"It's the economy, stupid" ... will Obama lose in 2012?

In today's Wall Street Journal, former George W. Bush advisor and strategist Karl Rove lays out four reasons why he believes President Barack Obama will not win re-election in 2012.

In a nutshell:

The economy is very weak and unlikely to experience a robust recovery by Election Day. Key voter groups have soured on him. He's defending unpopular policies. And he's made bad strategic decisions.

Obama is facing 9.1% unemployment after promising jobs, jobs, jobs. That unemployment number was supposed to be down, down, down. It's not.

Remember Bill Clinton's 1992 campaign and the slogan coined by his advisor James Carville, "It's the economy, stupid"? Is 2012 going to be 1992 all over again? Clinton and team hammered at President George H.W. Bush, who was considered unbeatable with a 90% approval rating after Operation Desert Storm ... but with Clinton and Carville pounding the same economic drum over and over throughout the campaign, Clinton won.

A year ago Obama ballyhooed that the economy was "growing at a good clip." Not so much, it turned out. He finally admitted it a week ago as he joked, "Shovel-ready was not as shovel-ready as we expected."

Oops.

Obama's woes include a steady decline of independent supporters as well as his own base, as pointed out by Rove:

Jewish voters are upset with his policy toward Israel, and left-wing bloggers at last week's NetRoots conference were angry over Mr. Obama's failure to deliver a leftist utopia. Weak Jewish support could significantly narrow Mr. Obama's margin in states like Florida, while a disappointed left could deprive him of the volunteers so critical to his success in 2008.

Housing hasn't bounced back, gasoline prices remain high, some businesses have closed while others are limping along hoping to outlast the economic downturn, and yet others' plans for new openings have been delayed or altogether scrapped.

Thanks in part to Obama's "Cash-for-Clunkers" program two years ago, the used car market is ruined. The "environmental" desire by Obama was to remove less energy efficient vehicles off the roadways by offering vouchers for new purchases with instructions that the old vehicles had to be destroyed. Thus, prices in the used car market are high because of shortages and, therefore, pricing people who cannot afford new vehicles out of pre-owned vehicles.

Combine those with unpopular policies such as ObamaCare, government bailouts,  recess appointments, a spiraling-out-of-control national debt, and other failures or disappointments, and you have a popularity rating that is continually dropping for this president. Rove noted, "In Wednesday's Bloomberg poll, Americans believe they are worse off than when Mr. Obama took office by a 44% to 34% margin."

History is usually on the side of the incumbent. Usually. Will 2012 be the exception?

Cross-posted at Bearing Drift

SWAC area loses more jobs

Western State Hospital in Staunton is laying off 25 workers due to Commonwealth budget cuts, a move that will affect workers who come from surrounding areas.

Today it was announced that McQuay in Verona will lay off 48 workers effective Monday. That plant was hit with a workers' picket in June 2009, at which time I posted, McQuay union employees picket ... have they not seen the economy?

What drove Augusta County-based McQuay's employees to stand on the street and picket yesterday? Union members of the United Electrical Radio and Machine Workers of America lined the street and held signs proclaiming they wanted a fair contract from the company.

Right down the street from McQuay, American Safety Razor has downsized to the point where the employee parking lot is overgrown with weeds. In surrounding Augusta, Staunton, and Waynesboro, hundreds of jobs have been lost as companies struggle in these very difficult economic times ... companies such as Invista, Mowhawk Carpet, Gem Ply, Unifi, Hershey. Citizens have tightened their belts because of job losses, decrease in wages, and cutback in hours.

Is the timing right to stand on the street and protest?

Now 48 workers are being let go.

The economy is not rebounding, as erronerously reported by the Obama administration. Jobs are still being lost, companies are still folding, employees are taking pay cuts, and senior employees are retiring to make room for younger workers.

Look at the millions of dollars in lost pay from approximately 75 jobs just to the SWAC area.

Tom Perriello (D-5th CD) supports ideology of Dems instead of economic interests of working people

"Thank you Tom Perriello -- for stabbing the working people of the 5th District in the back."

So begins a column by John Barnhart in the Bedford Bulletin. He goes on to say:

On June 29, 41 House Democrats had the courage to stand up to Supreme Leader Nancy Pelosi. They voted against her cap-and-trade energy bill. Congressman Perriello was not one of them. He voted for this nightmare, which narrowly passed the House of Representatives by seven votes.

Writing about lost jobs, ideology over "global warming," and industry moving overseas, Mr. Barnhart lays it on the line. He ends by saying:

So, thank you Tom Perriello for supporting the ideology of your party’s well-heeled elite instead of the economic interests of the 5th District’s working people.

Indeed.

Augusta county schools see $4.7 million cut from state

Augusta County public schools are facing budget cuts after learning they may lose $4.7 million in state funds as part of Democrat Gov. Tim Kaine's attempt to balance the state budget and make up for a $2.9 billion shortfall.

The Waynesboro News Virginian reported this morning:

Augusta County Superintendent Gary McQuain told school board members Thursday that the county is slated to get a $4.7 million cut in state aid for next year.
...
McQuain said the challenge for the Augusta County Schools is to trim a $102 million budget that has little to cut.

He said the school district could choose not to replace retirees in the 2009-10 budget, but McQuain does not expect many because of the troubled economy.

Dr. McQuain expanded on possible cuts, according to the Staunton News Leader:

No decisions have yet been made as to how the deficit will be met, but cuts may lie in leaving open positions vacated by retiring teachers, instituting mandated leaves of absence for certain staff, putting off textbook purchases, and in the worst-case scenario, layoffs.

Meanwhile, Augusta County is mailing out real estate reassessment increases at a time when the state is making cuts in many areas including Augusta County public schools.

Waynesboro's Invista plant laid off 200 workers in December with notices sent to all others of possible additional layoffs ... the Commonwealth Center for children with mental disorders is scheduled to be closed down by the end of June laying off 100 workers ... other area business layoffs are expected.

Wall Street is up and down, the U.S. government has taken on huge financial debt ... even media giant Gannett, parent company of the Staunton News Leader, announced in October it would be laying off 10% of its work force ... and layoffs were announced at Media General which owns the Waynesboro News Virginian and Richmond Times Dispatch.