It's no mystery why the party is in retreat. The public's disapproval of Obamacare hasn't changed in the past five months. The RealClearPolitics average of recent polls shows 51 percent of Americans oppose the new law, while 39 percent support it. A variety of pollsters -- Rasmussen, CNN, Pew and CBS News -- all find significantly more opposition than support. And there's not just opposition but enthusiasm for outright repeal. "Overall support for repeal has ranged from 52 percent to 63 percent since the law was passed by Congress in March," writes Rasmussen.
The story might be even worse than that for Democrats. Everyone knows the public's top issue is the economy. It has been since before Obama took office. So when the president and Democratic congressional leadership devoted a year to passing national health care, Republicans charged they were ignoring the public's wishes. Now, when Democrats admit that Obamacare won't cut costs or reduce deficits, they open themselves up to a more serious charge: They spent a year working on something that will actually cost jobs and make things worse.
"Before, it looked like they were just on the wrong topic," Winston says. "Now, it makes it look like they're actually going to hurt the economy."
No wonder Obama and Democratic leaders are constantly saying they want to look forward, not backward. They don't want to dwell on ancient history, like the events of 2009 and early 2010. But there is no chance in the world Republicans will let them forget it.
Just a few months ago, Obama issued a public challenge to opponents who seek to dump Obamacare. "For those Republicans and folks who are on the 'repeal' platform, my attitude is, go for it," the president told a cheering crowd at a Democratic fundraiser in Florida on April 15. "I'll have that fight. We'll have that argument."
Well, the time to fight, the time to argue, has arrived. But with everything on the line, the president's party is trying to run away.