Morning Must Reads — Angry at Numbers

At the beginning of the summer it seemed certain that the only thing that could hold back President Obama and his fellow Democrats would be a worsening economy.

But the new ABC/Washington Post poll shows that even as people express more optimism about the economy, approval for the president’s performance and his policies have been sinking like a stone.

An economic turnaround of major proportions, particularly one that decreased unemployment by 5 percent, would likely put Obama back in the catbird seat. But the indication from all the recent public opinion work, including the Post poll that usually runs about 6 points higher for Obama than more reliable surveys, is that the administration’s bungling of health care and the recent spending spree have badly damaged public confidence in Obama.

Writers Dan Balz and Jon Cohen break down the numbers:

“The overall drop in support for government action on health care is notable among political independents, who now divide evenly between whether government reform is even necessary or would do more harm than good. Disapproval of Obama’s handling of the reform issue has spiked to 57 percent among independents, a new high, with nearly half giving him strongly negative marks. Nearly six in 10 independents oppose the proposals.

There has also been slippage among independents on broader measures of Obama’s presidency. His job approval among independents now stands at 50 percent, the lowest level of his presidency. For the first time, more independents strongly disapprove than strongly approve of how he is doing. His approval among independents is also below 50 percent on the economy, the deficit and taxes.

Before Obama’s inauguration, 61 percent of independents expressed confidence in his ability to make the right decisions for the country. That number fell to 52 percent about 100 days into his presidency and now sits at 41 percent. Confidence in his judgment has also slipped substantially among seniors.”

Wall Street Journal — Obama Faults GOP in Health Debate
 

We’re a long way from hope and change.

Facing anxiety among liberal and moderate Democrats, President Obama tried to turn the blame for the ruination of substantial health reform on Republicans and asked his fellow partisans to unite against their common enemy.

Writers Jonathan Weisman and Naftali Bendavid tracked the president through a day of equivocations on policy but strong statements on politics.

The problem for the president is that he has more than enough Democrats to pass legislation. He just can’t get them to agree. Republicans don’t really matter.

The growing chorus of Democrats who say that it’s time to start all over again keeps getting louder.

“Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D., Mo.), who supports a health overhaul including a public insurance option, told reporters Wednesday that he wanted to ‘push the reset button’ on health-care talks.

Mr. Cleaver continued to support broad changes, spokesman Danny Rotert said, but he has been struck by the strong concerns of his constituents, including more than 500 people who showed up at a “coffee with Cleaver” early in the summer recess…

Rep. Dan Boren of Oklahoma, a moderate “Blue Dog” Democrat, has long expressed reservations about the Democrats’ plans. But at a recent town meeting he said unequivocally that “I’m not voting for that bill” in its current form.

Democratic leaders remain confident they can push a health bill through the House, but the math is delicate. With a 256-178 majority, and virtually every Republican likely to oppose the bill, roughly 40 defections would doom the legislation.”

Washington Post — Key Senators Discuss Trimming Health Bill
 

The bipartisan negotiators on the Senate Finance Committee keep pecking away at the issue of health care even as the leaders of both parties say that compromise has become unlikely.

But Sen. Max Baucus and his fellow negotiators seem to have taken all of the partisan palaver from White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel and others as a challenge.

Even though the White House has suggested that it is time to end the effort for bipartisanship, the Finance gang is now looking at a very modest proposal.

The argument is that as public disgust with the process grows, Congress may be ready to accept a cheap and limited proposal that deals, with, say, insurance regulations and creates a pilot program for health co-ops.

President Obama certainly seems willing to accept anything these days, much to the chagrin of his liberal base. The president is working very hard to now convince Americans that he has no opinions about health care, except that it is important and people should have it. Whatever Emanuel says, it seems like Obama would be thrilled to have a pipsqueak bill that could be expanded later and move on.

Writers Lori Montgomery and Anne Kornblut explain that some Democrats, always somewhat worried that Obama lacked sufficient backbone for the job, are trying to hem the president in with the threats of a liberal smackdown in the House.

But Baucus, Sen. Chuck Grassley and the rest of their group keep at it anyway.

“In a conference call, the three Democratic and three Republican members of the Senate Finance Committee agreed to redouble their efforts to craft a less costly alternative to the trillion-dollar initiatives so far put forward in Congress. They discussed the possibility of also reining in the scope of their package, the sources said.

The senators rejected the idea of imposing a deadline on their negotiations, and they agreed to talk again Sept. 4 — four days before lawmakers are scheduled to return to Washington from their August break. The consensus, one participant said, was ‘to take your time to get it right.’

In a written statement released after the approximately 90-minute teleconference, Sen. Max Baucus (D-Mont.), chairman of the finance panel, said the group had ‘a productive conversation’ and that they ‘remain committed to continuing our path toward a bipartisan health-care reform bill.’”

New York Times — A Basis Is Seen for Some Health Plan Fears Among the Elderly
 

In the battle against “misinformation” and “myth,” the White House and its allies on health care have been fighting fire with fire.

Writer Robert Pear gently pushes back against the claims from many on Team Obama that there would be no change to the access to care for older Americans under any plan being considered by Congress and certainly no rationing of care based on age.

But the president still wants to expand coverage for the uninsured of working age by reducing the funding for senior programs. And under the plan in the House, that could mean less access, less care and the denial of lifesaving procedures based on age.

AARP is taking a beating for it’s cutesy non-endorsement endorsement of the president’s plan, senior citizens are outraged at the president and Democrats have taken note.

“In effect, Mr. Obama says he can cut bloated Medicare payments to inefficient health care providers without adversely affecting any beneficiaries. Many doctors are dubious.

Medicare officials recently proposed changes that could increase payments for some primary care services but reduce payments to many specialists. Cardiologists would be especially hard hit, with cuts of more than 20 percent in payments for electrocardiograms and 12 percent for heart stent procedures.

‘Cuts of this magnitude could cripple cardiology practices and threaten access to services for millions of patients,’ said Dr. John C. Lewin, chief executive of the American College of Cardiology.

Reuters — Karzai campaign declares victory in vote
 

While Afghanistan’s president says he was re-elected, the leading opposition candidate, Abdullah Abdullah, says he won the election.

The U.S. government is waiting to see who is right, or, more importantly, who Afghans think is right. Either way, an election that saw 26 voters killed by the Taliban and sparse turnout will do nothing to help the shaky situation of Karzai.

Abdullah, Karzai’s former foreign minister, dismissed the Karzai camp’s victory claim and said he was on track to win in the first round after Thursday’s vote, which went ahead despite sporadic violence after the Taliban threatened the vote.

‘I’m ahead. Initial results from the provinces show that I have more than 50 percent of the vote,’ Abdullah told Reuters by telephone in Kabul.

Official preliminary results are not due for two weeks, but counting began immediately after polls closed on Thursday and is largely complete.

Analysts have warned that uncertainty over the outcome or accusations of widespread fraud could lead to civil unrest. U.S. envoy Richard Holbrooke said he was certain the outcome of the vote would be disputed.

‘We always knew it would be a disputed election. I would not be surprised if you see candidates claiming victory and fraud in the next few days,’ Holbrooke said at a briefing in Kabul with election observers.
 

–To get Morning Must Reads in your inbox every weekday click here.