CAMBRIDGE, Md. — President Obama sought on Friday to ease strains with Democrats in Congress who are fearful they could face election backlash from the botched rollout of ObamaCare.
Speaking to House Democrats during their three-day retreat, Obama cited an increase in the number of people signing up for insurance coverage as evidence that the health-care law’s implementation was going more smoothly after a woeful start.
Republicans have put the issue at the center of their strategy for November’s congressional elections.
But Obama has touted the administration’s progress in ironing out the glitches. At the retreat, he predicted the 2010 Affordable Care Act will be seen by Americans in five to 10 years as “a monumental achievement.”
“We now have well over 3.5 million people who have signed up and are getting insurance through the marketplaces for the first time,” Obama said.
All 435 House seats, along with 36 of the 100 Senate seats, are up for grabs.
Republicans are expected to retain the House, which they now control 232-200 with three vacancies. They hope the ObamaCare issue will help them seize control of the Senate, which Democrats hold 55-45.
Obama’s health-care woes have weighed on his popularity. His approval rating has sunk to 43 percent.
Obama told the gathering at a Maryland waterfront resort that “underlying policies in the [health-care] program are working, but of course there are glitches. We are working through these things,” a source said.