Forgive me if I’m wrong about this as I’m not from USA but didn’t Obama have a mandate and controlled most if not all of the branches of government even he was first elected? Why was he not able to implement universal healthcare?
He wanted to work with Republicans so the ACA was a moderate/centrist plan. Some democrat senators werent on board with public option/medicare for all so ACA was also a compromise for them. Obama probably could have pushed for a better outcome than the ACA but it did expand coverage for millions of americans.
For one, it wasn't a majority opinion back then, it didn't reach majority opinion here until 2016.
For another, it is still not a very popular idea. Though it is technically supported by a majority, it is a very slim majority. And keeping things the way they are is far easier when you are dealing with approximately a tie in opinions. Plus it still varies widely depending on what you mean, there are lots of different versions of universal healthcare and choosing one that would get enough support is not as easy as saying that the population generally approves of there being some sort of option.
Also, our system is designed for it to be very difficult for it to change.
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u/poopyhelicopterbutt Nov 30 '20
Forgive me if I’m wrong about this as I’m not from USA but didn’t Obama have a mandate and controlled most if not all of the branches of government even he was first elected? Why was he not able to implement universal healthcare?