A new ad released Saturday by President Obama’s campaign represents the strongest retort yet to Republican candidate Mitt Romney's question about whether Americans are better off today than when Obama took office.
The ad, titled “The Question,” recaps the 4.4 million jobs lost during George W. Bush's last year in office, adding that the economy has now seen 30 straight months of private sector job growth.
It goes on to contrast Obama's proposed tax hike on families making more than $250,000 a year with Romney's stated goal of cutting the income tax by 20 percent and closing loopholes in the code, moves which some independent tax analysts say would raise the tax burden on the middle class.
“The real question is: Whose plan is better for you?,” says the ad.
The minute-long video features excerpts of convention speeches by Obama and former President Bill Clinton defending the first term record and vowing not to return to Republican economic policies that Democrats blame for the recession.
The ad will air in the battleground states of Colorado, Florida, Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, Ohio, and Virginia.
Republicans have made the question of whether voters are better off than they were four years ago a centerpiece of their messaging, as voters express continued concern over the state of the economy.
The Obama campaign argues that the president needs more time to turn around the weakened economy left by the Bush administration.
Republicans, however, say Obama now owns the economy and is placing blame on his predecessor to distract voters from his own record.
The Romney campaign immediately put out a statement dismissing the Obama campaign ad.
"All the false and misleading ads in the world can’t change one simple fact: Americans are not better off since President Obama took office," Romney campaign spokesman Ryan Williams said in an emailed statement. "23 million Americans are struggling for work, our national debt has hit a record-breaking $16 trillion, and more Americans are in poverty and on food stamps than ever before. Mitt Romney’s economic plan would lead to a more prosperous future for middle class families spurring growth and job creation, and ensuring that the next four years are better than the last four.”
The Democrats’ convention in Charlotte, N.C. earlier this month was followed by more disappointing jobs news, as a report found the economy added only 96,000 jobs in August, a figure well below economists’ forecast.
But despite the jobs data, polls post-convention show Obama expanding his lead nationally and in key swing states. A New York Times/CBS poll released Friday shows Obama up 3 points, with Gallup’s daily tracking poll showing him up 6 and Reuters-Ipsos placing him ahead 7 over Romney.
This story was updated at 11:02 a.m.
