U.S. Crude Oil Futures closed above $100 per barrel for the first time since September 2008 today, according to Reuters, handing yet another headache to the Obama re-election team.  The earthquake in Japan had temporarily lowered the price of oil futures because energy-hungry manufacturing in the world’s third largest economy is expected to be slowed by the earthquake and tsunami recovery efforts. But uncertainty out of Libya more than compensated for Japan’s industrial slowdown.

Of all the problems on President Obama’s plate, this may be the one that costs him the most electorally. We already have learned that $4 gas is the breaking point for Americans.  If it jumps higher than that this summer, and indecision in Libya appears to be one of the reasons, that’s really going to hurt this White House.   Maybe that’s why the President has uttered not a single word about Saudi troops in Bahrain.