August 15, 2011. Washington. With 15 months before the 2012 Presidential election, President Obama has seen his approval rating drop to its lowest point in his career. Yesterday, Gallup released its latest poll showing that while only 39 percent of Americans approve of the President’s performance thus far, a majority 54 percent indicated they disapprove. Congressional Republicans faired even worse. When asked which party’s Congressmen they favored, 51 percent favored Congressional Democrats. That compares to just 44 percent for Congressional Republicans.
Responding to increasing criticism this weekend, President Obama recited the same line he’s trotted out hundreds of times since the day he took office, “We’ve still got a long way to go to get to where we need to be. We didn’t get into this mess overnight and it’s going to take time to get out of it.” While President Obama continues to blame the former administration, richly deserved blame at that, he has thus far refused to take any responsibility for the failed policies of his own administration. Some of those policies didn’t just fail, they were actually devastating.
The President isn’t only taking flack from Republicans either. Many independents and Democrats alike are voicing opposition and disappointment to President Obama’s agenda. Beginning with one of his first acts in office, the President raised taxes on the poor, working and middle class in the form of a cigarette tax, while at the same time repeatedly lowering the taxes of the nation’s super rich. To many, it looks as if the President is attempting to buy the affection of the country’s richest five percent on the backs of the poor, working poor and vanishing middle class.
Double-talk on the country’s tax rates aside, critics have found plenty of other reasons to criticize the President. One of the main objections is his blatant broken promise of ending the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Instead of pulling US troops out, President Obama actually increased troop strength in Afghanistan. On top of that, the President recently authorized US military involvement in additional Middle East countries like Libya and Pakistan.
With the nation’s fiscal house in disarray, the debt ceiling fiasco and the downgrade of the country’s credit rating, many question the strategy and legitimacy of the President’s economic policy. President Obama’s supporters repeatedly argue that former President Bush doubled the national debt from $5.6 trillion to $11 trillion with two unfunded wars and massive tax cuts for America’s super rich. But the President’s record is proving to be just as bad. Since taking office, the national debt under President Obama has increased from $11 trillion to $14.6 trillion in just his first three years in office. The national debt is forecast to hit $15 trillion by the end of Obama’s first term.
Earlier this year, conservatives began distributing their top ten list of complaints about President Obama. The list includes:
A $787 billion stimulus package that turned out to be nothing more than a bailout of the country’s municipal employees unions. It was at this moment that the President’s campaign promise changed from “I will created X number of jobs” to “I will save or create X number of jobs”.
A homeowner mortgage assistance program that directed a mere $275 billion toward homeowner relief. Instead of bailing out homeowners, who would in turn pay their mortgages and thus bail out the big banks, President Obama left the middle class out in the cold and gave the cash infusion directly to the international banking industry.
A $400 billion secondary stimulus that was corrupted with 9,000 individual earmarks.
President Obama imposed State ownership over much of the nation’s auto industry, banking industry and insurance industry.
Fraudulent, or unintelligent, economic forecasting. Basing all budgetary and spending projections on unrealistic growth numbers, President Obama’s financial track record doesn’t invite votes of confidence.
The inability of the administration to hold even one corporate executive responsible for the fraud and illegal activities that caused not only the country’s housing collapse, but its economic collapse as well.
Repeatedly extending the Patriot Act.
Imposing ‘Obamacare’. Forcing American’s to purchase insurance against their will is Unconstitutional, the President’s detractors argue. Forcing them to purchase on the state level, they concede, is just fine.
While this list is nowhere near complete, it gives a sense of the main issues that President Obama will have to address if he’s going to regain the support of independents and disenfranchised Democrats. With 15 months before the 2012 Presidential election and a forecasted $1 billion campaign treasury, President Obama has plenty of time and money to present his side of the argument. In fact, with a three state bus tour through Minnesota, Iowa and his home state of Illinois this week, the President will attempt to turn his disappointing approval ratings around.
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