Just 34% of voters nationwide support the health care reform plan proposed by President Obama and congressional Democrats if the so-called “public option” is removed. The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey shows that 57% oppose the plan if it doesn’t include a government-run health insurance plan to compete with private insurers.
I should point out that this is a Rasmussen poll and, as anyone who watches polls can tell you, these tend to skew right. So much so and so consistently that a lot of people assume Rasmussen tries to get their polling to lean Republican. So, if they show the lack of a public option as a deal-killer for the public, then it is most definitely a deal-killer.
I'd be willing to push for a public option even if polls showed it was unpopular -- because I'm 100% certain that it'd become popular after it was instituted. But the public's where it's always been, on the side of real reform. This gives you an idea of just how out of touch and insulated Washington can be.
