Dem Memo Says: 'Good News' Is That Democrats Haven't Done Enough On Health Care Reform

[freddie mertz]

Dem Strategy Memo Says The 'Good News' Is That Democrats Haven't Done Enough On Health Care Reform

Jason Linkins

Posted: 12-22-09 12:28 PM


According to some new strategy memo that's going to fix everything, Democrats should not worry about all those polls that indicate an increasing opposition to the emerging health care reform legislation. Why? Because some of the people saying they oppose health reform are actually for it. What the what? Here's Politico's Mike Allen, attempting to explain this:

In a strategy memo to be provided to Democratic senators on Tuesday, Mark Mellman, CEO of The Mellman Group, reports that public polls are giving a distorted picture of the level of opposition to health-care reform. That's because in many of these polls, "opponents" include people who think the current proposals do not go far enough.

"The individual elements of the legislation are very popular, as is the bill in total, when it is explained," Mellman writes. "Moreover, the public continues to trust Democrats and the President over Republicans to deal with the issue. The news media has recently highlighted polls showing double-digit margins in opposition to the current healthcare plan. But these cursory stories often neglect to mention two salient facts. First, these poll questions fail to give any content, any specific meaning to the reform proposal. ... Focus group research makes clear that voters know little about the substance of the plan ... Second, public poll analyses often ignore the fact that a chunk of opposition to the current plan comes from those who support reform, but would like to see Congress go further."

In other words, here's your good news, Democrats: You haven't only pissed off people who don't want reform, you've pissed off people who do want reform, as well! You have expanded the universe of opponents even beyond the inevitable number of people who just oppose reform for philosophical reasons and who oppose it just because they don't understand what the current plan will do. (Wonder whose fault that is, by the way!) Pop the champagne!

Naturally, I'm overjoyed that somewhere, out there, there's a Democratic strategist who's figured out that polls often lump together dead-ender opponents, the insufficiently informed, and people who are aggrieved that their legislators haven't delivered on their promises under the single banner, "OPPOSES THE HEALTH CARE REFORM PLAN." I was beginning to wonder if anyone was going to notice that people were reacting with dismay at the death of the wildly popular public option. It's just too bad that the public response to the larger failings of legislators is being spun as "good news."

But hey! I guess we can take solace in the "discovery" that opposition to the health care reform effort isn't based solely on discontent that President Barack Obama is trying to do much, as the conventional Sunday morning wisdom has been telling us over the whole year. Rather, it's because a lot of people think that the Democrats are weak, waffling, and not doing enough to fix the nation's myriad problems.

There is one pinched and perverse way in which all this is actually "good news" -- and that happens to be the only way that Politico looks at the world. It is a view also shared by White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel. According to this school of thought, pissing off liberals is of no consequence; no, is actually something devoutly to be desired. Pissing off liberals shows you're actually a reasonable, moderate person -- and what are the liberals going to do about it, anyway? Somewhat shockingly, Emanuel actually spelled this out to the Wall Street Journal the other day, plain as day, for all to see. And reading Politico as a direct emanation of Rahm Emanuel's amygdala (that part of the limbic system most closely associated with reward and fear) almost never steers you wrong.
(More)

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/12/22/dem-strategy-memo-says-th_n_400544.html

[freddie mertz]

1. Apparently this is a REAL memo.

Which is pretty freaky, if they think this constitutes "good news."

[rudy23]

3. Doubleplusgood news! nt

[DrToast]

2. I recommend reading the poll without letting Huffington Post editorialize it

http://www.politico.com/static/PPM136_091221_mellman_healthcare.html

[burning rain]

4. You know the wisdom that if both libs and cons are angry with you, you must be right.

In other cretinous wisdom, if every other kid in school hates your guts, that by itself means you're a great kid.

[Armstead]

5. The analysis makes sense....The resultant strategy does not

Assuming this poll is an accurate indicator, it seeme to my feeble brain that rather than rush something through that disappoints and pisses off basic supporters, the Democrats might want to take a little more time on the hard parts to get it right, and have something that more people can unambiguously support.

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

6. "Polls that indicate increasing opposition to emerging healthcare reform"

Problem is that the polls indicate the exact opposite. Favorability to healthcare reform (and Obama's general job approval rating) was a +6 in polls released earier this week.

The Huffington Post is doing the heavy lifting for the RNC, and they're more effective because a lot of Democrats take their editorializing as the unvarnished truth.

[Armstead]

7. Yes we're all Republicans....Yawn

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

8. People around here certainly seem to be acting like it...

And even more so over at Huff Post. Their headlines bear little resemblance to the actual article, as they always take the most anti-Obama aspect of the article (no matter how tangential it may be) and put it up there in 72 point.

[Armstead]

10. No just those who don't share your views 100 percent

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

11. Go give Michael Steele a hand-job (again)

[Armstead]

12. Proved my point

[phleshdef]

9. If public opinion supports stronger measures need to be added, then that IS a good thing.

That means there is hope for more public leverage to do more after this initial bill is passed.