Good News For Anti-Socialists

A new poll suggests public approval of the way President Barack Obama is handling health care reform is slipping.

The Washington Post-ABC News survey says since April, Obama's approval rating on the issue has declined from 57 percent to 49 percent, with disapproval rising from 29 percent to 44 percent.

The president's overall approval rating stands at 59 percent positive and 37 percent negative. It's the first time Obama's approval rating has fallen below 60 percent in Post-ABC polling since he took office.

Blatant Liberal Double-Standard

Reporting from Washington — President Obama suggested at a town hall event Wednesday night that one way to shave medical costs is to stop expensive and ultimately futile procedures performed on people who are about to die and don't stand to gain from the extra care.

In a nationally televised event at the White House, Obama said families need better information so they don't unthinkingly approve "additional tests or additional drugs that the evidence shows is not necessarily going to improve care."

He added: "Maybe you're better off not having the surgery, but taking the painkiller."

There's an interesting contradiction here. According to the pro-choice perspective, it's outrageous for the state to interfere in a woman's decision to terminate a pregnancy. But it's pragmatic and reasonable for the state to consider terminating a person, if some money can be saved.

Republican Legacy

Some mighty fine company. Nixon's an odd choice, but I personally don't think he was as horrible a President as people tend to think he was. Just a little too paranoid.

Obama's Popularity Plunging

Just fyi, the latest Rasmussen polls that came out show that more Americans disapprove of Obama's job performance than those who approve of the job he's done. 31% of Americans strongly approve of Obama's job performance while 33% strongly disapprove of it. It seems now that reality is setting in and people are finally emerging from the media enduced euphoria that swept them off their feet in proclaiming that the American messiah was come (I guess that idea was debunked when, after 40 days, Obama hadn't ascended to heaven).

Some more info from the poll:

"When we talk about healthcare reform and the proposal the president is talking about, the country is fairly evenly divided. But those who have strong opinions tend to oppose the plan more than support it.

"On the cap-and-trade legislation [to reduce carbon emissions], 42 percent believe it's going to hurt the economy. Only 19 percent believe it's going to help.

"The takeover of General Motors is strongly opposed.

"Right now those things are weighing the president down. What's going to tell over the next year is how the economy performs. If a year from today, GM is doing great and throwing off profits and getting the taxpayers their money back, people will say we were wrong, the president was right, and it's great for him. But if GM is back asking for more bailouts, the president's numbers will be substantially weaker than they are today . . .

"If the economy responds negatively over the next year, it is going to hurt the Democrats in 2010."

Rasmussen also found:

The country is evenly split between those who approve of the way Obama has responded to the disputed elections in Iran and the repression of demonstrations that followed, and those who disapprove and believe he has not been aggressive enough. More Americans strongly oppose Obama's healthcare plan than strongly support it. About 30 percent of Americans favor a single-payer healthcare system, but a majority will oppose it. "Americans like the idea of healthcare reform in theory, in the abstract," Rasmussen said. "Only 35 percent think this system is in good or excellent shape. But people like the coverage they get by themselves. Among the insured, 70 percent say their own coverage is good or excellent. Among all Americans, only 8 percent say their coverage is poor."