Republicans are Courting Disaster as 57% of Americans Oppose Defunding Obamacare

A new Kaiser Health Tracking Poll released today found that Republicans are on the wrong course again, as 57% of respondents oppose their efforts to defund Obamacare.

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The Kaiser Health Tracking Poll found that by a margin of 57%-36%, Americans oppose the Republican efforts to defund Obamacare. Democrats most strongly disapprove at 81%-15%. Independents disapprove by a margin of 53%-39%, but Republicans approve of the idea 60%-34%. Those who hold a favorable view of the ACA disapprove of the the efforts to defund the law 83%-14, and those who hold an unfavorable view support defunding 60%-33%.

This graphic shows that nearly 70% of Americans believe that using the budgetary process to defund Obamacare is not how our government is supposed to work:

It turns out that a large majority of the American people don’t want Obamacare defunded. It should come as a surprise to no one that the political instincts of Rand Paul, Ted Cruz, Mike Lee, Jim DeMint, and Sarah Palin are completely out of step with the rest of the country. The only people who support the defund movement are the tiny base of Republicans that the right spends most of their time appealing to.

If the Republican Party caves to the right and shuts down the government in an effort to defund Obamacare, they will be courting an epic political disaster. Republicans will be taking a stand that is unpopular with nearly 60% of the country. Politically, shutting down the government over Obamacare could be the straw that breaks the camel’s back in the 2014 elections.

A majority of Americans don’t support a government shutdown, or the defunding of the ACA. Mitch McConnell and many of the Senate Republicans are likely to hold out against the defund movement, but weak kneed John Boehner and his far right House caucus could shutdown the government with glee.

This is setting up a situation where the unpopular and out of control House Republicans drag down their entire party with their extremism.

Republicans already know that Obama won’t be blamed for a government shutdown, but that isn’t enough to stop House Republicans from undertaking their yearly act of political self destruction.

Jason Easley

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.

Awards and  Professional Memberships

Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association