Does anybody in the journo-political class care that John Q. (and Joan!) Public just don’t like the administration’s healthcare reform? In this week’s Missouri referendum on healthcare the vote was more than 70 % against the reform. That’s big news.
Or it should be. The three MSM networks ignored the Missouri referendum, focusing instead on President Obama’s 49th birthday. Time magazine reporter Karen Ball served up a dismissal that typifies the regard in which our opinions are held in the opinion class:
[The referendum results are] likely to give Republicans a chance to brag about the unpopularity of Obamacare, but the vote will be largely symbolic. Courts will eventually decide whether Missouri and other states can legally trump federal law and exempt citizens from the mandate to buy insurance. But sending a signal to Washington will be victory enough for the Republicans and Tea Party activists pushing Proposition C.
Largely symbolic? Yes, it will be decided in the courts. But only because politicians and members of the elite journalistic community absolutely refuse to listen to the public’s opinion.
The majority of our citizens consistently say that they don’t want government-run healthcare. In a democracy, that should count for more than symbolism. We can’t fire media people, but we can fire politicians who don’t listen.