We wondered how the first day of trading on the stock market would go after the S&P downgrade last Friday…

Now, we know.

It was a bloody day.

98% of of today’s volume was sold in declining stocks. The Dow today closed at 634 points in the negative – the seventh worst point drop in United States history.

While opinions on the reliability of S&P and other credit rating agencies go back and forth, the reality that our federal government has spent the U.S. into oblivion is undeniable. The rate at which our debt is increasing measured against our GDP, and the current political atmosphere, were factors in our historical, first-ever credit downgrade.

Obama was mum on S&P all weekend; he emerged today to deliver a flat, teleprompter speech. The Dow was down 400 points before Obama spoke. Ten minutes after he finished, the market plummeted another 200 points.

Mitt Romney spoke on the S&P downgrade while delivering a speech in Concord, NH this morning:

“This nation is going to have to get very serious about the excesses of government.” ~ Mitt Romney (August 8, 2011)

A look back…

● April 18, 2011 – Standard & Poor’s downgrades outlook for US economy from stable to negative for the first time in its existence.

● April 18, 2011 – Romney tells Hannity (FOX News): “The Obama presidency was downgraded today. And people recognize that this president is playing chicken with the U.S. economy… But if the interest costs are going up why it could be devastating to the U.S. economy and could make job growth even more difficult.”

● April 18, 2011 – Obama’s chief economic adviser, Austan Goolsbee, says, “I don’t make too much about it.”

Romney says Obama is playing ‘chicken’ with the U.S. economy.
(Click on image to enlarge.)

● April 19, 2011 – Timothy Geithner says a downgrade won’t happen. (I have a hunch Tim will be asked about this…)

● April 20, 2011 – Romney on San Diego station KCBQ: Obama should meet the raters. (Massachusetts received credit rating upgrades from both Standard & Poor’s and Fitch Ratings while Romney was governor.)

“Standard and Poor’s, one of the rating agencies, just downgraded their view of the future for America. If you will, they downgraded the Obama presidency. In my own view, this is not something to be laughed off as the president’s people seem to be doing. The president really ought to personally sit down and meet with S&P. I did that when I was governor; I met with the ratings agencies and talked about our future and tried to instill confidence in our future because, look, how they rate our debt and how they rate our future as a nation will affect the interest costs that we end up paying and will affect homeowners and borrowers all over the country.”

● April 25, 2011 – The Gov’s op-ed WARNING about S&P downgrade

The main job of any executive — whether a CEO, a governor or a President — should be to avert these dangers, or work to repair them. When I took office in Massachusetts, we faced job losses and a fiscal crisis that had the potential to shake the faith of the credit raters in our bonds. We went to work to convince S&P and the other rating agencies that we were committed to reducing spending to balance our budget. I met personally with these officials in my of­fice in Boston, and I traveled to New York City to meet them in their offices. S&P responded in 2005 with a credit rating upgrade that acknowledged the state’s sound fiscal management and the improving strength of its revitalized economy.

Barack Obama is facing a financial emergency on a grander scale. Yet his approach has been to engage in one of the biggest spending binges in American history [since World War II]. With its failed stimulus package, its grandiose new social programs, its fervor for more taxes and government regulations, and its hostility toward business, the administration has made the debt problem worse, hindered economic recovery and needlessly cost American workers countless jobs.

(emphasis added) Read more here.

● June 29 -30, July 14, 2011 – Romney speaks on debt-ceiling debate

● July 14, 2011 – Romney also speaks on debt ceiling at Town Hall meeting in Derry, NH

● August 1, 2011 – Additional statement on debt ceiling from Romney

“As president, my plan would have produced a budget that was cut, capped and balanced – not one that opens the door to higher taxes and puts defense cuts on the table. President Obama’s leadership failure has pushed the economy to the brink at the eleventh hour and 59th minute. While I appreciate the extraordinarily difficult situation President Obama’s lack of leadership has placed Republican Members of Congress in, I personally cannot support this deal.” ~ Mitt Romney

● August 6, 2011 – Romney’s Response to S&P Downgrade: USA Credit Rating Latest Obama Casualty

Obama will go down in history as the first president to lose America’s Triple A credit rating. When he took office, the U.S. was spending 40% of GDP on federal debt. Last year we were spending 62%. By the end of this year, we’ll have spent 72%. Even if we get all the cuts outlined in the debt-ceiling agreement, we’ll be spending 76% of GDP in 10 years.

