I think I’m going to make this a regular Friday feature. We’ll be dealing with a new Obama-manufactured nontroversy every week from now until the economy starts to wake up and give him something meaningful to talk about. Why not try to guess next week’s shiny object ahead of time? Says the Examiner:

The Labor Department reports that 367,000 more Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week. That is still about 100,000 more than prerecession levels. Economists lowered their economic growth projection for 2012 from an already stagnant 2.2 percent to an anemic 1.5 percent. Gallup reported one-in-three young U.S. workers is underemployed. The federal budget deficit is at an all-time high. Americans are fleeing the workforce in record numbers. And if Congress and Obama do nothing, we will all be hit with a job-killing $494 billion tax hike on New Year’s Day…

If voters decide the 2012 election based on Obama’s economic record, he will lose. And so the liberal media, as in love with him as ever, is helping him parade shiny objects to distract voters from that record. The wall-to-wall coverage of Obama’s sudden evolution in his personal position on same-sex marriage follows in the tradition of the Republican War on Women; the Buffett Rule; tax breaks for private jets; Romney’s supposed soft-spot for Osama bin Laden; a student loan bill that would save the average borrower all of $7 per month; and endless 30-year-old stories about Romney’s dog.

Or, if you prefer your political lessons in GIF form:

see more Memebase and check out our Troll Face lols!

Anyway: Predictions. Which shiny object will we be asked to play with next? Time for O to make another phony push on comprehensive immigration reform? It’ll go nowhere in Congress but will give the press an excuse to explore the question of just how much Romney hates Latinos. How about a hard-hitting New York Times piece alleging that Romney was once in the same dorm room as a guy smoking weed in 1970 and might have inadvertently inhaled the second-hand smoke? That could kickstart an important national debate on legalizing marijuana that’ll end promptly once the next shiny object is ready. Or maybe O will play it light by doing an interview with ESPN to give his pre-season Super Bowl picks and/or his early NCAA tournament brackets. That’s probably only a one-day story, but if he gets George Clooney or Matt Damon involved I’ll bet he can stretch it to two. Any guesses? Whoever comes closest to predicting America’s next contrived diversion from Obama’s miserable economic record will be duly honored in next week’s prediction post.

While you mull, here’s Barney Frank and Tony Perkins going 15 rounds on “Hardball” yesterday over this week’s anything-but-the-economy. Full hour on Monday maybe?

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