Some say that the main priority of every elected official is to be re-elected. Taken to the extreme, that would mean carrying out policies that you firmly believe are very bad for your constituents and even the nation as a whole, but doing so anyway in order to win re-election.
On most issues, voting for your political survival is not difficult; especially since politicians can rationalize that there will be many other issues where their decisions will better serve the public good than that of anyone who might beat them in the next election.
But some issues are of such magnitude that we would hope a politician with a conscience would sacrifice their electoral survival and “do the right thing” as he or she sees it.
Is healthcare reform such an issue? Will any members of Congress base their vote on how the bill will impact the nation, even if that vote will be used against them and could, on its own, defeat them? Let me be clear that such a vote could be either for or against the bill.
Some of you will post responses that will point out how good or bad the evolving healthcare bill will be, but I’m hoping you will also focus on these questions.
Do you believe there are any members of Congress who see the outcome of this bill as more important than their own re-election? Does history show any cases where a politician did sacrifice re-election because of a vote taken based on principle?
We recently included several winning Top Question Tuesday selections on an interactive poll. Stay tuned to this blog as we’ll be releasing the results over the next several weeks! And don’t forget to submit your own nominations for Top Question Tuesday using the box on the right of this blog.
One question we asked concerned respondents’ feelings about a potential link between cell phones and cancer. The question noted that “some scientists suggest there is no link between cell phone usage and cancer, while other scientists argue there is a link. How concerned are you that long-term cell phone usage can cause cancer?”.
Overall, 42% of the sample was concerned (10% very concerned, 32% somewhat concerned), and 56% of the sample was not concerned (36% not very concerned, 20% not at all concerned). Young people were slightly more average than likely to not be concerned, with 62% of those 18-29 saying they were not very or not at all that long-term cellphone usage can cause cancer. Those who described themselves as very cosnservative were also more likely than average to not be concerned, with 63% of this group saying they were not very or not at all concerned.
Liberals (46% ) and females (45%) were the few groups that were more likely than other groups to be concerned about links between cellphones and cancer. However, even these two groups had the majority of their respondents say they were not concerned.
How concerned are you about a potential link between cell phones and cancer? How about concern for your kids, many of whom may have had cell phones since a young age? Do you believe the scientific evidence is currently strong enough to either prove or disprove a connection?
We recently included several winning Top Question Tuesday selections on an interactive poll. Stay tuned to this blog as we’ll be releasing the results over the next several weeks! And don’t forget to submit your own nominations for Top Question Tuesday using the box on the right of this blog.
One question asked whether Americans should be allowed to smoke marijuana for medicinal purposes. Overall, 68% of the sample believed yes, Americans should be allowed to smoke marijuana for medicinal purposes, while 22% of the sample believed they should not, and 10% were not sure.
Groups that were more likely than average to say yes included those 18-29 (83%), progressives (96%), liberals (92%), and Democrats (83%). Groups that were more likely than average to say no included conservatives (37%), very conservatives (49%), and Republicans (37%). However, even most of these groups had more respondents answer yes than no; in fact, the very conservatives were the only group in our survey that had more people answer no than yes.
What are your feelings on medical marijuana? Why should people be allowed or not allowed to smoke for medicinal purposes? Does it surprise you that majorities of most groups in America believe people should be allowed to smoke marijuana for medicinal purposes, but relatively few locations have laws which permit this? Is this likely to change in the future?
After many months of talking about health care legislation, Congress now moves to the real action phase. But don’t expect the arguments to end when a bill is passed.
Democrats want voters to believe that their plan will achieve their set goals, and our recent polling shows large majorities of voters believe those goals are important. Republicans will continue raising fears about what reform might reap, and our polling also shows a majority of voters share the doubts expressed by Republicans. So expect a whirlwind that will pick up intensity the closer we get to the 2010 midterm election.
Read all of John Zogby’s analysis of this recent polling data on healthcare reform at Forbes.com.
President Barack Obama has rebounded from a dismal summer, and he and his party are poised to pass a comprehensive health care reform bill, something that has not been done since Lyndon Johnson’s Medicare legislation more than 40 years ago.
Our latest Zogby Interactive poll measuring Obama’s job approval among likely voters has him back over 50% for the first time since the spring. He has won back some Independents, and now 47% give Obama their approval. Obama’s level of support among the party base of liberals, the 18- to 29-year-old “First Globals” and all African-Americans suffered in August when they felt he was not taking charge of health care reform. But now, most all of them are back on board.
Read all of John Zogby’s column at Forbes.com, where he writes about the political dangers of healthcare reform for both parties.
