number below the psychologically important barrier of 8% before election day. how can he hit that magic number? i m joined by jarod bernstein, nbc and cnbc contributor. why is 8% so important and why is it that number really the make or break number when it comes to the president s re-election campaign? well, i don t think it is a make or break number. let me say it this way. any time you cross a barrier, whether it s the dow jones average crossing 13,000 or the unemployment rate hitting that 8.0%, a number with a zero after the decimal point, people make a big deal out of it. it means something. what really matters mostly for the president, though, is less a particular level of unemployment and more the direction that that rate is going in. if the unemployment rate, 8.3% last month i m sorry, 8.3%