Just as President Carter looked ineffectual after a botched military mission in 1980 to rescue the US hostages in Iran, Mr. Obama benefits from the opposite outcome. He is wrapped in an aura of success. And that success message will stay in the news for days and weeks to come, as details of the planning and implementation of Sunday’s raid on the Al Qaeda leader’s compound in Pakistan emerge. Obama himself is winning plaudits from across the political spectrum for his handling of the effort as commander in chief.
But the mood won’t last forever. Just ask the first President Bush. He scored big politically following the successful 1991 Gulf War, only to lose reelection a year and a half later amid high unemployment. In 2012, Obama too will ultimately be judged first and foremost on the state of the US economy, which is still digging out of a deep recession.
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