Does Obama Need a Hail-Mary PR Pass on Health Care Reform?

Back from Vegas, where the famously in-touch Vegas taxi drivers were 100% against Obama's health care plan. Why? Who the hell knows. Probably because the right wingnuts on talk radio are tearing it down.

But there's a serious grain of reality in these man-on-the-street insights. Eight months ago, Obama's PR machine had created a feel-good climate in which you would not have heard a Vegas taxi driver disparaging the President-elect. Now, everyone's a critic. Why? Because, in my opinion, the Obama people haven't done as good a PR job as they could and should selling this health care plan to the American people.

This should be a no-brainer -- the facts are on their side. But Obama seems unable to close the deal. In this case, he seems incapable of clearly articulating in plain, clear and compelling lanugage how this plan will reform the health care system so more Americans get better and cheaper care.

I'm not clear on the politics of the situation -- maybe he knows that the Democratic majorities will give him a good enough bill to sign and so he doesn't need public opinion to be on his side. But I can't see where appearing weak and defensive on this critical issue could serve either his current cause or future causes.

Maybe the guy is human after all.