Poll: More independent voters support health care repeal
(CBS News) On the day after the House voted to repeal the president's Affordable Care Act (ACA), a new poll out Thursday reveals that Americans are closely divided on President Obama's health care law, though more independent voters support repealing the law.
49 percent of Americans back the House Republicans' efforts while 47 percent say it should stand. However, Americans are deeply divided by political affiliation. Eighty-five percent of Republicans back repeal while only 17 percent of Democrats do. Most interestingly, independents are split 49 percent to 41 percent backing repeal - more evidence as to why Republicans want to set health care as the political fight they think they can win this campaign year.
While the new Quinnipiac University Poll found that Americans are generally divided on repeal, it also found that Americans are closely divided overall on the Supreme Court's decision to uphold the law, 48 percent to 45 percent, supporting the Court. Fifty-five percent of poll respondents say they also agree with the Supreme Court's ruling that the individual mandate requiring health insurance is a tax increase; 36 percent don't think it's a tax hike.
Watch White House press secretary Jay Carney address health care repeal.
"President Barack Obama has worked mightily to avoid the 'T' word, but most American voters say the ACA is in effect a tax hike," said Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute.
Meanwhile, 59 percent of Americans, including 63 percent of independents, say the Supreme Court's decision makes no difference on whether to vote for President Obama in November. But a majority of Americans, 55 percent, say health care is an extremely important or very important issue when determining who they vote for president in November. Fifty-one percent of independents say it is.
Recently, the Republican-led House also voted to hold Attorney General Eric Holder in contempt of Congress over the Fast and Furious program. Two-thirds of poll respondents have heard of the vote. Of those, 44 percent says they support the contempt vote even though 42 percent say it is political. Respondents' positions on contempt are also divided along party lines, while independents are divided: 33 percent say it was legitimate and 39 percent say it was political.
The Quinnipiac Poll also asked the same 2,722 registered voters about immigration. Fifty-five percent of respondents support the president's new immigration policy to hold deportations of children of illegal immigrations while 39 percent oppose it. Responses of independents are similar, with 55 percent backing the president's plan and 39 percent opposing it.
Watch Speaker John Boehner address health care repeal on the House floor.
Although the president has support for his plan, 51 percent of voters say it will make no difference in their support of the president in November.
And while respondents back the president's plan, two-thirds of Americans, including two-thirds of independents, back Arizona's immigration law that requires police to verify the legal status of people they suspect are in the country illegally if the person is stopped or arrested.
Pollsters also asked about the state of the economy. Respondents have a negative view of the economy, with only 13 percent saying its good while 45 percent say it's not so good and 41 percent say it's poor. However the views have improved slowly since July of last year.
Finally, 60 percent of respondents say the U.S. should not be involved in the Afghanistan while 31 percent say the U.S. is doing the right thing.