Economy Presents Big Problem for Obama

The tenuous nature of the economic recovery was confirmed Friday with news that GDP expanded at a measly annualized rate of 1.9 percent in the first quarter. And that’s a problem for President Barack Obama, Politico reports.

At this point, the president isn’t even sure how to talk about the economy, let alone revive it.

“My sense is they might be recalibrating” on the president’s economic pitch, said Democratic strategist James Carville, who has criticized the White House’s communications strategy. “A lot of people are just trying to win tomorrow.”

The biggest problem for Obama is that regardless of what he says, it’s unlikely that the economy will have rebounded strongly by Election Day. The unemployment rate, now 9.1 percent, will likely remain well above 8 percent.