This is how Democratic President Barack Obama, seeking a second term of four years, has posed the issue at stake, as he grimly battles against his wily Republican challenger Mitt Romney, in a suspense-filled neck-and-neck race across the “swing” states of America into the last - storms-lashing - week before November 6 poll.

The slow post-recession recovery and the still high unemployment rate had inevitably forced economy to the centre of the election debate, and President Obama persuasively responded to concerns notwithstanding some disenchantment that somehow the nation had not yet turned the corner by now. This was partly reflected in his rival’s gathering momentum edging down the President in national opinion polls over the weeks.

However, the more recent data has silver linings for economic revival, a two per cent growth in the third quarter (July-September), a pick-up in consumer spending, signs of resurgence in the housing market, rise in business confidence and continuing job hirings, though too modest for comfort. But the unemployment rate had come down to 7.8 per cent in September for the first time since President Obama entered office in 2009.

All said and done, the first African-American President Obama, looked poised for re-election by comfortably hitting 270 - the majority mark in the 538-vote electoral college, the constitutional device in USA, which over-rides the popular vote, however anachronistic it may seem. In 2008, Mr Obama enjoyed a landslide victory with both the popular vote and an electoral vote of more than 350.

The race would not have tightened so much but for Mr. Mitt Romney, a former Republican Governor, dramatically shifting rhetoric, at the start of Presidential debates in early October, to display concern for the middle class, offering tax cuts to rich and poor, and promising 12 million jobs and yet cutting Federal spending to balance the budget within 8 to 10 years. This was thought to be a game-changer for him.

Mr Romney is committed to axing “Obamacare”, the historic Affordable Healthcare Act of President Obama, which the Republicans want to repeal along with the post-crisis Wall Street reform, which has brought semblance of stability in American financial system and given consumer protection. The Republican agenda has been to limit President Obama to a single term. To this end, they had so far effectively blocked President Obama’s jobs bill as well as his “balanced package” of 4 trillion dollar spending cuts with revenues from a tax on the wealthy to fund education, R and D and infrastructure building.

The running theme of Mr Obama’s hectic campaigning for weeks and months during 2012 is making available decent education, affordable health insurance and Medicare and Social Security, and rules to protect consumers against unscrupulous financial institutions. “That’s the vision that we embrace” he told one of the rallies in the rounding-off week.

Mr Obama castigated Mr Romney for his vague promises of “a clear path” and “big change” in Washington and has pilloried him over his plan of five-trillion tax cuts and an additional, though unwanted, two trillion for military spending. without specifying which tax loopholes he would plug for deficit and debt reduction. “The math simply does not work”, the President said.

How well America manages its economy, with the immediate risks of a “fiscal cliff” – a combination of expiring tax cuts and sharp spending reductions – in stabilising domestic growth with greater fiscal discipline and financial market stability would also determine the pace of global recovery. Nations around the world are watching anxiously the outcome post-election in USA in regard to the “fiscal cliff” as well as the prolonged Euro-zone sovereign debt crisis, both having negative spillovers for the rest of the world. Neither the ‘fiscal cliff’ nor re-setting the tax system had figured in the Presidential debates

Underlining the grave risks and calling for the “right choice” in the election, leading US newspapers including the New York Times and Washington Post have endorsed Mr Obama for the second term. They consider him to be better positioned to navigate America out of its current predicament. He had prevented another global depression, rescued the financial system and saved the auto industry and its jobs besides health care reform. US would suffer another recession “if wrong policies take hold”, it warned. In the same vein, the Washington Post said Mr Obama, if re-elected, would be in a position to shape the “grand bargain” combining the jobs bill with long-term deficit reduction, allowing the high-end Bush-era tax cuts expire.

Nations including India look prospectively for a Obama win as a more positive outcome, given the recognised leadership role that USA commands in the world. Over five million voters had cast their ballots by October 27 as polls opened in some states ahead of the polling day. President Obama is the first President to have exercised his vote well ahead of November 6.

In the electoral college, the President has a consistent lead and needs a smaller gap for majority from out of 90 seats for toss-up. Mr Romney should find it harder to bridge the wider gap to touch 270. A racial divide also seems to have emerged in the opinion polls which showed depleting support for the first African-American President among whites, the single largest voting bloc. Support for him from white voters has declined from 44 per cent in 2008 against Senator McCain to 23 per cent. This makes the President lean more on Hispanics and Blacks.

For a second term programme, the President said he would tackle the nations’ intractable budget problems within “the first six months, pursuing a “grand bargain” with Republicans to tame the national debt. He would also push to overhaul the nation’s immigration laws.

His vision for America, he said, is to build on our strengths - bringing manufacturing jobs back to our shores by rewarding companies investing here, ensuring America has the best education system, and get workers trained for the jobs of tomorrow. He also spoke of controlling our own energy by developing oil and natural gas as also renewables - the energy of the future.

To forestall ‘fiscal cliff”, Mr Obama proposes cutting deficit by $4 trillion over the next 10 years, “but in a balanced way” with cuts in spending not needed and also asking the wealthiest Americans to pay a little bit more. “We can invest that in research and technology that keeps new jobs and businesses coming to America”

How far Mr Obama, if re-elected, would be able to push his plan with a greater hope of success than before remains to be seen. Much would depend on the configuration in the new Congress in January 2013 following the elections under way to the 435-member House and Senate (one-third of its 100 seats). (IPA Service)