Question: Is President Obama only running for re-election when there is bad news on the horizon? I'm not sure but that's what it looks like in the media these days. Whenever a bad news topic arises like high gas prices or Iran, Obama's face is plastered all over the news with the caption, "What Does This Mean for the President's Re-Election Chances?" But, when there is good news on the horizon...nothing.
This week, the Dow Jones closed above 13,000 for the first time since May 2008, the consumer confidence level was clocked at his highest point since 2008, the GDP was revised upward across the board (not to mention that President Obama gave arguably his most rousing speech in years at the UAW Conference), and what did we get... two straight days of the Romney-Santorum Show!
Now, I understand that the presidential primaries are important, I get it... but 2 straight days of this non-stop, wall-to-wall, mind-numbing screech-fest? Give me a break. I woke up yesterday hearing about nothing but the Michigan primary, I went to sleep last night hearing about nothing but the Michigan primary and I woke up this morning hearing about nothing but the Michigan primary. Good grief! It's a 'primary' in Romney's home state that he was expected to win, it's not the second coming! And people wonder why so many in this country get their news from the likes of Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert. Guess what Stewart and Colbert talked about on their shows last night? Hint: It WASN'T about the Michigan primary!
Now, I agree that as president, Obama deserves the bad coverage as well as the good, but here lately the only time we seem to hear about his re-election chances is when there is some kind of bad news hovering. Do gas prices affect Obama's re-election chances but not the GDP and the consumer confidence level rising or a diplomatic breakthrough with North Korea? There has to be some kind of happy medium.
And one last note, with the Dow closing at 13,000 for the first time since 2008 and the NASDAQ touching 3,000 for the first time since 2000 (which does matter, especially to those with 401k's), can someone please ask these candidates and their Wall Street surrogates to explain one more time just how it is that President Obama is bad for business? Just wondering...