Presidential election campaigns, many lament, always are too long. So it surely will not be long before Republicans who seriously hope to defeat President Barack Obama must begin ramping up their candidacies.
What will the 2012 election issues be, besides the personalities of Obama and his challenger?
The economy undoubtedly will be a big one. It always is, especially when there are high inflation and related problems. In fact, some say that all issues, whatever they may be, are grounded in economics. How financially comfortable or uncomfortable will voters be in 2012?
Taxes are often a big issue, too. Obama wants to raise taxes – a move that Republicans are resisting.
Obama is presiding over a budget that, despite high taxes, is running about $1.6 trillion in the red, adding to the $14.3 trillion national debt.
The high percentage of people without jobs will affect the election outcome, too. Will that number be lower next year, and how will that affect the candidates and the voters?
Only 40 percent of respondents to a recent poll say the president is handling the economy OK – with 57 percent disapproving.
Sixty-three percent of respondents say Obama mostly inherited the nation’s current economic troubles, while 30 percent say they are his fault. But 57 percent of those polled say the “worst is yet to come,” while only 39 percent believe the “worst is behind us.”
Are we in a recession? “Yes,” say 71 percent; “no,” say 26 percent.
Given those kinds of numbers, it seems virtually certain that economic issues will weigh heavily on the 2012 presidential election.