The Hill News

Remember when healthcare reform was going to become more popular after it was passed? At its six-month anniversary you can tell it's a crowd-pleaser when the only Democrats who mention it on the campaign trail are those who want to let you know they voted against it.

Clearly, the end of discrimination against the sick by insurance companies is a universally compelling policy goal, and one that has likely changed the lives of many anxious Americans who are now battling conditions and diseases with insurance instead of without it. But reaching that goal required expanding access, which required a mandate to purchase insurance, and a majority of Americans now oppose the law for that reason alone. Many who oppose the mandate are already insured, but they don't want the government telling them they have to do something. They see healthcare reform as part of a continuum of increased government intervention that started with the Wall Street bailout, went further with! the enormous stimulus package, and even further with the auto industry rescues and on and on.

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