This was a horrible day for America.

This was a horrible, no good, rotten day for Obama.

Mitt Romney 2012.


P.S. Obama isn’t worried, though. He has planned an October 2012 surprise…

UPDATE

From MittRomney.com

FROM “MALAISE” TO MELTDOWN
August 8, 2011

[..]
Under Governor Romney, Massachusetts received credit rating upgrades from both Standard & Poor’s and Fitch Ratings.

In March 2005, Standard & Poor’s upgraded Massachusetts’ general obligation bond rating to “AA,” noting the state was “again producing jobs and reducing already historically low unemployment.” The Boston Globe reported:

“In many ways, Massachusetts is emerging from the downturn in good shape. … In recognition of the improvement, Standard & Poor’s in March upgraded the state’s bond rating to AA, the highest ranking the state has enjoyed since the late 1980s. … ‘An economy that is deep and diverse is again producing jobs and reducing already historically low unemployment,’ Standard & Poor’s wrote in its upgrade of the state’s bond rating.”

In July 2005, Fitch Ratings upgraded Massachusetts’ general obligation bond rating to “AA,” citing the state’s “prudent fiscal management.”

“Fitch Ratings upgrades the rating of $14.4 billion Commonwealth of Massachusetts full faith and credit general obligation (GO) bonds to ‘AA’ from ‘AA-’. The upgrade reflects the commonwealth’s economic recovery, enabling surplus operations and the rebuilding of reserves to strong levels. Prudent financial management through the recent downturn has positioned Massachusetts well.”

More here.


► Jayde Wyatt

Today’s job report shows that unemployment is at 9.1%. Is that good news?

14% of small businesses laid off employees last month and they don’t plan to re-hire or expand. The number of workers who have stopped working and those who are engaged in part-time work, who want full-time work, push the job report numbers to 16%.

46 million Americans are on food stamps, the highest number in U.S. history, up 20 million from 2008.

Yesterday, the meltdown of the stock market saw the Dow Jones Industrial plummet 513 points – spooking investors across the world. The news today that hiring had slightly picked up in July caused the stock market to open higher this morning, but those gains were wiped out in just 25 minutes. Later in the day, only when the Italian Prime Minister unveiled an ambitious plan to help his beleaguered nation, the markets came up for a breather.

Here’s some of what Larry Doyle, (Business Insider), has to say:

Not so fast.

Let’s peel the onion a little deeper and get a real assessment of the health of our labor situation. To do that, let’s skip the verbiage provided by pundits and politicians and look at the hard numbers as provided in the Employment Situation Summary produced by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

What do we learn? Are you sitting down?

The labor participation rate continues to decline. This measure of people who are either employed or actively looking for work declined last month from 64.1% to 63.9%. Why? People are so discouraged that they have given up looking for work.

Please scroll to the bottom of the report to which I linked. We witness that the number of discouraged workers rose from 982, 000 in June (822, ooo in May) to a whopping 1,119,000 last month.

We had an increase of 137,000 discouraged workers last month and 297,000 discouraged workers over the last two months. Juxtapose those figures next to the increase in the non-farm payroll of 117,000 workers last month.

No, we did not hit a triple with this report. In fact, when we incorporate the discouraged workers into our review my ‘sense on cents’ indicates to me that our situation actually worsened.

(emphasis added)

Jobs Report: Too Little, Too Late?

