Barack Obama Check out the latest NPR coverage of President Obama's bid for re-election in 2012.

Special Series

Barack Obama

Check out the latest NPR coverage of President Obama's bid for re-election in 2012.

Wednesday June 29, 2011

Obama's Pitch Wasn't Just About The Debt Ceiling

June 29, 2011 • At his news conference, the president's first and more short-term campaign was his effort to get congressional Republicans to agree to raise the federal debt ceiling by the Aug. 2 deadline set by the U.S. Treasury Department to avert a debt default by the U.S. government. His second and longer campaign was for re-election.

Obama Takes Manufacturing Jobs Message To Iowa

June 29, 2011 • President Obama spoke at a manufacturing plant, where he talked about jobs and the future. Tuesday's speech was much like many he's delivered in recent months — except this one was in Iowa, where the 2012 campaign for president is well underway.

Obama Takes Manufacturing Jobs Message To Iowa

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Tuesday June 21, 2011

Obama Seems More Hawkish Than Many In GOP

June 21, 2011 • Not so long ago, national security was the Republicans' strong suit. Democrats couldn't gain traction. But times have changed; Republicans have lost the advantage. At the Republican presidential debate in New Hampshire, the candidates sounded a very uncertain trumpet on Afghanistan and Libya.

Tuesday June 14, 2011

Obama Team Focuses On Romney, Pawlenty Or Huntsman As Likely Foes

June 14, 2011 • It will be months before Republican voters actually choose their party's presidential nominee. But Obama's re-election team can't wait that long; they've already winnowed the Republican field down to the three GOP candidates they most fear.

Obama Seeks Fla. Electoral Votes In Puerto Rico

President Obama bounds to the stage in an airport hanger at Muniz Air National Guard Base, June 14, 2011, San Juan, Puerto Rico. Carolyn Kaster/AP hide caption

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Carolyn Kaster/AP

Obama Seeks Fla. Electoral Votes In Puerto Rico

June 14, 2011 • On his arrival Tuesday, Obama mentioned his support for a referendum which would probably result in a vote for statehood. That should please those Puerto Rican Floridians and could make them more amenable to voting for Obama in November 2012.

Friday June 3, 2011

Obama's Problem: Election And Economic Cycles Don't Align

June 3, 2011 • For Obama, there just may not be enough time for the economy to turn around appreciably enough to help his re-election prospects. Election cycles just don't align with economic cycles.

President Barack Obama speaks at a fundraiser at Sony Pictures Studios in Culver City, Calif., on April 21, 2011. Obama was out West selling his big picture deficit-reduction plan, but many people are waiting for a quick fix to their own economic problems caused chiefly by persistent unemployment and the crippled housing market. Reed Saxon/AP hide caption

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Reed Saxon/AP

Could Unemployment Cost Obama His Job?

June 3, 2011 • The latest job numbers reveal the economic pain that continues to wrack Americans, and could complicate President Obama's 2012 reelection aims. As pressure increases from his party's liberal wing to refocus on job creation, the political environment is dominated by pressure to reduce the nation's debt.

Saturday April 23, 2011

Obama Raises Celebrity Cash, But Trip Goes Off Script

President Obama shakes hands with supporters after speaking at a DNC fundraiser at Nob Hill Masonic Center in San Francisco, Calif., on April 20. Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP hide caption

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Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP

Obama Raises Celebrity Cash, But Trip Goes Off Script

April 23, 2011 • President Obama returned from a trip to the West Coast with a few million dollars more in his re-election campaign's bank account — thanks to Hollywood glitterati and other donors. But the real world managed to intrude on the trip as well: Gas prices came up again and again.

Obama Raises Celebrity Cash, But Trip Goes Off Script

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Wednesday April 13, 2011

Will Budget Deal Affect Obama's Chances For Re-Election?

April 13, 2011 • A deal struck by lawmakers in Washington last week, as a part of a budget compromise, has some political observers crying foul. Democrats and Republicans agreed to more than 38 billion dollars in spending cuts, to avoid a government shutdown. But as the president presents his plans for reducing national debt, the spotlight is on the biggest domestic budget cuts in U-S history. Host Michel Martin speaks with NPR Supervising Senior Washington Editor Ron Elving and pollster Matt Barreto about the implications of the budget deal for President Obama's re-election prospects.

Will Budget Deal Affect Obama's Chances For Re-Election?

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Monday April 4, 2011

Obama Announces Re-Election Bid

April 4, 2011 • In a video released to supporters, the Obama re-election committee got down to business Monday. The emailed video marks the official open of the president's 2012 campaign.

Obama Announces Re-Election Bid

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It's All Politics

Obama Lets Supporters Make Case For Re-Election

April 4, 2011 • President Obama's re-election video hit key political battleground states as well as voter demographic groups vital to winning a second term. The video was aimed at firing up the president's 2008 supporters as well as winning over new voters.