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Today's Poll!Romney now assails Obama on more than just economy
This photo taken Aug. 7, 2012 shows Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney campaigning in Elk Grove Village, Ill. Barack Obama's backers roll out a new ad assailing Mitt Romney's business record at Bain Capital, while the Republican candidate seeks to paint the Democrat as a big-government liberal. Photo by The Associated Press.
Friday, August 10, 2012
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — For months, Mitt Romney has had one main focus — bludgeoning President Barack Obama on the economy.
Now, the Republican presidential candidate has started poking at Obama from all sides as he looks to gain ground. In recent days, Romney has criticized Obama in TV ads and speeches on topics that include farm policy, transparency, military voting rights, welfare reform and religious freedom.
"Who shares your values?" a new Romney ad asks — and suggests that Obama doesn't.
Republicans have spent weeks complaining both publicly and privately that Romney's economy-only focus wouldn't be enough to overtake Obama and that the certain GOP nominee needed to broaden his criticism.
Specifically, these Republicans have been pressing Romney to go after Obama in areas that resonate with party loyalists as the close contest approaches its final push — the sprint from the Republican National Convention later this month to the election in November.
"I understand the economy is the top issue, but you don't want to be so maniacally focused that you ignore everything else," said Keith Appell, a Republican consultant who advises conservative groups. "There's always a risk of becoming too focused — a horse with blinders — and not seeing some of the other things around you. Campaigns need focus. But there's something to be said for peripheral vision when you're trying to hold a coalition together."
The GOP, composed of advocates for smaller government, anti-tax activists, social conservatives and religious voters, long has been skeptical of the former Massachusetts governor and has reluctantly embraced him.
But, Republicans say, the candidate needs to ensure that these core Republicans work on his behalf in the campaign's homestretch, knocking on doors and making phone calls to get backers to turn out at the polls.
Romney, it seems, is heeding the advice, blasting Obama on issues that are certain to excite the party's conservative base.
Romney advisers, for their part, say all the issues Romney has been raising lately have aspects that appeal to middle-class voters and buttress the campaign's central pitch on the economy.
"That focus on the middle class has been here since the beginning," says Romney adviser Kevin Madden. Still, he acknowledges: "At this point in the campaign, we are sharpening it."
Romney also is trying to push past a foreign trip that was riddled with missteps and a long stretch of the campaign in which he was under withering, sustained criticism from Obama.
In recent days, Romney charged that the Obama administration was trying to limit early voting privileges of the military in Ohio. Obama's team says Romney distorted the facts.
Romney also accused Obama in a TV ad — and in a stream of appearances and conference calls with top surrogates — of quietly unraveling welfare work requirements, a pitch intended to underscore the Republican's argument that Obama is spending taxpayer dollars irresponsibly. The White House called the claim dishonest.
Reviving a hot-button issue from months ago, Romney also hit Obama on his health care law mandating insurance coverage for birth control without co-pays. The new ad claims: "President Obama used his health care plan to declare war on religion, forcing religious institutions to go against their faith." Obama's team disputed that characterization.
Says Obama spokeswoman Lis Smith: "Mitt Romney continues to make statements that he knows are both untrue and hypocritical."
In Iowa this week, Romney let the setting of an unannounced stop serve as unspoken criticism of the Obama administration's farm regulations. The candidate strode into a 60-acre farm field with Iowa Agriculture Secretary Bill Northey, a fourth-generation farmer who grows corn and soy beans, and the two talked about the drought that has hammered farmers across the country, including Iowa's $14 billion corn industry.
From its base in Boston, Romney's campaign also has been criticizing Obama over political — rather than policy — issues, such as former White House aides setting up coffee meetings near the White House on personal email accounts.
The more-than-the-economy approach is earning praise from Republicans.
"You never want to stray from your core issue and his core issue is the economy and the need to create jobs," said Andrew Boucher, a Republican consultant who was former Sen. Rick Santorum's political director. "But you want to bring more and more people into your coalition by talking about their issues."
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Comments
newone 9 months, 2 weeks ago
This comment is directed towards BOTH parties:
STOP BASHING ONE ANOTHER AND FOCUS ON TELLING US WHAT YOU ARE GOING TO DO TO IMPROVE THIS CRPPY SITUATION BOTH PARTIES HAVE GOTTEN THIS CUNTRY IS IN!
newone 9 months, 2 weeks ago
and yes I know I left letters out in two of the words, it blocked two of my words for some reason.
asb 9 months, 2 weeks ago
Grace you left out "and restore the taxes on the wealthiest few."
JCLifer 9 months, 2 weeks ago
The wealthiest few already pay a very high proportion of all taxes. How much do you want them to pay?
What about the 47% who pay no taxes? Shouldn't everyone pay "something"- like maybe 10% minumum to have some skin in the game?
asb 9 months, 2 weeks ago
In a flaming grammatical faux paux I'll say this about that . . . "nobody doesn't pay taxes!" How much do I want them to pay? not one penny more than their fair share, which is far far more than our present tax code demands. So, I guess since a few own nearly all, paying quite a bit is just fine with you? They've got you well greased up Lifer, brace yourself!
Sequoia 9 months, 2 weeks ago
Just because people don't pay federal income taxes doesn't mean they pay "no taxes." They pay sales tax, gas tax, property tax (either directly or through their rent). They pay all the other taxes besides income tax.
The wealthy should pay more taxes. They use more services.
