In his economic speech in Cleveland, President Obama mentioned House Minority Leader John Boehner by name seven times -- a striking change from the president's speech in Milwaukee Monday in which he referred to Boehner only as "the man who thinks he's going to be Speaker." With the Democrats' hold on the House of Representatives in deep jeopardy, the president has apparently decided to make the campaign in part a personal showdown between himself and Boehner. It's a risky strategy, one that elevates a House minority leader to an eye-to-eye level with the President of the United States. And by personalizing the conflict with Boehner, it also casts the coming elections as a referendum on Obama's performance at a time when Democrats would prefer a series of more local contests.
In the Cleveland speech, Obama referred to Boehner's recent economic address, also delivered in Cleveland, by saying, "There were no new policies from Mr. Boehner." On another occasion, the president referred to helping small businesses buy equipment, adding, "To most of you, this is just common sense. But not to Mr. Boehner…In fact, when Mr. Boehner was here in Cleveland, he attacked us…" Later, Obama referred to infrastructure spending and said, "Mr. Boehner and Republicans in Congress said no to these projects…Mr. Boehner has so far said no to infrastructure." And still later, the president said, "So let me be clear to Mr. Boehner and everyone else: we should not hold middle class tax cuts hostage any longer." And finally Obama says that when Republicans, "including Mr. Boehner" ran Congress, the number of earmarks went up. On other occasions, Obama referred to "the Republican leader of the House."
Boehner is the only living political figure mentioned in the speech. (In other parts of the address, Obama referred to Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Dwight D. Eisenhower, and Ronald Reagan.) And of course, the president chose Cleveland as the site for his speech in part because Boehner had done the same a few weeks ago.
The new and specific focus on Boehner leaves those in the minority leader's camp a little surprised, but ready for the fight. "The fact that President Obama and the White House are so focused on what John Boehner is saying shows just how out-of-touch they really are," says Boehner spokesman Kevin Smith. "Americans are concerned about jobs, spending, and health care, yet this White House is flailing because it has no answers."
In any event, if Obama continues to concentrate on Boehner, he will undoubtedly raise the minority leader's profile. A recent Rasmussen poll found that 24 percent of those surveyed had a favorable opinion of Boehner, while 39 percent had an unfavorable impression of him. But a full 37 percent "don't know enough about the Ohio congressman to have any kind of opinion of him," according to Rasmussen. If Obama keeps up the attacks, that number will likely go down.
