The easy life is about to end for President Obama. For the first time, he can't defer or delegate or depend on the media to bail him out. He has to stand and fight for the policy that defines his presidency--liberal health care reform. And the fight won't be pleasant.

Obama is exactly where he didn't expect to be. His popularity has declined at a record rate. His supposed power of persuasion has turned out to be nonexistent. More Americans oppose his health care initiative than support it. And Republicans are prepared to combat him and Democrats on every major provision of it.

The large Democratic majorities in the Senate and House may look overwhelming, but they're not. At least a half-dozen Democratic senators are queasy about Obama-style reform. If two of them bolt, Republicans should be assured of the 41 votes that would block a motion to end debate on the legislation. If only a single renegade Democrat emerges, that will suffice so long as all 40 Republican senators, including Maine's Olympia Snowe, hang together.

There's less for Obama to worry about in the House. Speaker Nancy Pelosi can afford to lose about 40 Democrats and still pass Obamacare. Yet there is significant uneasiness in her ranks. When Democrats met last week, 47 said they're opposed to the bill, and four or five sneaked out of the room to avoid declaring themselves. Pelosi softened it ever-so-slightly, and Republicans figure she'll have the votes for passage.

The Senate is the battleground. Republicans are mounting a

It's at this point that Democrats with misgivings about Obamacare have what McConnell calls their "maximum leverage." Democrats who want non-trivial changes in the bill--Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas opposes the public option, Evan Bayh of Indiana the tax on medical devices--would have great difficulty getting them approved once the bill reaches the Senate floor. It will take 60 votes to remove anything from the bill Senate majority leader Harry Reid introduces at the start of deliberations.

Chances are, the motion to proceed will pass, though 41 votes are enough to defeat it. If it were to lose because of Democratic defections, the bill would have to be altered to accommodate the dissenters, upsetting the balance of taxes, Medicare cuts, and benefits. Liberals would be furious. Reid would be fit to be tied. Obamacare would be thrown off track.

Discombobulating Reid is part of the Republican strategy. Reid is mistake-prone, as he demonstrated recently in trying unsuccessfully to repeal cuts in doctors' fees under Medicare. He is anxious over his dicey reelection prospects next year in Nevada. He's erratic under pressure.

Given the Senate's rules, it's easy for Republicans to prolong the debate into next year. There are two likely benefits. The longer the debate, the more snarled up the Senate becomes in procedural matters and the more likely Reid is to blunder. Even more important is the time it will give Republicans to educate and arouse the public about Obamacare.