Romney ramps up rhetoric hitting Obama hard on the economy

Former Massachusetts Gov. Romney ramped up his rhetoric on the economy against President Obama.

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney (R) ramped up his rhetoric on the economy against President Obama, whom he may challenge in 2012's presidential election.

Romney went on the attack against Obama's stewardship of the economy in an op-ed on Wednesday in The Boston Globe, accusing the president of having "deepened and lengthened" the recession in the U.S. through "almost every action" Obama has taken.

"His policies are anti-investment, anti-jobs and anti-growth," Romney wrote.

The piece is part of a concerted effort by Romney to frame his approach on the economy differently from Obama's, as the one-time 2008 GOP presidential candidate mulls another run for the White House in two years.

Romney's campaign style has always tended to emphasize his business experience and previous success on handling economic issues.

The op-ed castigates Obama over his approach on taxes, energy policy, labor, trade and bailouts, calling Obama and Democrats' policies on those issues "job killers."

The former governor also offered red meat to conservatives who might be eyeing the 2012 Republican field for an emerging favorite.

"Republicans made mistakes when we were in charge, yes, but Democrats pointing that out doesn’t absolve them for the mistakes they are making today," Romney wrote. "A pro-job, pro-prosperity government works to create the conditions that enable businesses of all sizes to grow and thrive."

Romney endorsed extending all of the income tax cuts set to expire at the end of the year, as well as closing some corporate tax loopholes. He also said businesses should be able to write off capital investments in the next two years, and called for the elimination of the capital gains tax for households earning less than $250,000 per year.

"The president said last week that Republicans have no economic ideas other than lowering taxes on the wealthy," he wrote. "This brief agenda is not the only refutation: Republicans in Washington and in states like New Jersey and Texas are promoting and implementing economic policies that do what the president has not: grow jobs and shrink government."