In addition, a CBS News poll Monday showed that more Americans blame Republicans in Congress than Obama and Democrats for the failure to avert the forced spending cuts, but the gap between the two has narrowed, compared with earlier polls by other organizations.

The results come as the government and nation wrestle with the $85 billion in forced spending cuts over the rest of fiscal year 2013, which ends on September 30.

The mandatory, across-the-board cuts to defense and other discretionary government spending -- but not entitlement programs such as Social Security and Medicare -- occurred after Obama and Congress were unable to work out a compromise to replace or avert them.

They amount to roughly 9% for a broad range of non-defense programs and 13% for the Pentagon over the remaining seven months of the fiscal year.

While both sides oppose the government-wide nature of the cuts, with no leeway for shifting funds to protect specific programs, conservatives argue the total amount is a manageable slice in spending while Democrats say it will cause unnecessary harm.

The harshest impacts won't be evident until April at the earliest, but economists and leaders of both parties warn the cuts will slow the economy and cause pain for many Americans.

One immediate impact came Tuesday when the White House announced it was canceling all tours because of the forced spending cuts.

"Due to staffing reductions resulting from sequestration, we regret to inform that White House tours will be canceled effective Saturday, March 9, 2013, until further notice," said an automated message at the visitor center's hotline. "Unfortunately, we will not be able to reschedule affected tours."

Schiller, the Brown University political scientist, called the move "monumentally stupid," saying people will blame Obama instead of House Republicans. She added it also "smacks of such elitism not to understand how that might ruin a trip to (Washington) for a family that planned it for a while."

The president has opened himself to other accusations of elitism, including a bachelor weekend in Florida last month to play golf with Tiger Woods while the first lady and their two daughters were on a ski holiday.

Republicans have targeted the Florida golf trip for its cost to taxpayers at a time of fiscal austerity, with one GOP legislator proposing that no such travel by the president should be funded by taxpayers until the White House tours are resumed.

The next political showdown is set for March 27, the deadline for Congress to authorize more government funding or bring a partial shutdown.

On Wednesday, the House passed its version of the funding authorization proposal, known as a continuing resolution, which includes the forced spending cuts but softens their impacts on the military and veterans affairs programs.

It now goes to the Senate, where leaders of both parties said they expect changes to the House plan by Democrats, leading to further negotiations in an effort to avoid a partial government shutdown when current government funding authorization expires in three weeks' time.

Meanwhile, Obama made clear his battles with Republicans are far from over. After Senate Republicans on Wednesday blocked his nominee for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia for a second time, Obama said in a statement he was "deeply disappointed."

"Today's vote continues the Republican pattern of obstruction," the president said. "My judicial nominees wait more than three times as long on the Senate floor to receive a vote than my predecessor's nominees."

Obama is the only president in recent memory never to have successfully placed a nominee on the D.C. Circuit, which handles many high-profile appeals, including executive authority to fight terrorism and broader congressional power.