“It’s the Economy, Stupid”
Barack Obama charmed Europe and its leaders. Let’s not allow this to divert our attention. The fact that five Frenchmen out of six would vote for Obama is irrelevant. The election is not in Europe. It’s in the United States.
It’s in the United States where for millions of voting Americans the economic sky is falling.
In 1992 the governor of a small southern state who had no experience in foreign policy challenged an incumbent president of the United States who a year earlier had accomplished the spectacular feat of liberating Kuwait and who was riding to reelection on popularity ratings of 80 percent or more.
But the country was in a deep recession. Knowing that their candidate was no match for George H.W. Bush on foreign policy credentials, Bill Clinton’s advisers kept reminding him, “It’s the economy, stupid.”
Obama’s trip to the Middle East and Europe turned out to be a very good idea. He captured Europe’s attention. But the tour has also focused the campaign on the war and foreign policy, and that is precisely where John McCain wants it.
In the United States, millions of people have lost their jobs. Citizens numbering in the hundreds of thousands are losing their homes. Hard-working Americans are watching their pensions and savings erode, or even disappear, in a sharply declining stock market.
The issue in this campaign is the sagging economy of the United States. The urgent need for Obama is to attack John McCain whose views on economic concerns are controlled by an adviser who thinks the economic downturn is purely psychological.
Let’s not forget the guiding wisdom for any candidate for the presidency in time of recession: “It’s the economy, stupid.”