We Built It Blog by Larry Jacob

President Obama is running for re-election during arguably the worst recession since the Great Depression, a recession that his economic policies have prolonged and exacerbated.   Despite the fact that he has not articulated any clear and realistic plan to resolve it, he is running neck and neck with Mitt Romney in the polls.  You may ask yourself: How can this be so, particularly since history tells us that presidents running for re-election during bad economic times almost always lose.  Recent examples include Herbert Hoover, Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter.  Absent a unifying crisis, such as a war, historically Americans have “voted for their pocketbook” and thrown out the incumbent.

I believe the answer is likeability.  The polls show that a majority of people view President Obama as a nice guy and genuinely like him more than Mr. Romney.  This has translated into a voting preference for enough of them to create a virtual dead heat in the polls.  Unfortunately, we are not selecting someone to hang out with for the weekend; we are selecting a President to lead us out of a very serious economic crisis.   Personally, I also like President Obama; however, I do not think he done well enough to earn a second term.

Ask yourself: God forbid, if you needed a very serious operation would you want a likeable surgeon of average competence or an unlikeable one who was very competent.  Personally, if my life were at stake, I would want the best surgeon regardless of his personality.  Well, the economic life of this country is at stake.  It doesn’t need a nice guy.  It needs the best man available regardless of personality.  Hopefully, enough voters will realize this in November, and history will repeat itself.

President Obama would have us believe his economic policies have America on the right track, and everything will be all right if we would only give him a second term.  Does he seriously expect voters to believe that?  Yes, he inherited a bad economy, but his policies have clearly exacerbated the situation.  Consider the facts:

1.  Unemployment remains stubbornly in excess of 8%, and that does not include all the persons who are underemployed and who have given up and left the workforce.  Include them, and the rate jumps to more like 15%.

2.  As reported today, job force participation has sunken to the lowest percentage in 60 years.

3.  The price of gas at the pump is extremely burdensome, over $5.00/gallon in some locations.

4.  The national debt is over $16 trillion and rising by the second.

By any objective measurement, our economy is in dire straits.  Our government has mortgaged our futures and those of our children and grandchildren.  In the process, the USA is in danger of losing its economic leadership position in the world.

Four more years?  We cannot afford four more months! In four more years president Obama’s socialist-leaning wealth redistribution policies will have likely turned us into Greece,  Four years ago President Obama took office amid great fanfare and great expectations.  It has not worked out.  It is time to cut our losses.  It is time for a change!

Quick now.  What is the capital of Israel?  Officially, the capital of Israel is Jerusalem, and it has been since the 1949 Armistice Agreements following the 1948 Israeli War of Independence.  Most people agree with that historical fact and would support it remaining so.  But, according to the original Democratic Party 2012 platform, President Obama and the Democratic Party are not so sure.  After 60+ years, that plank was removed from the Dems’ platform.  By whom and under whose authority?  Nobody knows or will admit it.  Confused?  You’re not the only one, but that’s the kind of failed and fractured leadership we have seen for the last four years.

Now, faced with the prospect of alienating the strong pro-Israeli vote, both Jewish and non-Jewish, in Florida and perhaps other battleground states the Dems have suddenly flip flopped their position at their convention.  Following a voice vote the Dems now tell us that Jerusalem “is and will remain the capital of Israel.”  This revisionism makes one wonder if George Orwell is running the show.  Also, it should be noted that this amendment was passed by a questionable vote that had to be called three times by the convention chairman before a questionable majority of “ayes” could be heard.  At the time, it appeared that less than half of the delegates were present, and the amendment’s passage was greeted by a chorus of boos.

Can we expect another flip flop on this position after the election if Obama wins?  Lets hope we don’t find out.

Watching the Democratic convention reminds me of the show “Chicago” and the song “Give Em the Ole Razzle Dazzle.”  Obama and the Dems know they cannot run on the most important issues, which are the economy, high unemployment and the deficit.  Therefore, they are trying to obscure those issues and distract the voters with glitz and by focusing on relatively minor issues, such as abortion.  According to polls, abortion is not even ranked in the top ten issues by voters, yet the Dems are trying to bootstrap it into a litmus test of “women’s rights.”  Ridiculous!  Women are not having trouble obtaining and affording birth control pills through their health care plans.  They should be more concerned about the economy, high unemployment and the deficit.  Hopefully, the voters will be too smart to fall for this superficial tactic.  

Yes, Michele Obama is very popular and gave a moving speech, but it did not alter the fact of President Obama’s failed economic policies over the last four years.  Yes, he inherited a bad situation.  But, he has exacerbated it.  Four more years of Big Government and stifling of free enterprise with the socialist-style government system he espouses will likely turn the US into Greece and put it on the road to bankruptcy.

We need a change! 

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