Voters are reacting in broadly negative ways to the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the legislation known as Obamacare, a new Newsweek/Daily Beast poll finds, with a majority disapproving of the ruling, fearing health-care costs and taxes will rise, and preferring Mitt Romney to President Obama on the issue.◼ Read the complete results.
The poll was conducted by Douglas Schoen, a Democratic pollster who has worked for the campaigns of Bill and Hillary Clinton, Michael Bloomberg, and other candidates. A national random sample of 600 likely voters was interviewed June 28, immediately following the announcement of the Supreme Court’s ruling on the Affordable Care Act. The margin of error was plus or minus 4 percent.◼ Chuck DeVore: Obamacare is just a $500 BILLION tax hike
The court has clarified that Obamacare is a massive tax increase on the American people. Americans also know that the onus is squarely on Congress. Does it stand behind this deceptively marketed tax increase on the middle class? Or will it repeal this unpopular law in its entirety and start over with a new patient-centered approach to health care that emphasizes the doctor-patient relationship?
Among other things, this approach would include individual ownership of insurance policies — giving individuals the tax incentive that currently goes to employers. It would promote Health Savings Accounts, which empower individuals with their health care decisions and are proven to reduce costs. And, it would allow consumers to purchase insurance across state lines, letting them choose a plan that fits their specific needs.
It is, after all, the people’s actions in 2006 and 2008 that led to Obamacare’s passage. And it was the people’s actions in 2010 and pending actions in 2012 that may prove this law’s undoing. Elections have consequences.
