BE AFRAID, BE VERY AFRAID DEPT:
Vice-President Biden tries to frighten Democrats into supporting the administration on health care reform:
"If the U.S. Congress fails to agree on a healthcare bill soon, the opportunity for a sweeping overhaul of the $2.5 trillion system will be lost for a generation, Vice President Joe Biden warned on Tuesday."
But will it work? Polls usually speak louder than these kinds of warnings, and polls suggest that the public isn't behind this. Congressmen and Senators don't want to get booted from office in 2010...
And by the way, right now the RCP average of all the polls on support/opposition to the health care proposals currently in Congress stands at 38% supporting, 53% opposing. Wow...
FOCUS ON 2010:
Respected political analyst Stu Rothenberg echoes what others are seeing (including me): when it comes to Senate contests next year, Republican prospects look much better than they did in January 2010:
"...GOP recruiting successes and a change in the national political environment have shifted the outlook for next year's Senate contests. Suddenly, Democratic seats started to look more and more vulnerable. As 2009 draws to a close, Democrats now could lose seats, a dramatic change from January that could end the party's 60-seat majority in less than two years. And GOP gains could be large enough to sink any major Democratic initiatives not passed before Congress adjourns for the midterm elections."
