Obama May Pay the Price for Surge in Gas Prices

Consumers are getting hit hard in the pocket book by the jump in gasoline prices – to more than $4 a gallon in some cities. As a result, President Barack Obama may get hit hard at the ballot box, as he seeks re-election next year.

A new poll from ABC News/The Washington Post shows that of people claiming “serious” hardship from gas prices, only 39 percent approve of Obama, and 53 percent say they won’t vote for him, The Hill reports.

Among those who say gas prices don’t cause serious hardship, 50 percent approve of Obama, and 40 percent plan to vote against him. Among those who say gas prices don’t cause any hardship, 56 percent approve of the president, and 39 percent intend to vote against him.

Another issue that could hurt Obama politically is the problem of sleeping air traffic controllers, The Hill reports. While none of the napping has caused an accident yet, if it does, Obama will likely bear the blame.

“I’m not a technical expert [on aviation], but the bottom line is people want government to work, and they want it to work well. The closer the impact is to them, the more upset it makes them,” former Maryland Democratic Gov. Parris Glendening told The Hill.

He points out that incumbent politicians suffer when public services fail. “Several mayors and governors have gone to political oblivion for not dealing properly with snow storms,” he notes. “The impression I have is this is the same type of thing. It’s something the administration has got get a hold of and say ‘we can and we will improve things very quickly.’”