With unemployment hovering at 9.7%, Americans got some good news on Friday as the economy added 162,000 new jobs in March. Democrats trotted out their red/blue “V” graph (above) to show the improvement from Bush’s final five quarters to Obama’s first five quarters. They crowed about how the stimulus, always designed to spend and add jobs in 2010, was working and hammered Republicans for having opposed it.
Democrats are on the offensive and, barring the unforeseen, jobs and the economy will be the number one/two issues this fall as people head to the polls for the mid-terms. For Democrats that raises the question of how to maintain the momentum into the elections. And, they have a plan.
Instead of a major jobs bill that will steadily feed the economy during the next year, Democrats will instead bring forward a stream of smaller, targeted jobs bills every week or two from now until November.
How does it work politically? First, blame the Republicans for the inability to pass a major jobs bill and in the process continue to tag them as the “Party of No”. Second, make it look like congressional Democrats are hard at work on job creation. The constant barrage of targeted bills will keep it in the public eye, unlike a major bill that might be forgotten by election day. Third, allow individual Republican senators to use senatorial privilege to place holds on bills and demonize them for doing so. Fourth, some Republicans will be forced politically to vote for the targeted bills allowing Democrats to take credit for seeking bipartisanship.
Politics is image, and the Democrats have this one lined up in their favor. Policy and image, driven by cynical political maneuvering, could bode well for them. The cat is out of the bag on what they’re doing. It’s already being discussed on talk shows. But the truth is that most Americans aren’t paying attention to the inside political tactics, and it will probably work to the Democrats advantage so long as job growth continues and unemployment starts to decline.
This article is cross posted at Elijah’s Sweete Spot. COMMENTS/DISCUSSION welcome at Disqus(tm) enabled Thread Two.
Contributor, aka tidbits. Retired attorney in complex litigation, death penalty defense and constitutional law. Former Nat’l Board Chair: Alzheimer’s Association. Served on multiple political campaigns, including two for U.S. Senator Mark O. Hatfield (R-OR). Contributing author to three legal books and multiple legal publications.