ABC’s Jake Tapper has been trying his best to get the White House to comment on the issues the public cares about — namely, the economy — but it’s been an uphill battle so far. At the WH press briefing today, Tapper pressed Jay Carney on why Obama hasn’t mentioned yesterday’s troubling CBO report:
ABC’s Jake Tapper: “The Congressional Budget Office report is a pretty dire warning about what this nation faces, yet I didn’t hear the president mention it yesterday, is there a reason why?”
White House Spokesman Jay Carney: “Well I think I put out a statement which is the White House’s view and the president’s view. The president talks every day that he’s out there, as he was yesterday, about what we need to do to help build our economy, help it to continue to grow, help it to continue to create jobs and yesterday, and the day before, he was focusing on the need to continue investments in education because he firmly believes that education is a matter of our economy, it’s an economic issue.”
Tapper: That’s not what the Congressional Budget Office was addressing, they were talking about … The president talked about education, he talked about Todd Akin, he talked about Michael Jordan, he talked about a lot of—
Carney dodged it, responding with a few boilerplate sentences on Obama’s “balanced approach” to the “fiscal challenges.” But it’s a question that should be put to the White House over and over again. Why won’t the Obama campaign talk about the economy? More importantly, why does the White House press corps — Tapper and some others excluded — allow Obama to get away with it?
The advent of online media was supposed to increase competition and improve reporting. Instead, some reporters seem so hooked on getting their six or seven scoops a day from their campaign sources that they end up acting as stenographers for newsmakers instead of challenging them. Maybe it’s because journalists are time-crunched, or maybe it’s because they don’t want their access to dry up, or maybe it’s because economic stories don’t bring in the web hits. But the speed at which the media jumps from distraction to distraction is disappointing.
Tapper: Why is WH Ignoring the Economy? n nBecause it sucks, n njust like the actual content of Mitt's returns. n nMost voters know that the President has little to do with the economy,in fact,but in principle,he's on the hook, so Obama's playing it smart.
To rexford2446: The POTUS provides leadership and an environment for an economy to thrive. Also, enforcing the rule of law (executive branch) ensures that the private sector has confidence and continues to invest in growing their businesses and therefore, the greater economy. That is why the total economy grew during and beyond Reagan's term. So, POTUS actually has a lot to do with the economy. With our current administration we have an arbitrary approach to the rule of law, an abdication of responsibility at creating an environment for economic growth and a inability to work with the other side (and therefore a failure to govern). The only approach this administration has tried with the economy is to send $800 Billion of our money to favored constituencies. When that didn't work, he retreated on the economy and we are seeing the effects of that now.
So,in your opinion,all of our financial problems started in Jan. 2009. n nI take a little longer view,I think we started in a bad direction in 1971,and until we correct those decade old errors,things are going to be dicey.
The economy was bad but Obama's policies threw it in the ditch the rest of the way.
Nope,that will be Romneyu2019s job. The role of Republicans historically(one example only-LOL)is to convert recessions into Depressions. It may be a blessing to the loser of this election to be the loser,if we go into a major downturn.
I agree with you that there was and are systemic problems to which both parties are culpable. However, the current administration took a bad problem and exacerbated it. I remember thinking "are we living in opposite world?" as he was implementing his solutions. Those solutions not only proved to be ineffective but they have accelerated the decline. Now, the economy will only start to really take off if we have serious tax and entitlement reform put in place for the long term. That will take both parties working together. The problem with POTUS is that he ignored the message of the 2010 election and doubled down (look what happened when Clinton learned from 1994 – GROWTH). My feeling is that we need tax reform about every 20 years to clear out what lobbyists and politicians create. We haven't done that since 1986 (roughly) and we are way overdue. The Romney-Ryan team are taking this head on and POTUS is acting as if the issue doesn't exist. That, the entitlement train wreck, government debt and a disregard for the rule of law have created an environment of fear in the economy. That's why so much money is sitting on the sidelines.
That's just it, I don't understand the logic the economy was bad so Obama threw a bunch of stimulus money we didn't have at his union buddies.
When a President like Obama insists on interfering with the economy as much as he does — which is a lot — then he has a major effect on the economy, or, more precisely, his policies do. So he most definitely in NOT "off the hook," and, to compound the "unfairness" to Obama, most voters do think the President, whether Obama or another, have a major effect on the economy.
The president has everything to do with the sputtering economy, his war in Afghanistan where we have no vital national interests, and allowing Iraq to slip away, though it is key to the US power position in the world. nThose are being ignored, not just by Obama, and not just by Romney, but my the conservative media, not least, Contentions in COMMENTARY.
I don't know but I do know channel surfing just now Ed Shultz was screaming pretty much that anyone who doesn't vote for Obama is a criminal. As in guilty of an actual chargeable offense.
It took eight years plus for us to get so where we are today economically (minus the Clinton years with a significant surplus)! You people just will not admit trickle down economics does not work. Obama is working with politicians who made a pact not to agree to anything no matter what , and this country is still uncomfortable discussing race and gender.r nAlso the statement I WANT MY COUNTRY BACK is at the crux of this political climate. This POTUS has been demonized from the beginning as anti-American or “NOT LIKE US” by birthers, Newt replying that he has “tribal” instincts because his father was Kenyan, Rush Limbaugh implying that Al Queda gave up Bin Laden solely for the purpose of Obama winning again. I wish folks would just say why President Obama is so politically repulsive instead rehashing Fox News talking points as it is getting redundant but I realize that the replies will be a rehash of talking points instead of saying what you really would like to say…