Romney tweets:

When you see what this president has done to the economy in 3 years, you know why America doesn’t want to find out what he can do in 8less than a minute ago via web Favorite Retweet ReplyMitt Romney
MittRomney

Today’s unemployment report represents the 30th straight month that the jobless rate has been above 8% http://t.co/b5q8R0l #ObamaIsntWorkingless than a minute ago via web Favorite Retweet ReplyMitt Romney
MittRomney

Reports show that the nearly 13.9 million unemployed have been without work for seven months or longer. The slight decrease in today’s numbers today are deceptive because 200,000 Americans simply quit looking for jobs; they form a new category – ‘discouraged workers’.

Analysts say that the 117,000 jobs created in July doesn’t keep up with population growth; 130,000 jobs are needed to keep pace. Even if 175,000 jobs were consistently created each month, the USA wouldn’t return to 5% unemployment until 2018.

UPDATE: S&P downgrades U.S. credit rating for first time!

Standard & Poor’s announced Friday night that it has downgraded the sterling U.S. credit rating for the first time.

The move came even though the Treasury Department said that it had found a math error in the firm’s calculations of deficit projections, according to a person familiar with the matter.

S&P decided to lower the AAA rating, held by the United States for 70 years, to AA+ after a bipartisan debt deal signed into law this week failed to assuage concerns about the nation’s growing spending.

Analysts have said a downgrade could increase the cost of borrowing for the U.S. government and lead to tens of billions of dollars in more interest costs per year. That could translate into higher borrowing for consumers and businesses, too.

UPDATE 2 – Romney tweet:

America’s creditworthiness just became the latest casualty of President Obama’s failed leadership on the economyless than a minute ago via web Favorite Retweet ReplyMitt Romney
MittRomney

Obama isn’t working.

Time for Mr. Turnaround – Mitt Romney.

► Jayde Wyatt

As we head into the dog days of summer, talking heads and a few Romney rivals jumped on the chance to drive headlines. They decided it was time to dog pile on The Gov:

Romney Silent on Debt Ceiling ● Romney’s Debt Ceiling Absence ● Where was Romney?

Opinionators on the left and right yipped about Romney. Low-in-the-polls presidential opponents created a bone to pick: Jon Huntsman accused Romney of “zero leadership” and Ron Paul, via his son Rand, also jumped in. Sarah Palin (who isn’t a presidential candidate) wagged her finger at Romney last night on FOX News’ Hannity (see video):

“Bless his heart, I have respect for Mitt Romney, but I do not have respect for what he has done through this debt increase debate,” she said. “He waited until it was a done deal that we would increase the debt ceiling and more money would be spent, more money would be borrowed and spent on bigger government, and then he came out and made a statement that he didn’t like the deal after all. You can’t defer an issue and assume that the problem is then going to be avoided.”

▬ ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬

Critics barking up the debt-ceiling tree regarding Romney are wrong… He DID speak out:

June 29, 2011 – The Hill:
Mitt Romney will sign DeMint’s ‘Cut, Cap and Balance’ pledge

Romney indicated on Capitol Hill that he’s a supporter of the new “Cut, Cap and Balance” pledge, and his campaign confirmed Wednesday that he intends to sign it.

Romney’s name means that Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) is the only announced presidential candidate not to have signed it aside from former Ambassador to China Jon Huntsman (R), who has sworn off all pledges.
[...]
DeMint has said he wouldn’t endorse any figure who doesn’t sign the pledge, and he’s already ruled out backing Huntsman.

June 30, 2011 NPR.org – Romney signs Cut, Cap, and Balance Bill

Mitt Romney, frontrunner for the Republican 2011 presidential nomination, just signed the newest of the Republican fiscal pledges, the “Cut, Cap and Balance” vow supported by a coalition of conservative groups.

The pledge calls for its signers to oppose raising the debt ceiling unless legislation passes that requires deep spending cuts, enforceable spending caps and a balanced-budget amendment.

With Romney signing the pledge, at least six of the presidential candidates have now agreed to sign the pact. As of this writing, Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) and Jon Huntsman Jr., the former Utah governor, have yet to sign. The former said she was reviewing it, the latter deciding against it.

