David Axelrod, Obama 2012 campaign aide, spoke with Washington Times affiliated radio show America’s Morning News about how the Obama campaign is preparing for the upcoming election year.
“I think he came to office at a time of tremendous challenge in this country. The economy was in free fall and we had two wars and someone said to me the other day, ‘You know his slogan should be GM is alive and Bin Laden is dead,’” said Mr. Axelrod.
“And I think he made some very decisive decisions both to protect the country and to break the momentum of the recession. But we got a lot of work to do and a lot of work to not just put people back to work but also to restore the security that the middle class has lost for a long period of time.”
Many Obama supporters will call the auto bailouts a success only because the Union Auto Workers financially benefited the most and cost the tax payer $14 billion.
President Obama received short term bounce in his poll numbers after Navy SEALS killed Osama bin Laden in May, and while the administration likes to tout other names like Al Awlaki and Muammar Gaddafi that military forced have killed, nonetheless the unemployment rate remains at 9.1 percent and a job approval rating in the low 40’s.
Former president George H.W. Bush was well known for being a foreign policy expert and the economy was not only better during Mr. Bush’s time, the unemployment rate was much lower. More importantly, his job approval rating following the Gulf War was astronomical, polling in the 80’s with the American people, but when the 1992 elections came around Mr. Bush did not get a second term.
Mr. Axelrod also addressed the president’s support for Energy Secretary Steven Chu, despite the ongoing green energy projects that continue to be funded by through federal loan guarantees and the recent declared bankruptcies of more green energy projects who received tax-payer federal loan guarantees. However, he was quick to pass the buck on to President George W. Bush as to why Solyndra received attention from the Department of Energy to begin with.
“The president has great confidence in Doctor Chu. he’s a Nobel prize winning physicist. He’s palyed an important role in a wide range of things. Obviously…these energy programs, the one that Solyndra was involved in, was started by the Bush administration.”
However, according to ABC News, the Bush Energy Department first reviewed the Solyndra loan application, but eventually rejected the the solar panel company from getting the loan. Six days after President Obama was in office, though, Solyndra’s loan application was accepted.
Secretary Chu will testify before members of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce on November 17 regarding Solyndra’s $535 million loan guarantee.
