Seems like every day there’s an ominous new poll about ObamaCare, a new part of the massive health care overhaul under fire or another Democrat scurrying to avoid its political fallout.
Enter Oprah Winfrey?
The Hill reports health care advocates who still believe in President Barack Obama’s “historic” legislation want the media mogul to promote it as only she can. After all, Obama has already reached out to his celebrity pals for help on the P.R. front.
… the White House is aggressively tapping its network of allies in Hollywood as it looks to drum up publicity for ObamaCare, with Oprah among the most powerful supporters of all.
It wouldn’t be the first time Winfrey used her considerable clout to help Obama. She famously shed her apolitical tone to campaign for then-Sen. Obama in his first race for the White House. She sat out the 2012 campaign but more recently has gotten her hands dirty talking politics anew.
She’s spent the last few weeks promoting Lee Daniels’ The Butler, a politicized new film recalling the life of a black butler who served eight presidential administrations. She’s also spread some inaccurate claims about the country’s racial wounds.
Of course, any Winfrey endorsement can’t match the power of her 2008 self. She was still the queen of the talk show circuit then, her media powers shining as brightly as any of her peers.
Today, she stands as a far more partisan figure given her Obama endorsement, not to mention her recent racial accusation and subsequent back pedaling. Her OWN network is finally starting to generate better ratings–will she risk its success by backing legislation much of the country simply doesn’t trust?
Winfrey is no longer a universally beloved, nonpartisan figure. Her potential support of ObamaCare would surely help Team Obama, but it might not be the push needed to convince the American people the new health care rules will work as intended.