Elections

Obama calls Romney ‘out of touch’ in attack ad [VIDEO]

Melissa Quinn Contributor
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President Barack Obama’s newest attack ad tries to pin the “out-of-touch” tail on the elephant in the 2012 race, amid a growing clamor among GOP and Democratic operatives that the chief donkey already is wearing the tail.

The ad, released Wednesday and titled “Mitt Romney: Out of Touch,” highlights statements from the former Massachusetts governor and aims to demonstrate how he is disconnected from the American people. The ad begins and ends with Romney speaking out against the president, with the clips framing statements that instead ridicule the GOP-potential nominee.

“I like being able to fire people who provide services to me,” Romney said in one scene.

Romney leveled a similar attack in a June 8 campaign speech in Iowa, and his deputies continue to make the same case.

“Unable to defend his record of failure, President Obama and his campaign have resorted to more false, negative attack ads,” said Amanda Henneberg, a Romney campaign spokesperson in an email to theDC. “For more than three years, President Obama has said it was his responsibility to get our economy back on track. Now that he’s been unable to deliver on that promise, he’s trying to hit the reset button and claim Americans are ‘doing fine.'”

“The economy is not in good shape,” said Dean Baker, co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research. “I think the question is who’s to blame. He (Obama) came in with an economic disaster and the question is can you realistically expect him to have done better?”

On Thursday, Romney continued to capitalize on Obama’s statement, “the private sector is doing fine,” by releasing yet another ad designed to prove Obama disconnect from voters.

With the unemployment rate at more than 8 percent for the past 40 months and 23.2 million Americans out of work, “how can President Obama fix our economy…if he doesn’t understand it’s broken?” the ad asks.

An ad released by the GOP Wednesday shows 60 percent of the public believe Obama has led the country down the wrong track. And recent polls conducted by Rasmussen and the Public Policy Polling show Romney has taken the lead over Obama in both Wisconsin and North Carolina, respectively.

Among independent voters, the president’s economic plans are less than desirable, with 54 percent viewing Obama’s economic plans in a negative light, compared to the 47 percent who view Romney’s unfavorably.

According to an article in Commentary Magazine, Romney has a greater opportunity to attract voters who are unresponsive to his plan, while Obama still receives less than favorable marks from the voting demographic he needs to attract most — middle-income Americans making between $50,000 and $100,000 per year.

The president’s economic plan fails to pass muster among a wide variety of voters, from independents to moderates, and some veteran Democrats are questioning whether the Obama campaign crew can handle what lays ahead, a Washington Post article reported.

“The economy is not in good shape,” said Dean Baker, co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research. “I think the question is who’s to blame. He (Obama) came in with an economic disaster and the question is can you realistically expect him to have done better?”

In a June 11 report released by Democracy Corps, three Democratic stalwarts claim that the Obama campaign must move to a “new narrative” in order to be victorious in November.

Obama’s original plan of passing the “out of touch” baton on to Romney has instead come full circle, with both Democratic and Republican experts wondering if the president does have an idea of what the economy and the American people need.

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