

That's why.

Take the polls that showed very high numbers for "a public option." Somewhere in the 70s, no?

The problem was when another poll asked what "the public option" was. Over half the people couldn't explain it. Hmm--70+% in favor of it, <50% can explain it. So more than 20% are for something they can't explain. (Undoubtedly at least some that could explain it were against it.)

Of those who could in favor of it, the numbers broke down because that group wasn't monolithic. The "public option" meant a number of things to people, some mutually exclusive.

So we had a bloc of people who couldn't explain it, and the rest broke into splinters for whom "a public option" wasn't "the public option"--yet the press continued to say that 70% of the people were for "the public option", doing a sleight-of-hand trick with the article, swapping indefinite for definite and completing changing what the referent was.

So a lot of people say the current plan (Senate's? House's? The one they think is the Senate's but isn't? The one they hoped the House passed but which was amended to something else?) is too weak, and want a stronger plan. Stronger in what way? All the same way? Different ways? Ways they can't explain?

The number's mildly intriguing, but uninterpretable. It's like saying people voted for change. The word's protean. Each person thought it meant what s/he thought. Otherwise, it's essentially just "for something, undefined, different in some undefined way to some undefined extent." Uninterpretable.

[CTyankee]

3. Oh, no! That's not what Joe and Mika said today! They said people are

"worried about the mounting deficit." Isn't that interesting?

[tridim]

4. Half of DU doens't even know what's in the bills..

It's not surprising that the general public doesn't know either.

[flyarm]

5. I think 36% is high, considering the calls I am getting from Union members and democrats in my area

and it is going to bottom out soon when more people find out what a poison pill it is!

[patrice]

6. Previous polls had some interesting numbers saying it won't change things very much one way or

another, read that "Why bother?"