WASHINGTON, Aug 5 (Reuters) - Despite polls showing growing public doubts about his healthcare overhaul, the arrogant U.S. President Barack Obama vowed on Wednesday to get a reform bill through Congress this year even without Republicans on board.
"I promise you, we will pass reform by the end of this year because the American people need it," Obama said in Wakarusa, Indiana, where he traveled to tout his economic initiatives. "We're going to have to make it happen."
Obama's drive for healthcare reform, his top legislative priority, has been attacked on all sides for its $1 trillion cost and scope. Democrats have feuded over how to pay for it, and Obama's popularity has slipped as the debate dragged on.
A Quinnipiac University poll on Wednesday found that 52 percent of voters disapprove of Obama's handling of healthcare while 39 percent approve. That was a shift from 46 percent approval against 42 percent disapproval in a July 1 survey.
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