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The new President, who had won election by a bare majority and was only three months in office, had staked his popularity and the reputation of his young Administration on his energy package. Most members of Congress, wary of public reaction, were content to let Carter take the lead on the issue, but some Democratic Senators voiced approval. Observed Lloyd Bentsen of Texas: "The President is doing what has to be done. He has proposed a broad national energy policy. It should be given a fair hearing, not nibbled to death."
Democratic leaders were loyally closing behind the President, even though they believe, as one phrased it, that passing the package will be "a bitch." Said Senate Majority Leader Robert Byrd: "The solution requires the best that is in us. This is a supreme test and it requires a supreme effort. Yet I think there's a reservoir of courage and strength and patriotism here that will respond." House Democratic Leader Tip O'Neill readily concurred, declaring that passage of the President's package will involve "the toughest fight this Congress has ever had."
Most Republicans withheld comment this soon in the legislative battle. A few indicated that the fight would not be completely partisan. Declared Illinois Senator Charles Percy: "It's the greatest challenge any peacetime President ever gave the nation, and I don't think it's going to be as unpopular as the President says. He's in line with the underlying thinking of the people. The country wants leadership." Democratic Congressman Morris Udall likened some of the protest to imaginary congressional reaction on the day after Pearl Harbor: "You interviewed the Congressman from Detroit and he said, 'The Japanese attack was outrageous, but before we rush into war, let's see how it would affect the automobile industry.' And then somebody else said, 'It was dastardly, but consider the effect on oil,' and another Congressman said, 'War could be very serious for recreation and tourism.' "
Percy may be right: people throughout the nation may be ahead of Congress in their willingness to put personal interests aside for the larger good. A special ABC News/Harris poll taken after Wednesday's address showed that Carter's popular approval had actually risen by 3%, to 69%, since he revealed his energy program, instead of falling by the 10% to 15% he had predicted. An impressive 86% agreed with him that the energy shortage was serious. By margins ranging from 2 to 1 up to 8 to 1, Americans supported most provisions of his plan. Most favored, by 85%, was the tax credit for insulating homes. But there were exceptions. The standby gasoline tax was opposed by 54% to 39%. A worrisome 62% of Americans did not feel that the plan provided for a true "equality of sacrifice," mainly because people felt it would have a more severe effect on the poor.