Right Change: 8 Reasons Why Obama’s 2008 Donors Dwindling

Recent numbers have shown that President Obama is not drawing the overwhelming number of donors who opened their wallets to his campaign in 2008. In fact, a whopping 87% of people who gave to Obama will not do so again this time around. Of course, some of them won’t be giving because Obama wasn’t liberal enough. But for those that gave expecting real change, we’ve got 8 reasons why:

Jobs – the job issue is one of the most important for a large portion of Obama’s voter base: young people. The average unemployment rate under Obama is 8.2%. It is 11.6%, for young adults. As if that isn’t bad enough, the real unemployment rate, including all jobless Americans who have given up on actively looking for work all together, is estimated to lie between 15% and 20%.

Debt – in 2008 Obama supporters voted for a man who criticized Bush for racking up debt, saying it was “irresponsible” and “unpatriotic,” sending a message that he certainly would not do so if elected.Fast forward three and a half years and Obama has accumulated more debt for the U.S. in three and a half years than Bush did in his entire eight years as President.

Foreign Policy – the Obama that American’s elected was a presence and a force to be reckoned with. His inspiring rhetoric seemed to convey the strength that the voters believed America needed to face today’s chaotic world. However, this strength has not been reflected in his foreign policy. So far, Obama has lead from behind on Libya, looked the other way on Iran, and gone back on his claim that “we can't insulate ourselves from these tragedies" by turning the other cheek on the violence in Syria.

Gas Prices – As of May 2012, 65% of Americans disapprove of the way that the President has managed gas prices seeing as though they have doubled since he took office. When these prices were high in 2008, Obama claimed that it was a testament to "Washington's failure to lead on energy." Well, what is it now?

Taxes – in 2008 Obama promised his voters that he would not raise taxes on an already struggling middle class. However, Obamacare contains at least 15 new taxes, most of which affect the middle class. If elected again, Obama will let a plethora of tax cuts expire, which some Washington insiders are referring to as  “Taxmaggedon.” These tax hikes will be a crushing blow to our already fragile economy.

Healthcare – Obama assured Americans that, even under his reformed system, “if you like your healthcare plan, you will be able to keep your healthcare plan.” He pledged to fix what was a broken system and leave what was functional. However, the all-pleasing system Obama promised turned out to be farcical. Premiums have skyrocketed and the cost of Obamacare has almost doubled. You may be allowed to keep your old plan, but Obama has made it next to impossible to afford it.  

Golf – Okay, maybe this isn’t the exact reason, but it serves to illustrate how President Obama has changed over the course of his first term. He ran on the platform of personality, a young American man who could relate to people on many levels. However, after 100 rounds of golf in four years, that’s eight more times than Bush did in eight years, the President has distanced himself from the down to earth candidate he marketed and created a new face for himself: one of a world leader who can find the time to shave four strokes off of his golf handicap while millions of Americans find their lives thoroughly shaken by the staggering economic crisis.

The 8^th reason why donors are not giving again is the most obvious of all: after four years of trudging through a slew of broken promises, disillusionment and one of the worst economies in American history, these donors are flat broke. 

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