Politics and the Age Gap

U.S. policy has been defined by the differences between the sexes, racial gaps and geographical divide between religious and secular.

Now comes the geriatric gap. As the population ages, and the nation is facing fierce fighting on the rapidly rising cost of health care and pensions, it seems that U.S. policy has become increasingly polarized on the generations.

The question is, how real, and this gap will be defined - whether in 10 or 20 years there will be as intense as a result of or, say, the gap between the sexes, especially in what was going on in the last presidential campaign of Hillary Rodham Clinton.

As unpleasant sound the concept of conflict between the generations may seem, the battle for health care - not to mention the election of the chief representative of the current health care reform that President Obama proposes - is that something happens. The older Americans tend to oppose the initiative of Mr. Obama than any other age group. The White House believes that this is a dynamic as the main obstacles in public concern about the actions trump and attach a legislative coalition to get a law passed by Congress.

Older voters were one of the few groups that Mr Obama has won in the presidential elections last year, allowing him and his party, of particular significance to young voters who are not as reliable as polls show the elderly. They have a dimmer view of his presidency as the rest of the nation.

And there is no reason that everything has been discovered that tensions will think in this battle worked to put an end once it is resolved. Obama has his intention to the long-term financial problems of Social Security, another issue to fight signaled the elderly to play a disproportionate role, and they are resistant to change in the rule, too.

The baby boomers have reached retirement age began in the last year. Americans are living longer and healthier longer. With him came a more active approach to life in retirement. The older Americans working longer. You are seeing more television news, to attend City Council meetings and call their members of Congress. Who is especially true when it comes to health.

While friction drives the strategies of both sides in the struggle for health care. The Republican National Committee has funded a television advertising campaign and internet advertising for older Americans in places like Florida, say that Democrats are proposing a threat to Medicare, would services healthcare rationing and involve the government at the end of life decisions (the infamous But that does not exist a symbol of death ").

The Democrats have responded by attacking the Republicans for past efforts to Medicare. Mr. Obama devoted a long chapter in his speech before Congress on Wednesday night, reassuring older voters about his plan. Pensioners' lobby AARP, with the White House last week was working on letters of nine million members of the health sector reform, officials said there favor.

David Axelrod, a senior advisor, Mr Obama said: "We are certainly not allow that someone from Little Red Riding Hood in reverse - passes for Republican Friends of Medicare, if they do not.

Nevertheless, Mr. Axelrod acknowledged the obstacles Obama faces as the Republicans argue that the proposal would be the cost of extending Medicare health insurance services for a total Medicare beneficiaries reduce reduced.

"The Americans have all the earlier reporting," he said. "I'm not saying that they are not interested in someone else. But it is a natural tendency to want to keep them. It is not a strategic overview of things to say, 'Let's go rattle older voters and raise objections."

For all the comings and goings, there is no evidence that this demographic votes as a block or base electoral decisions primarily on issues of concern to older Americans, said Robert H. Binstock, professor of aging at Case Western Reserve University. Mr. Binstock said that older voters prefer Sen. John McCain over Mr. Obama since the elections last year - 53 percent to 45 percent - partly reflecting a population that tended to have more Republicans.

It may also be difficult to adjust for some older voters to the novelty of the first African-American president himself.

Meredith Minkler, Professor of Health and Social Behavior at the University of California at Berkeley, argues that the concept of the war generation is exaggerated anyway: vote suggests that other issues such as reform of health care, older Americans are no different than the rest of the country, how they divide the questions.

"The whole issue of conflict between the generations, the proportion has blown out," said Professor Minkler.

However, it is difficult to console, the politicians are reading the same polls and observe their offices are to blame by telephone calls, emails and faxes, not overwhelm, to note in this story. Their fear, as Mr. Binstock said, is a mistake, "the mobilization of a sleeping giant."

No matter how they vote on older voters turn out in heavy numbers in the elections for the medium term, as the emerging next year.

"You have seen the polls: I think older people are affected, especially on the cuts in the Medicare program, said Senator John Cornyn of Texas, who heads the National Republican Senatorial Committee." And they are a significant influence on the election 2010. "

And it remains to be seen whether the influx of young voters who were in favor of Mr. Obama in the presidential elections last year, and - who helped Obama overcome a relatively low growth in the electorate no longer 65 - turn without Obama on the ballot.

"There is no doubt that one of the challenges that we in this cycle, it is young voters in the polls," said Representative Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, head of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.

The latest CBS News poll found that 51 percent of people over 64 said that the reform would affect health care seniors, compared to 36 percent of surveyed adults. Only 31 percent of respondents over 64 said they approve of Obama's handling of health care compared to 40 percent over all.

And 48 percent said more than 64, it was against the work of Mr. Obama, against 35 percent over all.

Democrats and Republicans have focused on older voters return of at least 50 years that one is clearly important and growing at stake, because it was something of a reversal of roles today focused on the Democrats attacking Republicans on Medicare.

"The Democrats should be very concerned," said Robert B. Hudson, president of the Boston University School of Social Work. "That is simply incredible that the Republicans, or a subset of the Republicans after 20 years of war between the generations, suddenly on a dime and present themselves as defenders of Medicare."

Senator Robert Menendez of New Jersey, head of the campaign committee for Senate Democrats, said he did not think that would be next year, the Republicans in a position to make attacks. "People who have fought Medicare, the credibility, to demagogue this issue," he said.

Maybe. But it will still take some time before the gap can be measured between the generations. A year from now, the fight for health care May in oblivion. The problem for the White House is that even if the difference of geriatrics proof is a little more of a political city, this is for very strong indeed - this is a significant influence on how the Democrats look at re-election in the troubled neighborhood approach could be very difficult to vote in next year.