July 14, 2011 The Washington Post – Romney elaborates:

Calling the debt-ceiling deadline in Washington an “emergency,” Republican Mitt Romney said Thursday he would raise the nation’s debt limit if spending is cut and capped and if a balanced budget amendment is passed.

“The answer for the country is for the president to agree to cut fed spending, to cap fed spending and to put in place a balanced budget amendment,” Romney said in a question and answer session at a meeting Thursday of the Portsmouth Rotary. “For me, that’s the line in the sand. Come on, Mr. President.”
[...]
He said Thursday he would make cuts to discretionary spending. “I’d divide that between those things we have to do and those things we don’t have to do. And those things we don’t have to do, I’d cut pretty dramatically,” he said.

As Romney began his remarks, he took at jab at President Obama.

“Did you see I got a big plate of peas? I ate all my peas,” he said, referring to Obama’s comment that it was time to “eat our peas” on the debt. “Now it’s the president’s turn to cut federal spending.”

After all the President’s posturing, the congressional chaos, the Democrat dithering, the Republican revisions, the House hammering, the Senate stipulations, the back and forth stick-chasing – all compressed into an eleventh hour crunch – a final bill was presented.

August 1, 2011 MittRomney.com:
MITT ROMNEY ISSUES STATEMENT ON DEBT CEILING DEAL

Mitt Romney today issued the following statement on the deal to raise the debt ceiling:

“As president, my plan would have produced a budget that was cut, capped and balanced – not one that opens the door to higher taxes and puts defense cuts on the table. President Obama’s leadership failure has pushed the economy to the brink at the eleventh hour and 59th minute. While I appreciate the extraordinarily difficult situation President Obama’s lack of leadership has placed Republican Members of Congress in, I personally cannot support this deal.”

(emphasis added)

▬ ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬

Republican strategist Ron Bonjean said Romney “played the issue just right.”

“Washington, D.C., right now is like political quicksand for 2012 political candidates.”

Romney’s position on the debt ceiling issue is consistent with previous positions. His 2008 presidential campaign theme was ‘Washington is Broken’ which was so spot-on it startled politicos. He repeatedly called for fiscal responsibility. Do you remember Romney’s oft-repeated warning of ‘the rising Chinese tiger’?

Gov Romney has written extensively about U.S. economics and debt in his book ‘No Apology’ (authored by himself). Entire chapters cover: The Pursuit of the Difficult, Why Nations Decline, Pathways of American Power, A Free and Productive Economy, The Worst Generation – which includes The Political Shell Game, and The Entitlement Nightmare wherein he discusses Medicare, Medicaid, social security, and our mountain of debt. His book also includes a chapter on resolving America’s energy issues.

Romney clearly stated his position on the debt-ceiling debate. What he didn’t do is grandstand the issue. He didn’t foolishly comment on rapidly changing negotiations in which he had no part.

He let elected officials do what they were elected to do – work out a solution. Once they stopped chasing their tails, Romney couldn’t support the compromise because it did not meet the standards he had clearly stated. He is committed to bringing economic sanity and JOBS back to America. In light of the disastrous stock market news today, Romney’s message couldn’t be more timely.

Nevertheless, dog-eat-dog season has begun.

► Jayde Wyatt

A timely web video from the Romney camp, designed to slam welcome Obama to his home turf for his birthday fundraiser tomorrow. Here’s Romney spokeswoman, Andrea Saul:

Obama Isn’t Working: Chicago

It looks like the campaign has also set up a petition for those who are in agreeance that “Obama Isn’t Working”. If that is you, feel free to sign here.

