Obamacare is Political Suicide Part 32, Featuring Senator Blanche Lincoln!

The liberal line on Obamacare is that despite the fact that it’s unpopular with the public and won’t start paying off until 2014, the smart political move is for Democrats to vote for it. So, how is that theory working out so far for Blanche Lincoln, who’s up for reelection next year? According to Rasmussen Polling, not so well:

Senator Blanche Lambert Lincoln has found herself right in the middle of the national debate over health care, and that’s a tough spot as she prepares to face Arkansas voters in 2010.

As she did in September, Lincoln trails four possible Republican challengers in the latest Rasmussen Reports Election 2010 survey. In fact, support for the incumbent ranges from only 39% to 41% in these match-ups.
The two-term senator, who was reelected with 54% of the vote in 2004, appears more vulnerable because of her visible and pivotal role in the Senate debate over health care. Lincoln was the last Democrat to vote for allowing the debate to formally begin, and she has taken pains to point out that a vote to begin debate is not a vote for the bill.

Looking at the data, it’s easy to understand Lincoln’s concern. Against all four Republicans, she leads by wide margins among those who favor the health care plan proposed by President Obama and congressional Democrats. The senator even leads by a wide margin among those who Somewhat Oppose the legislation. But among those who Strongly Oppose the health care plan, Lincoln trails every potential Republican challenger by more than 50 percentage points.

The really bad news for Lincoln is that 56% of Arkansas voters Strongly Oppose the congressional health care plan. Just 18% Strongly Favor it.
(Want a free daily e-mail update? If it’s in the news, it’s in our polls). Rasmussen Reports updates are also available on Twitter or Facebook.
When those with less intense opinions are included, 32% of Arkansas voters support the proposed health care legislation and 65% oppose it. Those numbers have changed little since September. While most Americans are opposed to the congressional plan, opposition is higher in Arkansas than it is nationally.

For Lincoln, voting for Obamacare is the political equivalent of putting her neck in place on a guillotine and yelling, “Let her rip!” If she votes for it, barring a miracle, she’s out of a job come November of next year.

Even for the Democrats who aren’t in such dire straits, they’re already going to have to defend votes for TARP, the Stimulus package, Cap and Trade, and Cash for Clunkers — do they really want to add this vote on top of it?

Here’s the dirty little secret that hardcore partisan libs don’t want to admit: Despite the fact that they’re saying that supporting Obamacare is the smart political move, they know it’s political suicide.

However, they figure that the libs will hang on to their seats while the moderates and blue dogs will be the ones to be purged if there’s a poli-apocalypse. The far Left is willing to trade a bunch of Democrats they don’t like anyway for control of 1/6 of the US economy since they figure it will be almost impossible to undo. In their view, losing the Blanche Lincolns of the world is worth it. The question now is whether the Blanche Lincolns of the Democratic Party look at it the same way –: since they’re the ones with their jobs on the line. How many Democrats in the House and Senate are willing to end their political careers to shove through a wildly unpopular health care bill that will raise premiums, raise taxes, cut Medicare, decrease the quality of care, and lead to rationing? The answer to that question will determine whether Obamacare will pass or not.

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