Has President Obama lost his mojo?

By Katherine Dunn and Alan Osborn, International News Services

Has President Obama lost it? Many Americans are now saying so following the slump in his public approval ratings in recent months. Few presidents were elected with such jubilation as Mr Obama last November, and not just in America. He rode the crest of an unprecedented worldwide wave of acclaim to the presidency. Now the criticism and backbiting has begun.

Is it just the traditional end of the honeymoon, as all new American presidents have suffered? Or is there a more serious factor here – a chilling realisation that there was nothing much behind the hype?  

Obama’s popularity was ramped up to such an extent that the whole world – not just America – felt that something truly historical had occurred. He was not merely the first black president.  Obama’s shrewd marketing went beyond, effectively presenting him as a man for the masses, especially young and independent voters. His watchwords of ‘hope’ and ‘change’ proved talismanic to those turned off by traditional politics.

A key part in this was getting young people involved. They may not have read newspapers, but he was on Facebook. They may not have watched the news, but he was on YouTube. And he wasn’t just present on those sites, he was active – with constant updates, video blogs, and interactive features that allowed people to organise their own rallies and fundraising drives. While Obama was not the first politician to exploit his personal qualities to create celebrity status, no one before him was so well versed in the skills of social media.

But this kind of popularity has shallow roots and, like any brand, requires constant upkeep, especially when hard political choices loom, especially on the economy and on health care. A Gallup poll on Obama’s popularity lists a 52% approval rating for Obama last week, down from 68% at the beginning of his term. The drop raises question marks over his overall performance so far and his ability to push controversial legislation through Congress. Is this the end of Obama-mania?

It wouldn’t be a surprise. A fall in ratings for any new President after the initial acclaim is quite normal. But it should be noted that even if Obama’s ratings fall below 50% before November, he will still be holding up better than Bill Clinton, who fell below majority in the fourth month of his presidency, according to Gallup. There’s nothing to say that the Obama magic has been anything more than temporarily eclipsed at the moment. It will take more time to judge whether he has the political skills and authority to prevail in the more adverse circumstances he now must face.