Once again, President Barack Obama’s ability to deliver an effective speech appears to have won over voters. However, I wonder how many more times Obama can count on a good speech to restore confidence in his Administration.
The latest Zogby Interactive poll found Obama’s job approval rating up to 49.4%. Just as many (49.5%) disapprove. That puts Obama’s approval percentage up seven points from two weeks ago, when 42% approved and 48% disapproved. The rebound came from among voters who were keys to Obama’s election, such as Democrats, First Globals™ and women, as well as from Independents. He even gained 10 points in approval from Born-Again Christians.
It’s obvious that Obama’s speech to Congress and the nation on healthcare reform accounted for his gains in approval. The goal of the speech was to advance chances for passage of a bill, and Obama is now in full campaign mode to accomplish that. This is the necessary approach right now, but does the President risk overexposure and the risk that if he doesn’t deliver on what voters want, they will tune him out in the future?
This won’t just be a problem with Independent voters. Progressive voters had high hopes for Obama, but they have little to show for their efforts to get him elected. If he and Democrats in Congress fail to deliver a strong healthcare bill, the party will suffer greatly in 2010 from a loss of enthusiasm among core suporters.
This evening President Obama will address a joint session of Congress with the goal of pushing forward comprehensive health care reform. Some commentators have argued that no speech can resolve the conflicting positions behind the opposition to the existing plans; others have been more optimistic and have suggested points and approaches that would need to be included in order for the speech to be effective.
What are your expectations of President Obama’s speech: do you think it will be something special or more of the same? What issues would you like addressed and explained? And, for those joining the discussion after the speech, what were your impressions?
Many people have argued that the main reason for the high cost of healthcare in the US is the fact that, in essence, insurance covers too much of healthcare costs. In a vast majority of cases, patients do not directly pay for health services and often do not know their prices. Rather, patients choose doctors and procedures without regard to their cost while a third party (insurance company or the government) covers those costs.
On this view, the healthcare prices are skyrocketing partly because users use too many services, but also because they do not exert the competitive pressure on providers to be more efficient. If car insurance covered the costs of gasoline, for example, not only would car insurance premiums be much higher, but gasoline would be much more expensive as well since people would not care how much gasoline they use or how much it costs. Alternatively, if we paid for healthcare out of our own pockets, rather than through our insurance or Medicare, the prices would go down similar to healthcare areas where insurance plays little role such as plastic surgery.
A recent article in the Atlantic discussed these issues and proposed a system where, though we would all have a government-sponsored catastrophic coverage, a vast majority of costs would be paid by individuals, through our (much expanded) healthcare accounts. The author of the article is a Democrat, but the proposal has generated a positive buzz among conservative bloggers as well.
What is your view of the reasons for high healthcare costs? Would you consider a compromise described above?
Since the Congress adjourned, there is an ever increasing number of media reports of testy town hall exchanges between the public and their representatives. Some politicians, including House speaker Nancy Pelosi, have suggested that those with more critical views have been coached by professionals. Others have insisted that protesters act spontaneously.
Do you believe that town hall protesters primarily act spontaneously or do you think they have largely being organized? Did you attend any of the town hall meetings yourself?
Our latest interactive poll shows Americans very much split on the best approach to healthcare reform legislation. Margins were close when people were asked to agree or disagree with each of these statements:
“Do you agree or disagree with a universal healthcare plan that would require everyone in the U.S. to have health insurance with federal help for those who cannot pay the premiums?”
“Do you agree or disagree with a universal healthcare plan where the government would provide health insurance for everyone in the U.S. under a single-payer plan, similar to everyone having Medicare?”
Another Zogby Interactive poll conducted in conjunction with the University of Texas Health Science Center found similar divisions, although 84 percent of those who are currently insured are satisfied with their health care.
Regarding healthcare reform, Zogby International President/CEO John Zogby said the following in an interview published on Huffingtonpost.com :
But over the years as we’ve been polling on health care reforms and while there has been a mandate for change — reaching a crescendo in the 2008 campaign — there has not been a consensus on the direction that change should take… What we see is not only no consensus on solutions, but instead what we see when we pose those solutions is that it’s virtually split right down the middle.
Is this lack of consensus a reflection of political polarization between liberals and conservatives? Or, is our healthcare system and how it is paid for just too complex an issue for people to really understand or form solid opinions about? Have the news media and our political leaders done enough to help people really understand how our healthcare system really works, and what changes are being proposed?
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Notes
"Unless otherwise noted, all data used on this blog comes from various surveys conducted by Zogby International. Please contact us with any additional questions relating to survey data and methodology."
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