Sapper Woody
Well-Known Member
I was discussing my opinion on the decline in the popularity of President Obama with my LT, who gave me some reasons as to why he thinks the President will win a second term. Being an officer in the Army, he did not tell me who he was voting for, only that he thought the President would win.
I was going to give some background on my LT, but I decided against it. I don't have his permission to talk of his accomplishments to others. Suffice it to say, once his military career is over, he has opportunities in pretty much any government agency he wishes. I say this to simply point out that he has an understanding of what is going on.
Here are some points he hit on, as well as some of my own thoughts thrown in:
1. The Economy
Basically, he believes the President will use former administrations as a scapegoat in the economy area (this will be a recurring theme in these points, by the way). He could easily persuade people that the plunge began before he took the office, and let them know that he has a plan to turn things around. As we know, the promise of change is often enough to convince people.
2. The Surge of Troops into War
He could claim that the surge was necessary in order to prevent a longer engagement overseas. It was an unpopular decision to push so many troops into Afghanistan, but this is being followed by a drastic reduction in troops overseas. On my FOB alone, we are reducing our number from around 18,000 troops to roughly 6,000 troops this year. This pullout will look really good during his campaign.
3. The Kill of Osama Bin Laden
It is expected that the President will use the kill of Bin Laden to his advantage during the campaign. This is old news to people, however. Anyone with any sense at all knew as soon as it happened that we hadn't heard the last of that story.
4. Homeless Rate of Veterans
Here is a little known fact that could possibly surface this year. The VA has released information that the homeless rate among veterans has been reduced from about 150,000 in 2009 to only about 45,000 at the end of 2011. We could argue all day on whether the President had anything to do with this, but that's not the reason for this thread. The fact is that it happened, and he could capitalize on it.
5. Obamacare
Whether we like it or not, Obamacare as voted on by Congress was not how it was written up originally. Therein lies another scapegoat and a possible PR turnaround. With the unpopularity of Obamacare, he could easily remind people that Congress added so many changes to it that it wasn't his plan. As a campaign theme, he could promise to fix it.
6. Unrest Among Other Middle Eastern Countries
As a fear tactic, the President could talk about peace talks in the middle east, and tell people that a change in government could undo everything he's worked for.
7. Possible Years of Peace
With the pullout of troops in the middle east, the President could easily tell people that under his administration we are heading for years of peace. This type of talk is backed up by the reconfiguring of the military (especially the Army) to a smaller, better trained force.
8. Better Border Security Measures
With the troops pulling out of combat, and without our focus on war, a promise could be made that we could better focus on the border, and securing our own nation against arms/drug runners. he could even go so far as to state that we would secure our borders for a better control over terrorist activities that would enter the US from bordering countries.
Keep in mind that this is not a "Bash Obama" thread, and that the idea here is not to talk about how bad he is. I just want to get some thoughts about how valid of a strategy this would be. Again, not really whether the points are valid, but whether using these points would be a valid strategy.
From my own observation, I don't think that the President is as despised by the general public as he is made out to be on this board. It is easy to hear a lot of people around you talking, and if the people around you are all saying the same thing, to assume that you are hearing the majority opinion. However, this is not always an accurate assessment. It seems that the average person isn't concerned with what has happened, but the promise of what will happen.
What say you?
I was going to give some background on my LT, but I decided against it. I don't have his permission to talk of his accomplishments to others. Suffice it to say, once his military career is over, he has opportunities in pretty much any government agency he wishes. I say this to simply point out that he has an understanding of what is going on.
Here are some points he hit on, as well as some of my own thoughts thrown in:
1. The Economy
Basically, he believes the President will use former administrations as a scapegoat in the economy area (this will be a recurring theme in these points, by the way). He could easily persuade people that the plunge began before he took the office, and let them know that he has a plan to turn things around. As we know, the promise of change is often enough to convince people.
2. The Surge of Troops into War
He could claim that the surge was necessary in order to prevent a longer engagement overseas. It was an unpopular decision to push so many troops into Afghanistan, but this is being followed by a drastic reduction in troops overseas. On my FOB alone, we are reducing our number from around 18,000 troops to roughly 6,000 troops this year. This pullout will look really good during his campaign.
3. The Kill of Osama Bin Laden
It is expected that the President will use the kill of Bin Laden to his advantage during the campaign. This is old news to people, however. Anyone with any sense at all knew as soon as it happened that we hadn't heard the last of that story.
4. Homeless Rate of Veterans
Here is a little known fact that could possibly surface this year. The VA has released information that the homeless rate among veterans has been reduced from about 150,000 in 2009 to only about 45,000 at the end of 2011. We could argue all day on whether the President had anything to do with this, but that's not the reason for this thread. The fact is that it happened, and he could capitalize on it.
5. Obamacare
Whether we like it or not, Obamacare as voted on by Congress was not how it was written up originally. Therein lies another scapegoat and a possible PR turnaround. With the unpopularity of Obamacare, he could easily remind people that Congress added so many changes to it that it wasn't his plan. As a campaign theme, he could promise to fix it.
6. Unrest Among Other Middle Eastern Countries
As a fear tactic, the President could talk about peace talks in the middle east, and tell people that a change in government could undo everything he's worked for.
7. Possible Years of Peace
With the pullout of troops in the middle east, the President could easily tell people that under his administration we are heading for years of peace. This type of talk is backed up by the reconfiguring of the military (especially the Army) to a smaller, better trained force.
8. Better Border Security Measures
With the troops pulling out of combat, and without our focus on war, a promise could be made that we could better focus on the border, and securing our own nation against arms/drug runners. he could even go so far as to state that we would secure our borders for a better control over terrorist activities that would enter the US from bordering countries.
Keep in mind that this is not a "Bash Obama" thread, and that the idea here is not to talk about how bad he is. I just want to get some thoughts about how valid of a strategy this would be. Again, not really whether the points are valid, but whether using these points would be a valid strategy.
From my own observation, I don't think that the President is as despised by the general public as he is made out to be on this board. It is easy to hear a lot of people around you talking, and if the people around you are all saying the same thing, to assume that you are hearing the majority opinion. However, this is not always an accurate assessment. It seems that the average person isn't concerned with what has happened, but the promise of what will happen.
What say you?
