Let me begin by stating that I am an un-abashed supporter of the President.

This does not mean I blindly follow every policy he lays out in his admittedly well-worded speeches or agree with every decision he has made during his first term in office. But I do believe Barack Obama inherited a floundering economy that is simply impossible to completely turn around in only one term in office.

Through some fault of his own (remember hope and change?), he raised the expectations of the American people to unrealistically high levels, promising goals that no president could achieve.

Despite some memorable successes like the killing of Osama bin Laden and the ending of the War in Iraq, the economy remains in shambles (although the unacceptably high unemployment rate continues to decline), and the President’s approval rate stands at a shaky 49 percent.

After weighing all of these weaknesses, I predict on inauguration day, Barack Obama will be taking the oath and remaining as president of the United States.

I fully believe that the sole reason Obama will win a second term is the undeniable weaknesses of the current GOP candidates. If the Republicans had any strong candidate to put forth in this toxic political climate, Obama would almost certainly be a one-term president. But the four remaining contenders continue to tear each other down, revealing a lack of discipline in message amid what can only be described as a complete mess of a primary.
According to a January Gallop Poll, this is the most volatile GOP primary since polling began decades ago, with the front-runner changing seven times in 2011.

The presumption just days ago was that Mitt Romney would almost certainly be the Republican nominee, but now three different candidates have won the first three primaries.

And still the party has not been able to coalesce around a candidate to oppose the president when the general election begins

In a time of such great vulnerability for Obama, the Republicans are quite frankly slacking.
Mitt Romney, though probably the best campaigner, is seen as out of touch with the common American – and too moderate for his right-swinging base.

Newt Gingrich was probably one of the most despised politicians of the 90s and is simply all over the place in his campaign; I’m certain Obama supporters keep praying for his nomination.

Rick Santorum couldn’t even win back his Senate seat today in Pennsylvania and will likely fade into memory as the Mike Huckabee of 2012.

And Ron Paul, whose dedicated base I admire, has pushed him to perform exponentially better in this presidential contest than the last, still has no real political shot of getting the GOP nod.

The Republicans need find only one of their shining stars (where are Chris Christie or Marco Rubio when you need them?) to run and the election would probably be over before it even began, with a new president being inaugurated next January.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure the general election will be remarkably close and absolutely bitter. But this dismal array of candidates has Democrats cautiously thanking their lucky stars and remains Barack Obama’s one saving grace.