“She’s a breath of fresh air. She’s a family person.” ~Bob Nelson (voter), referring to Ann Romney while attending a political house party in Laconia, New Hampshire. (July 27, 2011)


No one knows Mitt Romney better than his sweetheart of 42 years, Ann Romney. She took a couple of days out of her busy schedule last week (16 grandchildren dropped by for summer fun at Lake Winnipesaukee) to help campaign for Governor Romney. She spoke about the kind of man her husband is and why she’s supporting him 100%:

Laconia, New Hampshire (July 27, 2011):

“I left 16 grandchildren at home this morning and a couple of them wanted to know why I was dressed this way, how come they weren’t going on the boat, going swimming with me,” Romney said, wearing a blue-and-white dress.
[...]
As they did during the 2008 presidential campaign, and during their four years as first family of Massachusetts, the Romneys have projected a wholesome family image.

They have talked about being high school sweethearts and highlighted their 42-year marriage. Now 62, Ann Romney stayed home to raise her five sons, all of whom are now married.
[...]
In a short speech, Romney praised her husband as a man “who knows how to do a turnaround” of both businesses and of the country. Just as Mitt Romney does on the campaign trail, she talked about his background as a businessman, about his work turning around troubled companies and starting Bain Capital. He also served as governor of Massachusetts from 2003 to 2007.

But she also focused on his commitment to his family.

Ann Romney speaks at a political house party in Laconia, NH. July 27, 2011 (click on photo to enlarge)

“He’d remind me always that no other success can compensate for failure in the home,” Romney said. “Where his joy came from was his family.”

Referring to her work raising her children, Romney her husband would tell her that “more important than my job is what you’re doing.”
[...]
Beverly Bruce, a consultant from Tuftonboro who plans to host a fund-raiser for Mitt Romney at the end of August, said she has seen the Romneys together, and they are so close that they finish each other’s sentences.

“She has intellect, passion, really cares what happens to the country,” Bruce said.
[...]
“She’s a breath of fresh air,” said Bob Nelson, a retiree who travels between New Hampshire and Florida. “She’s a family person.”

Continue reading here.

Amherst, NH – July 28, 2011:

[...]
Mrs. Romney met supporters at the home of Lisa and Karl Hansen on The Flume in Amherst. Speaking in their living room, Romney talked about the love for her country and the need to go in another direction.

Ann Romney speaks to supporters at a 'meet & greet' in Amherst, NH. July 28, 2011

“You have to turn around America, said Romney.

She said she has “one hundred percent confidence” that her husband will become president and tackle the country’s economic problems. She cited his extensive business experience with companies like Staples and Burger King, along with his work organizing the 2002 Olympic Games in Utah.

Sharing stories of her family and their experience in the campaign, Romney said that her husband always put business secondary to family. However, she said that he will do his best to succeed in leading both his family and the country.

She said that people are most concerned about jobs, and her husband has the most experience in creating good jobs.

“If [voters] are concerned about jobs, this election is critical,” said Romney.

Amherst Patch:

Ann Romney told supporters at a meet and greet in Amherst today that her husband’s ability to lead as a father, businessman and politician made him the perfect candidate for president.

Supporters expressed their belief that his strong family values and business sense make him the best choice to fix our nation’s problems.

Take a look at this video (listening to down-to-earth, charming, witty Ann makes me wish I had been there!). NOTE: Due to the ‘auto-start’ feature on this video, it played for a day on this page and has now been linked here.

“After the last campaign, I made sure to let everybody know — and I even got a camera to come up and record it– that I would never do that again… I said that, however, after every pregnancy…”
[...]
“America needs to have a turnaround, and I thought you know, there’s only one guy I know who really knows how to do turnarounds. That’s Mitt Romney.”

UPDATE: MSNBC

She [Ann] cast this cycle’s campaign as a full family effort, with support from all 16 grandchildren. One of the Romney granddaughters will be taking a year off to work on the campaign. The 16-year-old will be home-schooled on the trail.

We love you, Ann; keep up the great work!

Mitt and Ann – White House 2012!


► Jayde Wyatt

Wow. I’m glad I woke up early enough to catch this lil’ gem on twitter this morning.