Sequoia 9 months, 2 weeks ago
There's a huge system of public services dedicated to protecting wealth and property and facilitating commerce. From police and fire services to infrastructure to FDIC to contract law: the more wealth you have to protect, the more you depend on the government system that protects that wealth from various forms of chaos.
Sure, the poor use more social services. But the wealthy use more economic and infrastructure services.
JCLifer 9 months, 2 weeks ago
The 1% wealthy that asb is talking about have their own security forces, militias, and other protections. They do not rely on the government to take care of them.
Yes, the wealthy do pay way more income, property, sales, and otehr taxes than the poor. The wealthy don't even get the earned income credits that the poor get.
asb 9 months, 2 weeks ago
AP fluff story designed to make Romoney look good. How long do we have to suffer under a controlled press? When will the truth be widely available again? And, I don't think it's fair to call Mitt a socialist Grace, just because he implemented a healthcare program emulated around the world . . . just because he supports Social Security . . . just because he's for Medicare . . . you know it's insincere to call a modern politician a socialist just because he aspires to the highest office of a socialist anti-Christian country. You should take a higher road. Just because his faith denies Christ as the only path to salvation doesn't mean he'll force his beliefs on you through a war on Christianity.
asb 9 months, 2 weeks ago
Mitt says the President is waging war on religion . . . should anybody vote for that? A direct lie by a would be President?
JCLifer 9 months, 2 weeks ago
"Not God Bless America, but God damn America." --The Rev. Jeremiah Wright
asb 9 months, 2 weeks ago
Has ol' Jerry decided to run again, or has FOX dug him up and dusted him off for the home stretch? Oh dem watahmelon jokes cain't be fah behind now can deh? How 'bout the muslim connection, you know, the secret meetings with OBL (he's being hid in the WH basement). Hussein just had a iftar dinner . . . next thing he'll be prayin' to Jebus five times a day facing Mecca.
JCLifer 9 months, 2 weeks ago
asb, you sure like to reinforce the stereotypes. don't you? Is EVERYTHING in this world all about race?
JCLifer 9 months, 2 weeks ago
Oh my! These links will leave several marks.
asb 9 months, 2 weeks ago
I love the slogan on his podium . . . "The Romoney Plan For The Middle Class . . . " but the photo isn't clear enough to show the tag line "Work Kamps, Better Than Taxes!"
JCLifer 9 months, 2 weeks ago
Obumma wants to get rid of the middle class.
asb 9 months, 2 weeks ago
Orwell Rising. Or is it my lunch? Perfect truthspeak Lifer. The financial freeloaders steal nearly half of the middle class's wealth and tell you Hussein Obama is destroying the middle class and Christian America, and you say "yes, more please, I like it!"
RobHunterJohnson 9 months, 2 weeks ago
Do you think the employers pays for the health insurance? Rob
LuckNLove 9 months, 2 weeks ago
I'm just curious as to what Obama has said or done to make you think he wants to get rid of the middle class. And what makes you think any one president will be able to "Help" the middle class from becoming more broke? Raising minimum wage usually increases the cost of groceries, clothing, etc. Putting more of the tax burden on the "rich" increases the cost of such items. Providing social benefits comes with a price tag as well. I'm just curious to know the one thing anyone candidate can do for the economy?
LuckNLove 9 months, 2 weeks ago
So by get out of the way do you mean do what you want and everyone would be happy? If that is the case maybe you should run...lmbo
tonto_goldberg 9 months, 2 weeks ago
Too late, dumma. The middle class is already gone. The Bush tax cuts, the financial/insurance/real estate implosion, the wars in Iraq and Aghanistan and Mexico and the bogus wars in the USA on drugs welfare as we know it have put us deeply in debt to China. The internal wars over religion, sex, science, and anything else that people can be made to feel frightened about have been used to divide and bankrupt us. There's the very few wealthy and the rest of us. If you think you're much better off than anyone else, you just haven't looked at the bills you and I are going to have to pay.
JCLifer 9 months, 2 weeks ago
"I'm just curious to know the one thing anyone candidate can do for the economy?"
Help restore faith and trust in this country, and that the freedom, liberty, and American way that our founding fathers as well as those who have fought and died to protect these ideals will always be preserved. This economy would be much better if the citizenry were not so anxious and worried that their future, and the future of their children were not in dire jeopardy.
LuckNLove 9 months, 2 weeks ago
I don't think this can be done with one person! It will take a lot more than one person to make people feel secure. People will be anxious and worried if they want to be...
dodgeball 9 months, 2 weeks ago
Obama is no more a socialist than any of you are Genghis Kahn. The man is a raging moderate. The right likes to paint him as a fringe lunatic, because he doesn't look like Mitch McConnel or John McCain. Those guys are just going around peeing their pants that a minority is in the White House, and they can't call him "boy". 21st century folks... get on board. The left is disappointed in him b/c they don't think he goes far enough. You know what it means wihen you go to DC and make EVERYONE unhappy? It means you probably have a few thoughtful positions, and take a pragmatic approach. he's not the anti-christ, he isn't the muslim boogey-man, he's just a guy you disagree with because you let Fox News do your thinking for you. Do some real checking for yourself, and you'll find that while you probably won't agree with everything he's done, he's no radical, nor is he a socialist. He continued many of the same programs that Bush did. The bailout was a GOP plan, as was Gitmo, and other policies. While he said he would change alot of that stuff before being elected, he chose not to after getting into office. To me, that's the mark of a man who is willing to change his mind when presented with reason to. Doesn't sound like any radical I know.
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