CBS News Headline: “After Weeks Of Focus On Syria, Obama Pivots To The Economy” (Lindsey Boerma, “After Weeks Of Focus On Syria, Obama Pivots To The Economy,” CBS News, 9/16/13)
Politico Headline: “After Syria Crisis, Obama Seeks Pivot To Domestic Issues” (Reid J. Epstein, “After Syria Crisis, Obama Seeks Pivot To Domestic Issues,” Politico, 9/12/13)
TIME Headline: “Washington Whiplash: DC Pivots Away From Syria” (Zeke J. Miller and Alex Rogers, “Washington Whiplash: DC Pivots Away From Syria,” TIME, 9/13/13)
Obama Hopes To Pivot To The Economy As Well As Upcoming Budget Battles In Washington. “Nothing fades faster in Washington than an unpopular idea. The debate over military intervention in Syria departed DC Thursday for the quiet halls of the United Nations and picturesque Geneva, where Secretary of State John Kerry and UN Ambassador Samantha Power are taking the lead on negotiating the transfer of Syrian chemical weapons to the international community. And no sooner were the diplomats wheels up out of Andrews than Washington breathed a collective sigh of relief, shelving the politically unpopular talk of war and returning to the familiar, reassuring routine of partisan bickering and legislative fights. Even the White House seemed happy to move on, as President Barack Obama marked a pivot from his administration’s singular focus on Syria of the past three weeks. ‘Even as we have been spending a lot of time on the Syria issue and making sure that international attention is focused on the horrible tragedy that occurred there, it is still important to recognize that we’ve got a lot more stuff to do here in this government,’ Obama said Thursday morning before a meeting of his Cabinet, ticking off a list from education to the budget that he hopes to turn to.” (Zeke J. Miller and Alex Rogers, “Washington Whiplash: DC Pivots Away From Syria,” TIME, 9/13/13)
This Is At Least The Sixth Pivot Just This Year, And Obama Has Little To Show For It
FEBRUARY 2013: National Journal Headline: “Stung By Media’s Focus On Liberal Agenda, Obama Pivots Back To Economy” (Ron Fournier, “Stung By Media’s Focus On Liberal Agenda, Obama Pivots Back To Economy,” National Journal, 2/8/13)
- ABC’s Rick Klein: “He’s Pivoted Enough To Have Spun Himself Around, More Than A Few Times.” “ABC’s Rick Klein: He’s pivoted enough to have spun himself around, more than a few times. But President Obama’s latest turn toward jobs, in tomorrow’s State of the Union address, will be about as memorable as the other turns so long as the fiscal and budget debates that have paralyzed Washington for two years now remain unresolved.” (Michael Falcone, “The State Of The Union Is…,” ABC News’ The Note, 2/11/13)
FEBRUARY 2013: The Associated Press Headline: “Obama Will Pivot Back To Jobs In State Of The Union” (Julie Pace, “Obama Will Pivot Back To Jobs In State Of The Union,” The Associated Press, 2/9/13)
APRIL 2013: The Wall Street Journal Headline: “In Mexico Visit, Obama To Pivot From Security To Economy” (Thomas Catan, “In Mexico Visit, Obama To Pivot From Security To Economy,” The Wall Street Journal, 4/30/13)
MAY 2013: ABC News Headline: “Obama Pivots To Jobs Tour At End Of Scandal Filled Week” (Arlette Saenz, “Obama Pivots To Jobs Tour At End Of Scandal Filled Week” ABC News’ The Note, 5/18/13)
JULY 2013: BuzzFeed Headline: “Obama Will Pivot Back To Attacking Republicans On The Economy In A Series Of Policy Speeches” (Evan McMorris-Santoro, “Obama Will Pivot Back To Attacking Republicans On The Economy In A Series Of Policy Speeches,” BuzzFeed, 7/21/13
JULY 2013: NBC’s Chuck Todd: “It’s Like Deja Pivot When It Comes To The Economy.” TODD: “This speech, this pivot – pivot to the economy, again it’s like déjà pivot I have when it comes to the economy. But it seems like they really are signaling they are going to have a campaign approach to this fight with congress when it comes to the debt ceiling, when it comes to sequestration 2.0. All of the decisions coming to a head in the fall, they’re basically saying, hey, we’re going to travel the country.” THE WASHINGTON POST’S DAN BALZ: “Well, they learned that lesson in 2011 during the debt ceiling debacle, which was playing out at this point two years ago. When that collapsed and turned into such a mess, they pivoted away as we all know and went into campaign mode in the fall. And as you remember, he put the Jobs Act forward right after Labor Day in 2011 mostly as a campaign effort. And I think what we’re going to see is very similar. But I think that the real question is what does he really have to say at this point? Is he simply trying to do it for politics? Perhaps. But that begs the question of what do you do about a sticky unemployment rate, middle class families that are struggling. There’s a lot that he has to deal with.” (NBC’s “Daily Rundown,” 7/22/13)