Is He Pivoting Again?

Is The Campaigner-In-Chief Going To Focus On The Economy Again Or Is Today’s Stop In Ohio More Window Dressing On His Reelection Campaign?

OBAMA PROMISED OHIO HE WOULD NOT STOP FIGHTING FOR JOBS BUT HIS RECORD IS MARKED BY DISTRACTIONS “THAT WOULD BEST BE FORGOTTEN”

At Lorain Community College In 2010, President Obama Said “I’m Not Going To Stop Fighting Until We Have Jobs For Everybody.” OBAMA: “So long as I have some breath in me, so long as I have the privilege of serving as your President, I will not stop fighting for you. I will take my lumps, but I won’t stop fighting to bring back jobs here. I won’t stop fighting for an economy where hard work is rewarded. I won’t stop fighting to make sure there’s accountability in our financial system. I’m not going to stop fighting until we have jobs for everybody.” (President Barack Obama, Remarks By The President During A Town Hall Meeting , Elyria, OH, 1/22/10)

Obama Has “A Scattershot Record (At Best) Of Focusing On The Main Concern Of Main Street: Joblessness.” “Obama arrives at his reelection campaign not merely with a weak performance on Wall Street crime enforcement and reform but also with a scattershot record (at best) of focusing on the main concern of Main Street: joblessness.” (Frank Rich, “Obama’s Original Sin,” New York Magazine, 7/3/11)

• After The Stimulus, Obama “Pivoted Too Quickly” Away From The Economy.“And second, as soon as the stimulus package was completed, they pivoted too quickly to addressing climate change and health care.” (Charlie Cook, “Owning It Democrats Are In A Corner On Their Ownership Of The Economy And What They Can Do To Help Turn It Around,” National Journal, 6/6/11)
• Obama “Must Reconcile An Early Focus On Subjects That Would Best Be Forgotten .“ “For Obama, it’s pretty clear the recovery won’t be nearly as robust. In addition, he has to deal with a more complicated narrative where he must reconcile an early focus on subjects that would best be forgotten with making the case that he should have his contract renewed for another four years. That won’t be easy.” (Charlie Cook, “Owning It Democrats Are In A Corner On Their Ownership Of The Economy And What They Can Do To Help Turn It Around,” National Journal, 6/6/11)

Recently, Obama Has Pivoted To Gimmicks And Distractions

Foster’s Daily Democrat : The Buffett Rule Is “About Distracting Voters From The Obama Administration’s Mishandling Of The Economy.” “Buffett, schmuffett, President Obama’s Buffett Rule has nothing to do with fairness, despite what Vice President Joe Biden might say today when he visits Exeter. The Buffett Rule is about class warfare as is much of the president’s re-election bid to date (i.e. the alleged war on women). It is also about distracting voters from the Obama administration’s mishandling of the economy.” (Editorial, “Buffett Rule Is A Hoax On Voters,” Foster’s Daily Democrat, 4/12/12)

• WCMH’s Colleen Marshall Asked “When You’ve Got A Multi-Trillion Dollar Deficit, Is This The Wisest First Step In Tackling The Economic Problem?”MARSHALL: “Well, critics have said even if the Buffett Rule goes through, it would raise about $47 billion over a 10 year period. I think your supporters put it closer to $160 billion, but when you’ve got a multi-trillion dollar deficit, is this the wisest first step in tackling the economic problem?” (WCMH-CBS, 4/12/12)
• “ The Buffett Rule Has Nothing To Do With Helping You, Or 13 Million Other Americans Looking For Work As Of March, Find A Job.” “On the seventh and final page of its background report on the Buffett Rule, out this morning, the Obama administration finally dives into what it calls ‘the economic rationale’ for imposing a new minimum tax rate on millionaires. If you’re an unemployed American, that placement should be your first red flag. The second should be the rationale itself. Once you read it, you’ll realize the Buffett Rule has nothing to do with helping you, or 13 million other Americans looking for work as of March, find a job.” (Jim Tankersley, “The Buffett Rule Won’t Get You A Job,” National Journal, 4/10/12)

Obama Has Pivoted To Catchphrases And Publicity Stunts

“The White House Has Been Cycling Through Catchphrases Since Announcing His Reelection Bid A Year Ago …” “The White House has been cycling through catchphrases since announcing his reelection bid a year ago: Winning the Future, We Can’t Wait, An America Built to Last, An Economy Built to Last, A Fair Shot. They seem to be looking for one to resonate – and the constant unveiling of new ones suggests that so far, none of them have. To communications experts, the kaleidoscope of slogans is the latest reflection of the difficulties finding and marketing a message that Obama has faced almost since his inauguration – another challenge that came with the shift from insurgent outsider to sitting president.” ^{(Donovan Slack, “Obama: A Brand In Search Of A Slogan,” Politico, 4/7/12)}

• “Their Options, Though, Are Limited: Many Of Obama’s Biggest Achievements – Health Care Reform, Financial Reform, The Stimulus Package – Are Deeply Divisive.” (Donovan Slack, “Obama: A Brand In Search Of A Slogan,” Politico, 4/7/12)

