Momentum is growing for passage of health care reform, and so is the threat to Republicans because of their continued obstructionism. In the past week at least seven prominent outside-the-Beltway Republicans have expressed the need for congressional Republicans to put partisan politics aside and work with President Obama and Democrats to pass major reform this year. These Republican “wise men” are echoing the sentiments of the nation as a whole. Recent public polls show Americans weary of both the status quo in health care and Republican obstructionism: overwhelming majorities say Republicans lack ideas and put politics ahead of the nation’s needs.
Momentum is growing for passage of health care reform, and so is the threat to Republicans because of their continued obstructionism. In the past week, both the AP and Gallup have released surveys showing a significant decline in opposition to President Obama’s health care plan and the Congressional Budget Office released its updated analysis of the Finance Committee bill showing it that it will expand coverage while reducing the deficit. Perhaps most important, at least seven prominent outside-the-Beltway Republicans, including former Senate leaders Bob Dole and Bill Frist and Bush HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson, have expressed the need for congressional Republicans to put partisan politics aside and work with President Obama and Democrats to pass major reform this year. These Republican “wise men” are echoing the sentiments of the nation as a whole. Recent public polls show Americans weary of both the status quo in health care and Republican obstructionism: overwhelming majorities say Republicans lack ideas and put politics ahead of the nation’s needs. This extreme partisanship is contributing to the continued stagnant and unimpressive standing of the Republican brand and threatens to further isolate Republican leaders from the American political mainstream.
