Perhaps no other election has posed such a difficult personal decision for some conservatives: How do you vote if you're ideologically conservative, but you're benefiting, or stand to benefit, from the Affordable Care Act, often referred to as "Obamacare"?
"In 2008, health care was a very conceptual, a very theoretical issue," said Michael Traugott, a professor of political science and communication at the University of Michigan. "This year it's very concrete and real."
Some Republicans told CNN they would never vote Democrat, even though they might benefit from Obamacare, while others said they will switch their vote because of health issues.
...
Jon Campbell may become one of the Republican "defectors" Traugott says could make a difference in battleground states.
Campbell, 49, has voted Republican in nearly every presidential election since he cast his vote for Ronald Reagan in 1980, but this year might be different. For two years his 22-year-old stepdaughter, a self-employed dog trainer, didn't have health insurance. Then Obamacare kicked in and she was allowed onto her father's insurance.
"If something had happened to her during those two years it would have been a disaster," Campbell says.
The Olathe, Kansas, resident is leaning toward Obama, but not just because of his stepdaughter. Campbell's wife, Barbara, has diabetes and is in the final stages of breast cancer treatment. She's now on his insurance, but if he ever lost his job, his wife would be faced with trying to buy insurance on her own and would surely be rejected.
"I'm really torn," he said. "Because of Obama, I now have a wife who can get covered. But really, at heart, I'm a limited-government kind of guy."
Campbell said if the election were held today, he'd vote for Obama, but not without a lot of reservations.
"It's really an intriguing conundrum," he said.
Full article here:http://edition.cnn.com/2012/10/06/health/republicans-conflicted-obamacare/index.html#cnn-disqus-area
Easy to access healthcare vs. party loyalty seems like a no brainer. lack of critical thinking ftl
Log in to comment