LAS VEGAS – President Obama came to Nevada to help embattled Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid in a tough re-election bid, and he didn’t arrive empty-handed.
The White House used the president’s visit to roll out a new, $1.5 billion foreclosure assistance program aimed at helping Nevada and four other states hard hit by the nation’s housing crisis.
It’s precisely the kind of modest-but-targeted program the administration hopes will blunt criticism of Obama’s handling of the economy in what is shaping up to be a bruising election year.
“I know it’s tough out there,” Obama told a town hall gathering in nearby Henderson.
“Government alone can’t solve this problem,” he said of the foreclosure crisis. “But government can make a difference.”
Reid is considered particularly vulnerable among a handful of politically shaky Senate Democrats. Every statewide poll since January shows Reid trailing his top Republican challengers.
Obama, sleeves rolled up and talking in a slangy campaign twang not often heard in Washington, tried to lend some political stardust to Reid in their joint appearance here — talking him up as a tough leader, sharing a hug and crediting Reid with always looking out for Nevada.
But the president’s own star power has dimmed since he won Nevada in 2008, and it’s not entirely clear that lending his support and fundraising prowess to Reid and other incumbents will be enough to hold off significant Republican gains in November.
“There is a disappointment here that Obama hasn’t solved all of our problems,” said David Damore, associate professor of political science at the University of Nevada at Las Vegas.
Nevada is an extreme case in part because the tourism-based economy in Las Vegas has been hit particularly hard by the bad economy. The state has higher-than-average foreclosure and unemployment rates.
Before hitting Vegas, Obama campaigned in Colorado for Sen. Michael Bennet, a Democratic incumbent facing a tight primary battle. The White House hopes to keep Obama on the road every week until Election Day.
“Look, I think the political landscape, not just in these two states but throughout the country, continues to be dominated by concern about the economy — not surprisingly,” said White House press secretary Robert Gibbs.
But with limited success in creating jobs despite massive government spending, Obama must come up with new ways to appeal to voters, amid polls showing he has lost the support of independents and Republicans who backed him in 2008.
The foreclosure program came heavily touted by the White House and also benefits homeowners in California, Arizona, Michigan and Florida. Funding for the effort will be through the unpopular Troubled Asset Relief Program that earlier helped bail out the financial sector.
At events in Colorado and Nevada, Obama previewed a campaign message that includes a robust defense of his economic policies, a call to renew the health care reform effort, and sharp jabs at Washington politics delivered in folksy, populist tones.
“We didn’t run for the fancy title, a big desk or a company chair,” Obama said in Henderson. “We didn’t run because it was fun to get your name in the newspaper.”
He added, “Most of the time, it’s not.”
