FROM CNN's Jack Cafferty:
A majority of Americans want Congress to put the brakes on health care reform.
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A new USA Today/Gallup Poll shows 55 percent of those surveyed say lawmakers should suspend work on the current health care bills and consider alternatives. Only 39 percent say they want Congress to try to pass the current bill.
32 percent say the president and Democrats are right to make health care reform their top priority right now. 46 percent say health care is important, but other problems should be addressed first; and 19 percent say it shouldn't be a top priority.
Meanwhile, President Obama is vowing to press ahead - even though he acknowledges health care reform has "run into a bit of a buzz saw." Party leaders like Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi insist health care will move forward - but other lawmakers, much like the American public, are losing their appetite for fast action.
Connecticut Democratic Senator Chris Dodd says his colleagues should "maybe take a breather for a month, six weeks" to regroup after the loss in Massachusetts.
There's no question this week's election has made the road to health care reform more difficult. Pelosi has ruled out what was the preferred option for some Democrats - the House passing the Senate bill as is. She doesn't have the votes.
And, although there's a sense that a scaled-back health care bill might be the best route for Congress to take - even that might be easier said than done with the current political winds blowing across Washington.
Here’s my question to you: Should Congress give up trying to pass health care?
Interested to know which ones made it on air?
Ben from Boston writes:
Jack, Congress should stop the bureaucratic, bribe-ridden mess they have been considering and move to the presidential/Republican suggestion to divide the bill into parts that are easy to understand and vote on each one separately - starting with the parts that have most support, like prohibiting insurance companies from denying coverage for pre-existing conditions.
Jeff writes:
Jack, Let's be honest here. The health care bill was never really about health care. It was an attempt to transfer 1/6th of our economy away from the private sector and into the hands of the federal government. They got the banks, then the auto industry, and the health care industry was next on the list.
James writes:
Republicans are the real-life death panels. How many people will die this year because of lack of health coverage?
Gary writes:
As a small business owner who sees about 8 percent of my profits go towards catastrophic health insurance for a handful of people, I was really hoping for some real health insurance reform… Unfortunately, a lot of members of Congress rely on insurance industry dollars to grease their campaigns, so reform will probably never happen while these politicians bow down to the big money.
Linda writes:
Unfortunately, the current Senate bill is the only one that might get passed, but since it really does nothing to control costs, I think approval may end up costing people more in the long run. Team Obama doesn't seem to have a good grasp of the strength of his opposition on this or any other topic. I think health care will have to wait until we get some real Democratic leadership.
Ron from Pleasanton, California writes:
We need to pass health care for all NOW. Strike while the iron is hot, otherwise it'll be another 50 years before we get it done.
Mark from Oklahoma City writes:
Yes, Congress has my permission to turn the lights off and go home and just leave us the hell alone!