It’s official. On Monday, President Obama released a Web video that formally kicked off his re-election campaign for 2012. Four years ago, Obama launched the campaign that took the nation by storm — a campaign that used words and branding to stir up a kind of hysteria that launched an unknown Illinois senator into rock star status and, ultimately, the White House.
And then he never stopped campaigning.
After winning the presidential bid, he traveled abroad to campaign for his presidency. He visited many countries, apologizing for America and promoting himself wherever he went.
He apologized for our military. He apologized for our economic dominance. He apologized for our health care system. He apologized for our concept of American exceptionalism. And he assured everyone that although America sucks, it would suck less with him in charge.
Then, back home, he set about campaigning for his agenda, which began with Obamacare. Although the vast majority of Americans did not want government-run or mandated health care, Obama went to town hall after town hall in an effort to convince the American people that they were wrong and he was right. After cramming the legislation through Congress, he then went on another campaign tour to assuage the overwhelming opposition to its passage and persuade the people that once they found out what was in the bill, they would like it.
It is a president’s responsibility to sufficiently relate his agenda to the public and to lawmakers in order to gain support for its accomplishment. However, Obama has gone beyond the usual coalition-based policy implementation tactics to the point where he has become Campaigner-in-Chief for the modern liberal movement.
Hardly a week goes by without Obama calling a summit to campaign for one cause or another — be it bullying, green energy, or gays in the military. He even took some time to campaign against the state of Arizona when it passed an immigration bill into law— a bill that was to merely enforce already existing federal law.
Obama feels the need to perpetually remain on the campaign trail because campaigning is the only thing he is good at. His reputation was as a community organizer, which involved campaigning for different causes within his community. Then he campaigned for state legislature, U.S. Senate and president. With so much practice at campaigning, he was able to make empty words and promises seem inspirational and powerful. Yet now, in addition to his words, we have a track record to examine — one that involves strong-arm Chicago-style politics, government takeovers, double-dip recession and high unemployment.
Obama can continue to campaign for himself and his causes to his heart’s content, but people have stopped listening. The campaign website features a man who says, “I don’t agree with Obama on everything, but I respect him and I trust him.” This pretty much says it all — the only chance Obama has is if all his supporters, like this man, ignore their horror over his results and remain committed to their faith in the image of Obama they have chosen to believe in.
But the buzz is gone, and it is just not going to happen. There is not enough leftover hope and change in the back of the fridge to scrounge up a re-election victory, and whatever Republican opponent emerges from the fog will have a much easier road to the White House than could ever have been imagined four years ago.
Bob Minchin is a fourth-year electrical engineering major. His column appears on Fridays.
