Pollster Scott Rasmussen has new numbers on his website today showing that Obama's approval rating continues its inexorable downward trend. Today's disapproval rating is 54%, his biggest negative number yet.

To put that number in perspective, remember that, a year ago, his positive approval was 65%. Now it sits at 46%.

While the president's mishandling of the economy is certainly the over-arching context for these abysmal numbers, it is equally obvious that Obama's obsession with taking over our health care system is the noxious, dead fish stinking up the country's living room. Rather than taking concrete steps to support the private sector's economic recovery, the president continues his manic drive for nationalized health care. And every version of that vision includes expanded abortion, diminished conscience rights for health care professionals and rationed care for the disabled and elderly.

Our political system depends upon an unstated presumption: Those elected to office will represent the wishes of their constituents out of enlightened self-interest. Pundits too often belittle the role of polling and other mechanisms (like election returns), which serve to hold elected officials accountable to the will of the voting public. Representatives are called by that name for a reason: they are supposed to represent the will of the people who put them into office.

President Obama's failure to accept defeat on health care suggests that he has rejected the basic tenet necessary to a constitutional republic. He seems to suffer from that liberal delusion that he is just plain smarter than the American people.

If that is right, then ObamaCare is far from dead.

Some pundits are suggesting that a strategy has been developed: Obama will stage some public, bi-partisan forums in which he can manipulate opponents into appearing as if they are nothing more than self-seeking obstructionists. (Even if that is not an obvious conclusion – the president's allies in the media will continue to pound that conclusion into the public consciousness). Such a media assault will become the pretext for congressional allies to abuse the budget reconciliation to enact most of his legislation.

It is in that context that two big bills now pending in the Idaho Legislature must be considered as essential to defending Idaho families.

Conscience protection for health care professionals is one essential piece of business this Legislature must enact. As of this writing, SB1270 is being rewritten to take into account a few reasonable suggestions made by folks in the medical industry and to broaden support for the legislation. We expect the bill to be reintroduced this week.

The other very important bill is sponsored by Reps. Labrador, Clark and Luker. It is called the Idaho Health Freedom Act (HB391) and is now pending on the House floor. This legislation pushes back against the federal government take-over of health care by asserting the constitutional liberties of Idaho families to make our own health care decisions.

We ask for your help in seeing that both bills become law.