Gannett has a story out today that provides another response to the prediction of some liberals and conservatives that the protest movement against Obamacare will help the president in the long run by discrediting his critics. There’s little evidence of that so far, it seems:

The raucous protests at congressional town hall meetings have succeeded in fueling opposition to proposed health care bills among some Americans, particularly the independents who tend to be at the center of political debates, a USA TODAY-Gallup Poll has found.
In a survey of 1,000 adults taken Tuesday, 34 percent say the sometimes heated protests at sessions conducted by members of Congress have made them more sympathetic to the protesters’ views; 21 percent say they are less sympathetic.
Independents by 2-1 — 35 percent to16 percent — say they are more sympathetic to the protesters now.

An even simpler way to figure all this out is to listen closely to administration officials and defenders. They are beside themselves with rage about the rallies, protests, and town halls. They knew it’s not going well for them.

Of course, as many here and elsewhere have already cautioned, there is still a possibility that a damaging bill will pass this year. It may not have a government-run “option” or big tax increases in it, but it may still impose costly federal regulations on health insurance that will edge the system further away from consumer-driven health care and market competition. Conservatives and moderates in both parties need to offer alternative legislation that edges the system in the opposite direction, through tax fairness for families in the individual market and other pro-market reforms.