It is hardly a secret Republican weapon. The GOP invoked it repeatedly at the party’s convention last week in Tampa — and just so the point wouldn’t be lost, Republican vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan showed up Monday in North Carolina, the state now hosting the Democrats, to charge: “The president can say a lot of things, and he will, but he can’t tell you you’re better off.”
“The Jimmy Carter years look like the good old days compared to where we are right now,” Ryan said.
The tightly organized and disciplined Team Obama, which had to know the question was coming, was curiously unprepared with an answer.
On Sunday, Obama’s backers fumbled the question. On “Face the Nation,” Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley said, “No, but that’s not the question of this election.” It may not be the question, but it’s certainly one of them.
On Fox, top Obama strategist David Axelrod offered this less-than-ringing defense: “We’re in a better position than we were four years ago in our economy.”
But by the beginning of the week, the Obama campaign seemed to have regained its footing. O’Malley — no doubt having been read the riot act by Team Obama’s enforcers — had rethought his position, concluding, “We are clearly better off as a country because we’re now creating jobs rather than losing them.”
Yes, but we haven’t been creating them as fast as we’ve been losing them. And that’s the heart of the problem.
Vice President Joe Biden, a stranger to understatement, boomed at a union rally: “You want to know whether we’re better off? I’ve got a little bumper sticker for you: Osama bin Laden is dead and General Motors is alive.” Alive, yes, but only thanks to a government takeover by Obama.
All of this is a little in the nature of preseason exhibition politics. Americans like their presidential candidates to be optimistic and forward looking. On Thursday night, as he accepts his renomination, President Barack Obama must answer a different and more important variation of that question: Can he convincingly promise us that we’ll be better off four years from now than we are today?
As we saw in 2008, and since, Barack Obama can and will promise the moon, and millions of Americans will gullibly swallow those promises. But when it comes to acting on them, well, that’s a different story entirely.
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The Democrats cite macroeconomic statistics (monthly job losses then vs. now) and such memes as Osama is dead and GM is alive. That's fine.
Bring the question down to a personal level.
Are you paying more for gas now? What about groceries? Your power bill? What about the value of your home? Are you one of the unfortunate ones who is upside down in their mortgage? Do you have a 401k account? Has it recovered from the 2008-2009 market collapse? Do you HAVE a job? If so, when was the last time you received a raise?
And to the "old military guy", thank you for your service; however, the Republicans are not heartless. We just believe that giving is best handled, more efficiently handled, at the local level through churches and communities. It is very inefficient for the government to confiscate tax dollars, launder those dollars through massive bureacracies, only to be doled out to favored constituencies.
In other news, why were some (maybe half?) of the Democrats booing the placement of the word "God" back into their platform?
it's amazing, and telling, how you equate the less fortunate to criminals. That's not simplistic at all. When I say less fortunate I'm talking about people like me, that needed those 'socialist' programs like the GI Bill and student loans to get an eduation. I'm talking about my Mom, who was a single Mom and for a short time had to use food stamps to feed us.
And, by the way, I don't have to 'turn on the news' to see crimnals, I've been in law enforcment for 14 years. But, heck, according to Romney, we need less public servants anyway...so I'm sure you think I'm 'sucking the life' out of the gov't as well.
Yes.
Bush left this country in a Depression (we called it a recession to make people feel better).
Bush was unable to end socialist programs like Social Security, Welfare, medicare, medicaid and actually added the largest socialist program for prescription drugs.
The stock market has increased by more than 100% since 2008. Therefore, Romney has seen an incredible increase in income and is much better off now. That's why he refuses to release his tax returns.
Romney installed Obamacare first (before he was against it). He's the father of universal healthcare.
Romney raised taxes as Governor. That's not conservative.
Romney left his state in debt. That's not conservative...well maybe it is...i.e. George Bush.
I'm amazed at how ignorant voters are. 65% of the people on entitlement programs are white or caucasian, not Black. Look at the stats. Why didn't George Bush end these entitlement programs during his 8 years?
Why don't conservatives close government (public) schools? These are socialist programs.
The hypocrisy is sickening.
I am also pro-choice. It's funny how much the repubs care about the fetus, but care nothing about the poor, uninsured child once its born...just sayin'...
I’m an old military guy, I was taught to ‘never leave a man behind.’ I’ve learned that to be a republican is to believe in the opposite of that charge. To be a republican is to swallow Ayn Rand’s immature, drug store philosophy and, instead of helping the less fortunate, stepping on them on the way up the ladder.
HUMILITY —-GOOGLE IT GOP.