For obvious reasons.

(NY Daily News) — Forget the utterly predictable spin from the White House – Barack Obama is in serious peril of being a one-term President.

That’s why Democratic Party elders know he has to hit the road — the low road.

“No hope, no change,” a prominent Democratic strategist with close ties to the White House told the Daily News, referring to the uplifting message that won the day in 2008.

“Time to make the other side the issue.”

If the 2012 election is a referendum on Obama, which is usually the case for incumbents running for reelection, he will almost certainly lose.

Even some improvement in the economy might not be enough to save him from 9.1% unemployment and the “wrong track” number, a crucial barometer of voter sentiment, in the stratosphere.

His campaign handlers believe that once Obama has an opponent, his numbers will improve.

“The President will be running against the alternative soon and not the Almighty,” Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley told reporters recently.

Smart Democratic money knows the odds of a dramatic uptick in the economy in 14 months are slim.