Headlines of economic gloom that cry for young people's political engagement - and for President Obama to reach deeper to connect with millennials

Associated Press: Half of new graduates are jobless or underemployed.

The U.S. college class of 2012 is in for a rude welcome to the world of work.Young adults with bachelor's degrees are increasingly scraping by in lower-wage jobs — waiter or waitress, bartender, retail clerk or receptionist, for example — and that's confounding their hopes a degree would pay off despite higher tuition and mounting student loans.

CNBC: Gen Y May Face Least Secure Retirement

Enter Generation Y. Roughly between 18 and 34 years old, this generation's table is wobbling on its last two legs: a job and a 401(k), which are co-dependent. Thus instead of protection, Gen Yers have inherited a great deal of pressure. More than ever, they know they better be employable, and they better be skilled 401(k) investors. The trouble is, it is quite difficult to do this when faced with high unemployment, and ever-higher student loan debt. 

According to the Congressional Budget Office's annual report on Social Security solvency, in 2023 trust fund assets will start to diminish until they become exhausted in 2036 — well before Gen Yers even contemplate retiring. 

The article ends with the notion that - if young Americans want to flourish in the Golden Years of retirement - they "better be a [Warren] Buffett." This is a nightmarish glimpse into the extinction of the 99% for most Americans. What every happened to the middle-class?

Amid economic hardship for millennials, President Obama is rocking the campus vote with visionary leadership on...the single loan issue?

Christian Science Monitor: Student loans: Obama's bid to rekindle 'Yes We Can' among youths.

Young voters aren't as enthusiastic as they were four years ago, meaning turnout could decline. So Obama is touring universities in North Carolina, Colorado, and Iowa to talk about student loans.

The expiration of a law that cuts interest rates for students is set to expire...and Obama is listening to young people's need for those rates to remain at 3.4 percent (and not jump back to just under 7).

But to galvanize the youth vote anew in 2012, when their economic livelihood is at stake, he'll have to reach deeper than loans that to connect with millenials. If he doesn't, he'll be missing the boat - beyond just this cycle's youth vote.