With another superbly-produced, timely web video the Romney camp shows once again that it has the tact and wherewithal to take Obama head-on. This time, the video preempts an Obama town hall, set to take place at the University of Maryland today.

Please watch and share your thoughts:

UPDATE by Jayde – As a follow-up and additional confirmation to Gov Romney’s excellent series of ‘OBAMA ISN’T WORKING’ videos, hear what Howard Davidowitz (CEO of Davidowitz & Associates) had to say yesterday about the Obama Depression:

Return of Mass Layoffs a Grim Sign for U.S. Workers

Putting pressure on an already lousy job market, the mass layoff is making a comeback. In the past week, Cisco, Lockheed Martin and Borders announced a combined 23,000 in job cuts. (See: Another Retailer Bites the Dust: Borders Doomed by Amazon Deal, Davidowitz Says)

Those announcements follow 41,432 in planned cuts in June, up 11.6% from May and 5.3% vs. a year earlier, according to Challenger, Gray & Christmas.

Meanwhile, state and local governments have cut 142,000 jobs this year [...] and Wall Street is braced for another round of cutbacks. This week, Goldman Sachs announced plans to let go 1000 fixed-income traders.

If these trends continue, we may soon be talking about losses in the monthly employment data — not just disappointing growth, says Howard Davidowitz, CEO of Davidowitz & Associates.

“Everything in business is confidence,” Davidowitz says. “You lose confidence and businesses can’t deal with that [and] who could have confidence with what’s going on in Washington?”

UPDATE 2 by Jayde – The closing of Borders Books…

A new video from the Romney campaign…

Mitt on the Road: North Country (in New Hampshire)

It’s pretty obvious how much Mitt loves scenic New Hampshire and that he’s completely dedicated to seeing JOBS abound – not just for northern residents of The Granite State – but for all Americans.

A bit of interesting reading…

Pawlenty ad appropriates Romney thematic

Obama Legacy May Be Withering American Dream

Poll: Weakened Obama would lose vote today


► Jayde Wyatt

With the desolate, shuttered stores of the Valley Plaza Shopping Center (N. Hollywood) in the background, Mitt Romney held a press conference today in Los Angeles, CA. He highlighted Obama’s audacity of indifference regarding the economy and California’s 11.7% unemployment rate. The event was livestreamed by Politico.

MittRomney.com/blogs

President Obama, During An April Visit To Los Angeles: “We Have Made Extraordinary Progress Over The Last Two And A Half Years…

We can go down the list. But we also know we’ve still got a lot more work to do. We’ve just started, and we’ve got a lot more work to do.”

“I Don’t Want You To Lose Sight Of How Much We’ve Gotten Done. What We’ve Done Here Has Been Historic, And We’re Only A Quarter Of The Way Through.” (President Barack Obama, Remarks in Los Angeles, CA, 4/22/11)

Then-Senator Obama In September 2008, When The Most Recent Jobless Rate In California Was 7.5%: “We Can’t Afford Four More Years Of This So-Called ‘Progress.’” OBAMA: “We have the highest unemployment rate in five years. Home values have plummeted. It’s harder to save and it’s harder to retire. Those are the day-to-day challenges that people have. We can’t afford four more years of this so-called ‘progress.’” (Sen. Barack Obama, Remarks In Dover, NH, 9/12/08)

Few Places In America Are More “Stressed Out” Than California, A State Suffering From Rampant Unemployment And A Struggling Economy:

• California’s 11.7% Unemployment Rate Is Second-Highest In The Nation And Is One-Fifth Higher Than When President Obama Took Office. In January 2009, the unemployment rate in California was 9.7%. The rate had increased to 11.7% by May 2011, an increase of 20% from January 2009 levels. (Bureau of Labor Statistics, www.bls.gov, 7/19/11)

• The Number Of Unemployed Californians Has Increased By 20% Since President Obama Took Office. Over 350,000 more Californians are unemployed today than in January 2009. Currently, more than 2.1 million Californians are out of a job. (Bureau of Labor Statistics, www.bls.gov, 7/19/11)

