text: Arkansas is simultaneously the most fertile and most treacherous ground for a political campaign against Obamacare. Fertile, because the state's rapid sprint away from conservative Democrats and toward conservative Republicans makes it pretty easy to beat up Democrats like Sen. Mark Pryor. Treacherous, because the state's Republican legislature has pioneered and continued a "private option" for Medicaid expansion, cleaving the Tea Party (Americans for Prosperity, et al.) from the Chamber of Commerce, and preventing the state from joining the larger Obamacare rebellion. (Luckily, as Republicans are finding in West Virginia and Kentucky, Republican voters don't change overnight simply because they can access health insurance.) 
   
   So: For a while, Americans for Prosperity was drenching Arkansas in ads that told the story of a woman whose health insurance had been canceled by the coverage mandates of the ACA. Democrats and liberal groups cried havoc—the state had actually extended the life of such plans until 2017. What was AFP to do? Sink six figures into this ad. 
   
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   ||||| Published on Apr 1, 2014 
   
   Listen to Jerry from Arkansas explain the problems and uncertainty ObamaCare has caused for him and his wife. Then tell Mark Pryor to stop supporting Obamacare at http://www.LieOfTheYear.com ||||| President Obama today heralded more than 7 million sign-ups for health insurance under the Affordable Care Act -- bringing to a close a politically bruising six-month enrollment period and a first major test for his signature legislative achievement. 
   
   The 7.1 million who have signed up, the president said in a ceremony in the White House Rose Garden, "despite several lost weeks out of the gate because of problems with the website." 
   
   “Even more folks want to sign up,” he added. “7.1 million – that’s on top of the more than 3 million young adults who gained insurance under this law by staying on their family plan.” 
   
   The latest tally represents the total number of Americans who selected health plans through state and federal marketplaces created by the law since Oct. 1. 
   
   The number is expected to grow as last-minute applications filed through 23 state-run insurance exchanges are counted and people continue to complete applications in the federal exchange into April. 
   
   Obama noted that many of the “tall tales” opponents have told about the law have been “debunked.” 
   
   “There are still no death panels,” Obama said to laughter. “Armageddon has not arrived.” 
   
   Obama added, “The debate over repealing this law is over. The Affordable Care Act is here to stay." 
   
   The 7-million figure has become a symbolic and political milestone since the administration embraced it as a “goal” in mid-2013 based on a projection by the Congressional Budget Office. Reaching that mark is a noteworthy feat after the significant, high-profile technical glitches and website outages that plagued the enrollment process on HealthCare.gov from beginning to end. 
   
   In his statement, Obama, flanked by Vice President Joe Biden, declared: "We've taken a big step forward." 
   
   Still, the number says little about the extent to which the health law has expanded coverage to the uninsured or will stabilize premiums. The administration does not yet know how many previously uninsured Americans gained coverage under the law. They also do not know the ratio of young and healthy enrollees to old and sick -- a key data point insurers watch to set their premiums. 
   
   "We have none of that breakdown data at this point,” White House press secretary Jay Carney said today. However, “we already know that that breakdown is sufficient to ensure that the marketplaces will effectively function, that issuers will feel comfortable with the demographics,” he said. 
   
   Officials also cannot say how many of the 7 million applicants have paid their premiums to finalize enrollment. 
   
   Nevertheless, Obama said, “This law has made our health care system a lot better -- a lot better.” 
   
   Meanwhile, Republicans continue to blast the law. 
   
   "All across the country our constituents are having an unpleasant interaction with Obamacare,” said Don Stewart, a spokesman for Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.. “Whether they can sign up for a policy or not, they are discovering, of course, higher premiums, a higher deductible.” 
   
   Public support for the Affordable Care Act narrowly notched a new high in the latest ABC News-Washington Post poll, while criticism of Barack Obama’s handling of the law’s rollout -- although still substantial -- has eased from its peak last fall. 
   
   Americans split on Obamacare: 49 percent support it while 48 percent oppose it. But last November just 40 percent supported it while 57 percent opposed it. 
   
   "I think I'm like a lot of people who end up waiting till the last minute,” Caroline Mays, 30, of Washington, DC, told ABC News as she signed up for an Obamacare insurance policy late Monday. “But now I'm all squared away. I have health insurance. I've been working independently so I haven't had coverage. So this is a big relief to me, for sure.” 
   
   Senior administration officials credit grassroots organizing and a social media blitz, drawing on lessons from the 2012 election campaign, with fueling a last-minute surge in sign-ups. 
   
   They say groups have held more than 5,000 events over the past 6 weeks, including appearances of Obama cabinet officials at 45 of those. They say their social media reach touched 350 million twitter followers and 33 million online video views. 
   
   Privately, the White House points to what they call two pivotal moments in their campaign: A promotional video by NBA star LeBron James, who they say spurred other celebrities to help spread the word; and, the president’s “two ferns” interview with comedian Zach Galifianakis, which generated significant buzz. 
   
   “I have a lot of friends who've been uninsured and have kind of been winging it,” said Sarah Leonard, who enrolled for a new health policy on Monday. “But I know that that's not very responsible, especially at 26, you have to get responsible. I was going to try to wing it but then there's also the tax penalty and I really didn’t want that either.” 
   