“In Focusing On Executive Actions Rather Than Ambitious Legislation, The President Risks The Appearance Of Putting Election-Year Strategy Ahead Of Economic Action …” “In focusing on executive actions rather than ambitious legislation, the president risks appearing to be putting election-year strategy ahead of economic action at a time when millions of Americans are still out of work.” (Julie Pace, “In 2012, Obama To Press Ahead Without Congress,” The Associated Press, 12/31/11)

• “Some Initiatives Involve Little More Than A New Website, A Pilot Program Or A Brochure.” (Carrie Budoff Brown, “Going It Alone Only Goes So Far,”Politico, 3/19/12)
• “Others Are Basically Repackaged Announcements Of Programs Already Well Under Way.” “Others are basically repackaged announcements of programs already well under way. Yet others are works in progress, waiting on the government bureaucracy to catch up with the urgency of Obama’s ‘we can’t wait’ mantra.” (Carrie Budoff Brown, “Going It Alone Only Goes So Far,” Politico, 3/19/12)

Obama Has Pivoted To Fundraising And Campaigning

Obama Has Attended 119 Fundraisers Since Announcing His Bid For Reelection.(Devin Dwyer, Obama To Draw Big Crowds On Rare Vermont, Maine Swing, ABC News,3/30/12; George Bennett, “FAU Speech Centerpeice Of Obama South Florida Swing Tuesday,” The Palm Beach Post, 4/5/12; “What Can $40K Get You? 1 Of 20 Tickets To Obama Re-Election Fundraiser In A DC Hotel,” The Associated Press , 4/5/12; “Obama Raises Cash At $40,000-A-Ticket DC Reception,” The Associated Press, 4/12/12)

“President Barack Obama Has Been Fundraising At A Harried Pace This Year, And He Is Not Letting Up Any Time Soon.” (Donovan Slack, “Obama To Fundraise This Month In Houston, Chicago, Georgia, Vermont, And Maine,” Politico, 3/2/12)

• Obama’s “Haste To Raise Campaign Funds Risks Blurring The Message Of A President Who Champions The Middle Class.” “Eight months before the presidential election, the haste to raise campaign funds risks blurring the message of a president who champions the middle class against Republican opponents, particularly multimillionaire Mitt Romney.” (Tangi Quemener, “Obama Juggles Needs For Campaign Money, Mass Appeal,” AFP . 2/26/12)

OBAMA CAN’T PIVOT BACK TO JOBS BECAUSE HE DOESN’T HAVE A RECORD OR AGENDA TO RUN ON

The Washington Post ‘s Fact Checker Said “Obama Is On Track To Have The Worst Jobs Record Of Any President In The Modern Era.” “Unless the economy turns around in the next 18 months, Obama is on track to have the worst jobs record of any president in the modern era. That would be an accurate statement.” (Glenn Kessler, “Rick Perry’s Claim That Obama Has ‘Killed More Jobs’ Than Any Other President,” The Washington Post’s “The Fact Checker” , 8/22/11)

The Policies Obama Thought Were His Biggest Accomplishments Remain Deeply Unpopular. “A big hurdle for the president is the unpopularity of the very policies that his team thought would be big accomplishments in the first term. Polls show his economic policy, the health care law and the auto bailout gets positive reviews from fewer than half of voters. Hard to see how that changes.” (Jim VandeHei and Mike Allen, “Obama’s Big Drags,”Politico, 8/4/11)

• With “Little Prospect For Rapid Economic Growth Over The Next Two Years,” Obama’s Economic Team Is “Angry And Morose.” “The Federal Reserve’s finding on Tuesday that there is little prospect for rapid economic growth over the next two years was the latest in a summer of bad economic news. One administration official called the atmosphere around the president’s economic team ‘angry and morose.'” (Helene Cooper, “A Test for Obama’s View Of A One-Term Presidency,” The New York Times, 8/9/11)

The Unemployment Rate Has Remained Above Eight Percent For A Record 38 Straight Months. (Bureau Of Labor Statistics, Accessed 4/17/12)

• Congressional Budget Office: Unemployment Has Remained Above Eight Percent For The Longest Stretch Since The Great Depression. “The rate of unemployment in the United States has exceeded 8 percent since February 2009, making the past three years the longest stretch of high unemployment in this country since the Great Depression.”(“Understanding And Responding To Persistently High Unemployment,” Congressional Budget Office, 2/16/12)

Obama Has Made A Political Calculation That Running Against Congress Is Better Than Working With Congress To Fix The Economy. “Leaving behind a year of bruising legislative battles, President Barack Obama enters his fourth year in office having calculated that he no longer needs Congress to promote his agenda and may even benefit in his re-election campaign if lawmakers accomplish little in 2012.” (Julie Pace, “In 2012, Obama To Press Ahead Without Congress,” The Associated Press, 12/31/11)

• “Absent Any Major Policy Pushes, Much Of The Year Will Focus On Winning A Second Term.” “Absent any major policy pushes, much of the year will focus on winning a second term. The president will keep up a robust domestic travel schedule and aggressive campaign fundraising and use executive action to try to boost the economy.” (Julie Pace, “In 2012, Obama To Press Ahead Without Congress,” The Associated Press, 12/31/11)