Strong Opposition to Pro-Abortion Health Care Could Topple Democrats in 2010

National   |   Steven Ertelt   |   Apr 1, 2010   |   9:00AM   |   WASHINGTON, DC

Strong Opposition to Pro-Abortion Health Care Could Topple Democrats in 2010

by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
April 1
, 2010

Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) — With the battle over the pro-abortion health care bill in Congress turning into a partisan divide — as Democrats promoted it and Republicans stood unanimously in opposition — the fact that Americans strongly opposed the legislation could turn the 2010 mid-term elections into a thrashing of Democrats in November.

A new Gallup/USA Today poll finds the attitude of the American public similar to that of the 1994 and 2006 elections — when control of Congress switched from one party to another.

The poll finds the favorable rating for the Democratic Party has fallen to its lowest level since 1992, when Gallup first asked questions about the parties and whether voters approve or disapprove.

It also shows more Americans say they will vote for Republican candidates for Congress this November than Democrats — and the last time those numbers appeared in a poll Republicans trounced their opposition at the polls.

Stan Greenberg, pollster for President Bill Clinton when Democrats lost control of Congress to pro-life Republicans in 1994, told USA Today, "If the election were now, we’d have a ‘change’ election; we’d have a 1994."

In the poll, 62% of registered voters say they are "more enthusiastic than usual" about the election — typically seen in presidential election years. However, the Gallup poll, and a CNN poll before that, find Republicans and independents who oppose the health care bill, not Democrats, are the ones excited about voting in November.

The poll also found a record-low 28% say most members of Congress deserve re-election.

Meanwhile, the strong level of support President Barack Obama experienced has evaporated in the wake of his repeated support for the pro-abortion bill despite his pledge not to fund abortions.

The poll found 50 percent say Obama doesn’t deserve re-election, and 26% say he deserves "a great deal" of the blame for the nation’s economic problems — double the number of people who said that in July.

Sensing massive defeats for pro-abortion Democrats, the top pro-abortion stalwart in the Senate warned her colleagues not to take their re-election campaigns for granted.

Sen. Barbara Boxer, who faces her own difficult re-election campaign in California, warned Democratic senators not to dismiss the "tough times" voters see right now.

"I really think nobody can take their seat for granted," Boxer said, according to The Hill. "These are tough times we’re going through in California and America, and I’m not going to sugarcoat that."

With the numbers looking grim for Democrats, it’s no wonder a Reuters article says they are not talking much about the pro-abortion health care bill while they’re on Easter recess from Congress.

Former presidential candidate John McCain told a rally that health care will make a huge impact in the 2010 Congressional elections.

"Obamacare is, quote, ‘historic.’ They’re right, it’s historic. It’s the first time in history where a major piece of legislation has been passed over the overwhelming objection of the majority of American people," McCain said.

"It’s historic that it is also the first time on a pure partisan basis a major piece of legislation has been passed. It’s going to be historic, because it’s going to be repealed and replaced, and it’s going to be done soon," he added.

But on the other side, Rueters noted, "Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid, who fought for a year to muster the votes in his own party, had no plans to speak on healthcare during the spring break, his staff said."

That came even as thousands of conservative Tea Party activists rallied in his hometown against him and the pro-abortion health care bill.

Democratic Senator Ben Nelson of Nebraska, who initially put the abortion funding in the Senate health care bill that the House passed and Obama signed, also has been quiet about health care after polls in his own state showed him losing favor.

Rep. Bart Stupak, who upset pro-life advocates by deciding to trade his vote for the bill in the House for an executive order that is highly disputed, is also not saying anything about health care in his district, Reuters reports.

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