Jobs Told Obama 'You're Headed For A One-Term Presidency'

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Posted October 21, 2011 at 2:51pm by iClarified

Another interesting tidbit from the upcoming Steve Jobs biography by Walter Isaacson quotes Jobs telling President Obama, 'You're headed for a one-term presidency', reports the Huffington Post.

According to the book, Jobs nearly missed meeting Obama in 2010 because he wanted a personal invitation from the President. The standoff lasted for five days before Jobs relented and they met at the Westin San Francisco Airport.

"You're headed for a one-term presidency," he told Obama. He insisted that the administrator needed to be more business friendly and cited the ease with which companies could build factories in China unlike the U.S. where regulations and unnecessary costs make things difficult.

Jobs also criticized the education system in America, saying it was "crippled by union work rules."

"Until the teachers' unions were broken, there was almost no hope for education reform." Jobs reportedly proposed allowing principals to hire and fire teachers based on merit, that schools stay open until 6 p.m. and that they be open 11 months a year.

Finally, Jobs suggested that Obama meet for dinner with six or seven other CEOs who could help express the needs of innovative business. When the White House began adding too many names to the list of attendees, Jobs said that it was growing too big and that "he had no intention of coming." Exhibiting his notorious attention to detail, Jobs also complained the menu was far too fancy and objected to a chocolate truffle dessert. He was overruled by the White House which cited the president's fondness for cream pie.

Though Jobs was not that impressed by Obama, later telling Isaacson that his focus on the reasons that things can't get done "infuriates" him, they kept in touch and talked by phone a few more times. Jobs even offered to help create Obama's political ads for the 2012 campaign. "He had made the same offer in 2008, but he'd become annoyed when Obama's strategist David Axelrod wasn't totally deferential," writes Isaacson. Jobs later told the author that he wanted to do for Obama what the legendary "morning in America" ads did for Ronald Reagan.

Jobs Told Obama 'You're Headed For A One-Term Presidency'

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Ed Klein - November 1, 2011 at 8:07pm

Few of you commenting could reinvent the old-fashioned wired telephone of you were given one to copy. EdK

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Nobo1 - October 22, 2011 at 2:45pm

and Obama won't be dead? dude you're kinda freaky

Dang The Hung - October 21, 2011 at 6:55pm

Someone obviously slept through economics. You raise the taxes on Corporations and so-called "rich" people, one of two things will happen. They will either move their business over seas to another country with less tax burdens (i.e. People loose jobs) or they will pass along the higher costs of operating their business ( because of higher taxes) to their customers in the form of higher prices for goods and services. Wealthy envy has run amuck in this country and I fear the next war will be between the haves and have nots.

vdesai - October 21, 2011 at 5:11pm

and u know that we r the ones that suffers from taxing them, by paying high prices for goods.

catsrules - October 21, 2011 at 6:03pm

Jobs is right, it is a lot cheaper, and less "paperwork" to make stuff some where else then ship it in. The Gov needs to do something to keeps factories in the US. What ever country has factories they get more jobs for people, Money comes in and stays in the country. And as far as corporate greed goes, taxing isn't the answer, when you are trying to hurt the "Evil greedy CEOs" Taxing is like bombing an entire city when your only trying to hit a single person. And you are likely to miss the the person and hurt a tone of people . You can't win by taking there money away from greedy people, because they have dedicated there lifes to get as much money as possible. all they need to do I raise product prices and cut salaries of workers. and they got there money back. Higher prices and less money for the rest of us?? Looks like we just shot our self's in the foot.

Obamasck - October 21, 2011 at 4:23pm

Way to go Steve!!!! You tell it how it is. The US sucks when it comes to manufacturing. I have a company in china and it's thebest thing. I pay less in wages and I make more money. Yahoo I love living large.