   Most Americans were required to obtain health insurance by March 31 or face a fine of the greater of $95 or 1 percent of household income above $10,150 for an individual. Those subject to the fine will pay it on their 2014 federal income taxes. 
   
   As for the politics of the Affordable Care Act, administration officials say the focus now shifts to making the case against repeal. They note that no Democrat that originally voted for the ACA has flipped his or her vote – a sign, they say, that if implemention of the law is continued effectively, then the intensity of debate will wane. 
   
   Congressional Republicans, meanwhile, are vowing to intensify the drumbeat for repealing the law ahead of the November midterm elections. 
   
   "House Republicans will continue to work to repeal this law and protect families and small businesses from its harmful consequences,” said House Speaker John Boehner. “We will also continue our work to replace this fundamentally-flawed law with patient-centered solutions focused on lowering health care costs and protecting jobs.” 
   
   ABC's Shushannah Walshe contributed reporting. ||||| April 1 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. President Barack Obama speaks about the just over 7 million people that enrolled for insurance coverage under Obamacare. 
   
   This afternoon President Obama, with a grinning Vice President Biden behind him, announced in the White House Rose Garden that sign-ups for his signature health law had exceeded original projections. 
   
   Some 7.1 million Americans have signed up for Obamacare, the president said, by far exceeding the revised projection of 6 million insured after the disastrous roll out of the HealthCare.gov website in October. 
   
   The president was clearly enjoying delivering the news: "This law is doing what it's supposed to do," he said. "It's working. It's helping people from coast to coast." He seemed bemused by the continuing efforts of Republicans do undo the legislation. "Why are folks working so hard for people not to have health insurance? Why are they so mad about the idea of people having health insurance?" 
   
   Republicans were quick to jump on what a spokesman for House Speaker John Boehner called Obama's "victory lap." "This law continues to harm the American people," said Boehner spokesman Michael Steel. "Every promise the president made has been broken: healthcare costs are rising, not falling. Americans are losing the doctors and plans that they like – especially seniors suffering under President Obama’s Medicare cuts. Small businesses are afraid to hire new workers, hobbling our economic growth. That’s why we must replace this fundamentally flawed law." 
   
   But Obama had already brushed off such criticisms. 
   
   "Many of the tall tales have been debunked. There are still no death panels. Armageddon has not arrived. Instead this law has helped millions of Americans. The debate over repealing this law is over. The Affordable Care Act is here to stay." 
   
   Here's what some reporters, supporters and critics were tweeting during his remarks: 
   
   WASHINGTON (AP) _ Obama: 7.1 million Americans sign up for health care, despite lost weeks at the start. — Phil Elliott (@Philip_Elliott) April 1, 2014 
   
   The Biden faces behind Obama = priceless. — Chris Cillizza (@TheFix) April 1, 2014 
   
   All of Obama's examples of the poor getting healthcare coverage could have happened by expanding previous programs not ending the good ones. — Richard Grenell (@RichardGrenell) April 1, 2014 
   
   Obama quotes letter from person who got insurance: "I felt like a human being again." Reminder of how rotten it is to be afraid. — Amy Davidson (@tnyCloseRead) April 1, 2014 
   
   Every time Obama comes out to try to defend #Obamacare his high-pitched squealing voice tells me he's desperate — Jim Lockwood Show (@jimlockwoodshow) April 1, 2014 
   
   The happy mood at the White House now that 7.1 million people have enrolled in Affordable Care Act via @cparsons http://t.co/aj9LpWA4AF — Maeve Reston (@MaeveReston) April 1, 2014 
   
   Obama warns ACA opponents "history is not kind" to those who seek to block progress — John Harwood (@JohnJHarwood) April 1, 2014 
   
   Spoiler: No. MT @chucktodd: Politically aggressive speech from POTUS. Will D's running in tough races borrow same rhetoric on the trail? — Guy Benson (@guypbenson) April 1, 2014 
   
   "There will be days when the website stumbles. I guarantee it," @BarackObama says, will be front-page news for media. Snap. — Charles Ornstein (@charlesornstein) April 1, 2014 
   
   This is Obama's "Mission Accomplished" speech. Take a picture. — Amanda Carpenter (@amandacarpenter) April 1, 2014 
   
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   Twitter: @robinabcarian 
   
   robin.abcarian@latimes.com
target: – With an official count of 7,041,000 signups under ObamaCare—a number expected to grow as final tallies are made—President Obama enjoyed what both ABC and NBC called a "victory lap" in the Rose Garden today. "Many of the tall tales have been debunked," he said. "There are still no death panels. Armageddon has not arrived." The president said he doesn't understand why so many were "so mad about the idea of people having health insurance," but they better get over it, because the law is working "and it's here to stay." Another person who used the term "victory lap" was John Boehner, but he did so in criticizing Obama for celebrating a law that "continues to harm the American people," reports the Los Angeles Times. Meanwhile, Dave Weigel at Slate dubs "Confused Arkansas Guy" as the newest ObamaCare victim. That's thanks to a new ad funded by the Koch brothers' Americans for Prosperity group in which a man complains not that his policy has been canceled, but that it's now surrounded in a confusing "haze" because of the new law. "It was taken away from us, or it was given back to us, or it was taken," he says. A main target is Democratic Sen. Mark Pryor.