Peggy Noonan wrote yesterday in The Wall Street Journal about the disconnect between Obama and the people — specifically, the deep disconnect over policy.
The President and Congress seem to expect praise for burning the midnight oil and spending every waking minute debating, negotiating, and solidifying health care reform, but praise is not deserved. The choice made by the President and his Congressional supporters — to turn inward, hole up, and effectively turn their backs on the people – is offensive.
Legislators appear to be blind and deaf to the desires of the very people who elected them. A recent CBS poll indicates that Obama’s approval rating dropped to 46 percent, while only 40 percent of Americans support the health care plan. Shouldn’t it be clear to everyone pushing for Obamacare that they are no longer working or speaking on behalf of the people?
Unfortunately, this deafness is not simply a misunderstanding of what public opinion polls are saying. It is a conscious choice to ignore the cries of concern coming from their constituencies and to continue moving forward (read: backward) with ideological fervor.
What is needed is an about-face and a willingness to listen to the will of the people. But I don’t recommend holding your breath.