Barack Obama’s Language of Truth

The idea is to see “new jobs and industries take root in this country, not somewhere else.” In one sentence in his State of the Union address on Tuesday, Jan. 25, Barack Obama put his finger right on the spot that hurts America the most these days.

In spite of the return to growth, the prospect of significantly lowering the unemployment rate (9.4 percent) is unlikely in the short run. To achieve it — as Mr. Obama said several times — his country needs to restructure its entire economic model; this is how much it has accumulated handicaps such as obsolete infrastructure, falling behind in education and threatened technological leadership … The United States is confronting a short-term issue — creating a great number of jobs — that will only see real results in the long run.

The Obama team had come to power with a two-part strategy. First, they needed to refloat the banking sector in order to relax credit and therefore promote the revival of investment and consumption. Once the machine had restarted, it would be time for the “Great Reform,” where America would turn its back on a system entirely based on the growing debt of all to promote growth founded more on improving the purchasing power and vitality of producers.

Two years later, Mr. Obama is finding himself confronted with the failure of the first phase. Of course, banks and businesses are seeing a return to the time of profits, but the country is mired in structural underemployment. For Mr. Obama, “the world has changed, and for many, the change has been painful.” Today, 15 million Americans are looking for work, and nearly as many are working part-time. Compared to the working population, nearly one worker in five is affected by a form of unemployment, whereas unemployment benefits remain very much lower than in Europe.

In such conditions, launching phase two, that of “rebuilding America,” will be more arduous than expected — especially since the fears and frustrations that accompany the feelings of so many Americans at losing the status of economic superpower are heavy with internal political threats.

However, Mr. Obama preferred to speak the language of truth to his compatriots. He evoked the necessity of improving the competitiveness of its industrial apparatus, as well as “the innovation to produce jobs in America and not overseas.” Evoking China, South Korea, the countries of Europe and Russia, he did not conceal the areas where his country lags behind. “We have to do better,” he concluded.

Admittedly, these words are also seen in a political context: With the 2012 presidential election in sight, they clash with the Republican opposition about pursuing essential public investments or fiscal reform. Nevertheless, if the United States truly wishes to adapt its economy and create the jobs that it needs, it needs to “do better” today.