The Democrats have made a strategy out of underestimating the public, and that losing strategy is not bound to change, despite evidence to the contrary:

Most Support U.S. Guarantee of Health Care – NYT

While the war in Iraq remains the overarching issue in the early stages of the 2008 campaign, access to affordable health care is at the top of the public’s domestic agenda, ranked far more important than immigration, cutting taxes or promoting traditional values.

Only 24 percent said they were satisfied with President Bush’s handling of the health insurance issue, despite his recent initiatives, and 62 percent said the Democrats were more likely to improve the health care system.

Americans showed a striking willingness in the poll to make tradeoffs to guarantee health insurance for all, including paying as much as $500 more in taxes a year and forgoing future tax cuts.

Don’t expect the Democrats to take this to heart and at least lead from behind. They do watch the polls, but those are the personality horse-race type stuff.