The economy means different things to different people – job and business creation, trade, competitiveness, investment in technology and people, saving scared cow industries, even the budget deficit. A bad economy has been known to sink a sitting president, but a strong one has generally been no guarantee for re-election. This time, around, the economy is somewhere in the middle with growth slowing and inflation seemingly under control. And unlike other democracies, no economist or Treasury Secretary has ever made it to the White House.