Healthcare debate

President Obama needs to lead

Published: June 26 2009 20:00 | Last updated: June 26 2009 20:00

Barack Obama remains popular with US voters. His approval rating has slipped only a little, and stands at roughly 60 per cent. But independent voters – the key to Mr Obama’s success – seem to have growing doubts. And poll after poll shows that the president’s policies are less liked than he is.

One can exaggerate his difficulties. Today US voters are divided 50-50 between those who think the country is moving in the right direction and those who think not, a slight worsening since the previous reading. Last November the proportion thinking the country was on the right track was in single figures. Mr Obama’s support is slipping, but from a high level.

Nonetheless, many voters say they are worried about the rapid increase in long-term public borrowing, as well they might be. Most disapprove of the banking and auto industry bail-outs. They are concerned that reform of the healthcare system will, one way or another, make them worse off. They are worried about the prospect of higher taxes. The country for the most part admires its new president, but across a wide range of policies it is unpersuaded of the merits of his proposals.

A main reason is that Mr Obama has done so little to persuade them. Admittedly, the electorate is hard to please. Voters want healthcare reform, but not if jeopardises their own arrangements or raises their taxes. They want to curb global warming, but not if it means dearer fuels. They want the financial system put back on its feet and the economy shocked back to life, but not at their expense. Framing policies to address these problems is hard enough; selling them to the public is even more difficult. The question is whether Mr Obama is even trying.

On all these issues, he has put Congress in charge. This is understandable: Congress writes the laws and is not easily biddable. Yet the passivity of the White House is striking. On climate change and healthcare, the administration seems to think that any reform, regardless of content, can be scored a political success. Expressing strong views on details would only gum up the works.

This is not leadership. Seriously flawed policies on healthcare, climate change and more besides are taking shape in Congress – and the administration, aware of the defects, is cheering these efforts on. Mr Obama needs to take chances with his political capital while he still has some. He should aim to get these reforms not just done, but done well. He should speak fewer platitudes about the need for change and try harder to educate the public on the trade-offs involved in getting these policies right.

It might help to remember that in the end he will get the blame for these bungled reforms, whether he devised them or not.