Is the Economy Recovering?

There has been a lot in the news over the past few months about the upcoming election. Barack Obama has been firing at Mitt Romney, and Mitt Romney has answered each jab. So what will determine who will win the 2012 presidential election. Timing seems to always be key. Americans seem to have short term memories, which means that leading up to the November election, there will be lots of items discussed and tugging back and forth on either side of the rope, but there likely be only a few major issues on the minds of voters on election day. In the dynamic world we live in, it's hard to tell exactly. However, there are large trends that point to at least some figure of what the scenario will be when America decides who gets to reign in the White House over the next four years.

What will the major issue be? My guess is the economy and employment.

A major tell-tale sign of the state of the economy are home prices and the construction market. A friend of mine who works for a commercial construction company in Austin has told that his business is picking up. There have been signs here and there that one part or another of the construction market are improving, but by and large it is still mostly flat.

To put it simply, about the only way the construction market can seriously pick up is if businesses start hiring and people have money to spend or invest. After promising that he'd have the economy turned around within three years, Obama has lots of excuses and no real answers. The reason for his failure: Obama doesn't understand business. In fact, he seems to despise those who have worked hard and made it on their own, without crediting their success to the government.

As of July, 2012, the unemployment continues to be over 8% at best. Considering those who have dropped out of the job search market all together, that rate is likely much higher.

All indicators show that this scenario will exist through at least the end of this year, and likely until someone who understands business makes a significant change in the federal government's attitude toward business. Mitt Romney can legitimately make a claim that he is the man to do that.

Another friend of mine is the marketing manager for a company that provides oil field housing services and other remote camp setups. From what he has told me, this election is critical for the direction of energy in the US. People who want to reduce the dependence of the United States on foreign countries for oil and other energy sources anticipate a Mitt Romney victory to allow them to work towards energy independence here. Barack Obama has made it very difficult for gas and oil companies to provide the country the energy it needs to succeed. He blocked the Keystone Pipeline and has made it impossible in many cases to get permits to drill for oil and other natural resources.

For the sake of the United States of America and its founding principles, I hope and pray that Mitt Romney wins. Barack Obama should have never been elected. His four years in the White House came because of a popular culture push to elect a hip guy who wasn't like George Bush. It's now time to get the country back to the business of freedom, capitalism, and the realization of American dream as government gets out of the way and allows entrepreneurism shine.