Economics Continues to Dominate Presidential Campaign

By Michelle Austein

The 2006 midterm elections, in which dissatisfaction with the war in Iraq helped Democrats gain control of Congress, seemed to indicate that foreign policy would dominate the 2008 campaign. But that has not been the case, and as Election Day nears it seems the economy will remain the dominant issue on voters' minds.

As the number of deaths in Iraq has declined and the coverage of the war by the news media has decreased, Americans are less concerned about the situation overseas and more concerned about their economic situation at home.

Economic concerns commonly dictate voters' choices in American elections. "Most elections are pocketbook elections," NBC News political director Chuck Todd told journalists at the Foreign Press Center in December 2007, "unless the pocketbook's full or unless a war is going badly." (See "Voters, Candidates Shifting Their Attention to Economic Issues ( http://www.america.gov/st/elections08-english/2007/December/20071220142655hmnietsua0.2413294.html ).")

Recent polls indicate that many Americans do not view their pocketbooks as full. A majority - 73 percent of Americans according to an August 12 Gallup Poll - feel the economy is in bad shape. These polls also indicate that the economy is Americans' top concern in the 2008 election - typically cited two or three times more often than the war in Iraq, health care or the environment.

A fall in real estate prices is spurring this concern. Among Americans' biggest economic worries is paying home mortgages. Over the past year, there has been a drastic increase in the number of people with adjustable interest-rate loans unable to make their payments.

Another major factor is rising gas and oil prices. High gas prices affect Americans' transportation, food and heating costs at a time when many face other economic troubles. It has been a dominant topic not only on the presidential campaign trail but in local races across the country. (See "Americans Feeling Effects of Higher Oil, Gas Prices ( http://www.america.gov/st/elections08-english/2008/May/20080523152735mnietsua0.8981287.html ).")

Americans' interest in other domestic issues, such as health care, is driven by economic concerns as well. Since the majority of Americans receive their health insurance from their employers, "when they say they're worried about health care, it also means they're worried about losing their job," Todd said.

Immigration is also related to economics. When there is economic angst, some worry about illegal immigrants taking jobs. "If you look at the history of our country, whenever immigration has become an issue on the national stage, it's been during an economic downturn," Todd said.

AT RALLIES AND ON TELEVISION, ECONOMIC ISSUES PREVALENT

In recent weeks, both presidential candidates have touted their economic proposals in key battleground states like Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania that have been especially hard hit by job losses.

Obama's economic plan calls for tax rebates, a foreclosure prevention fund and assistance to states hardest hit by the housing crisis that he says will help "jump start the economy." He says he would provide a $1,000 tax credit for working families.

McCain says his economic plan will keep 200,000 to 400,000 families from losing their homes by providing assistance to those struggling to make their adjustable-rate mortgage payments. The Arizona senator says his plan "focuses on how to help our economy create more good jobs" by reducing the corporate tax rate and providing tax credits for research and development.

Both candidates have said trade with other nations provides an opportunity to strengthen the American economy. Obama says he would amend certain agreements, like the North American Free Trade Agreement, to ensure that they appropriately benefit American workers. McCain believes the United States should engage in multilateral efforts to reduce trade barriers to provide Americans with more opportunities to sell their goods and services abroad.

The candidates agree that investing in alternative energies will create new "green" jobs. Obama says he would create 5 million new green jobs by investing $150 billion over 10 years to advance alternative energies and train Americans for jobs in these new industries. McCain says his plan to create 45 new nuclear power plants by 2030 will create 700,000 new jobs.

While touting their economic plans on the campaign trail, the candidates are using the television airwaves to criticize each other's proposals. In a newly released Obama ad called "Book," the narrator says McCain would keep spending $10 billion a month on the war in Iraq and that would hurt the American economy. McCain's latest ad, "Taxman," says Obama's economic plan would result in higher taxes, higher gas prices and an "economic disaster."

McCain may face a tougher battle on economic issues - not only do polls indicate slightly more Americans believe Obama is better prepared to handle the lagging economy, but history has shown that when the economy is bad, the current president's party is more likely to lose.

The Obama ad "Book ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7KYSeGl4bks )" and the McCain ad "Taxman ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1tZQRXTrRKs )" are available on YouTube.

For more information on the presidential campaign and related issues, see U.S. Elections ( http://uspolitics.america.gov/uspolitics/elections/index.html ).

Source: U.S. Department of State

judythpiazza@newsblaze.com