The post was written by Hatchet Reporter Naina Ramrakhani
Robert Gibbs directed students to rediscover their political passion as he recounted the highlights of crafting the President’s message in a speech Tuesday night.
Gibbs, who served as President Barack Obama’s presidential campaign director and press secretary for the first two years of his term, assumed his position during the most difficult months of the financial crisis.
“Jobs in manufacturing have moved overseas. A college education, which you’re in the process of getting, is more vital and far more expensive to get,” Gibbs said in Betts Theatre. “More and more people lack health insurance. More and more people are in poverty. More and more of our energy comes from overseas and our fiscal house is a mess.”
He said the nation’s economic growth stalled over the past decade, using the shrinking median household family income to illustrate how little buying power Americans have.
“To give you a sense of what that means, your parents are paying your 2010 GW tuition bill with their 1996 income,” Gibbs said.
But with his switch to the re-election campaign, Gibbs said his new challenge is working within the changing media culture that makes communicating with voters increasingly difficult. He said the White House had to rethink its communication strategy over the best way to serve the public.
Obama’s unorthodox appearance on Jay Leno’s “Tonight Show” in 2009 was Gibbs’ idea. He dismissed public criticism of the decision, and said if there is an opportunity for millions of people to watch an interview, “you just do it.”
As the communications director for Obama’s 2012 campaign, Gibbs explained the demographic challenges faced by Democrats and Republicans. He said young voters largely favor the Democratic party, although many who voted for Obama in 2008 failed to come out for the 2010 election.
Gibbs said in order for Obama to win reelection, the campaign team will need to “figure out how to get young people excited again, how to make them motivated and how to get them to vote.”