• Under President Obama, California’s Labor Force Has Fallen By More Than 200,000 And The State Has Lost Half A Million Payroll Jobs. California’s labor force has contracted by an estimated 225,000 workers since January 2009. Over the same timeframe, the state has shed an estimated 497,100 nonfarm payroll jobs. (Bureau of Labor Statistics, www.bls.gov, 7/19/11)

• California Ranked 48th In The Country In Personal Income Growth In The First Quarter Of 2011. (Bureau of Economic Analysis, www.bea.gov, 6/22/11)

• Retail Gas Prices In California Are Roughly 80% Higher Than When President Obama Took Office. The average retail price per gallon for all grades/formulations in California was $3.826 for the week of July 11, 2011. For the week of January 19, 2009, the average price in California was $2.11. (Energy Information Administration, www.eia.gov, 7/19/11)

CONTINUE reading here.

With a background of 25 years experience working in the private sector, Romney easily pointed out seven points to get the economy working again:

“[President Obama] didn’t focus on the economy.He delegated the stimulus to Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, and they may have had less experience in the economy than he had.” ~ Mitt Romney

Additional photos may be viewed here.

UPDATE -TV COVERAGE: MITT DISCUSSES JOBS AND THE ECONOMY IN CALIFORNIA

► Jayde Wyatt

Even though Mitt Romney is comfortably ahead in New Hampshire, he’s not taking anything for granted. He spent a very busy day in New Hampshire yesterday; here’s what his schedule looked like (7/14/11):

» Toured Redhook Ale Brewery, Addressed Rotary Club
1 Redhook Way, Portsmouth, N.H.
12:00 PM

(click on photo to enlarge)

Video of Romney’s Rotary Club address may be found here.

● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

» Toured RSA Realty
60 Farmington Road, Rochester, N.H.
2:00 PM

After Portsmouth, The Gov hit the road to Rochester to visit with folks at RSA Realty & Development:

Earlier in the day, his campaign released a web video in which RSA Realty owner Packy Campbell, a former state representative, says his business once had 35 workers but now employs just his wife and himself.

“Unemployment is still over 9 percent,” Campbell said in the video. “I don’t see the economy as getting any better. Right now, I think the government’s trying too hard to help, and it’s kind of like when I’m doing a job and someone’s trying to help and they’re being counterproductive.”

(link added)

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» Held Town Hall meeting at Adams Memorial Opera House
29 West Broadway Street, Derry, N.H.
6:00 PM

The Derry Republican Town Committee sponsored the Town Hall meeting in the historic Adams Memorial Opera House. It was packed with NH residents who asked questions on topics ranging from environmental regulation, the debt ceiling, immigration policy, the war in Afghanistan, and more:

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Romney’s schedule for today:

» Participating in Round Table discussion, North Country community leaders
1876 Riverside Drive, Berlin, NH

UPDATE on Round Table in Berlin:

Romney chose a visit to a struggling pocket of New Hampshire for Friday’s meeting with local business leaders, where he criticized Obama’s economic policies and touted his private sector experience.

New Hampshire had the highest median household income of any U.S. state in 2010, and currently has one of the lowest unemployment rates in the United States, at 4.8 percent.

But Coos County in the northern part of the state has not shared New Hampshire’s good fortune.

Once home to several large paper mills, Coos County lost 2,000 jobs in the forestry and paper industry between 2001 and 2009 out of a population of 32,000, according to data from Berlin’s city government.

Efforts at redevelopment have stalled. A $276 million federal prison completed in 2010 in Berlin stands empty because Congress has failed to allot funds to hire staff.

Plans for a proposed biomass electricity plant that would have brought $25 million annually into the local economy stalled after New Hampshire’s other woodchip-burning power producers lobbied against the plant.

Joanne Roy, 51, who sold Romney a $6 slice of raspberry pie at her cafe in the town, said she was leaning toward voting for him in the primary as the Republican’s best hope of defeating Obama in the 2012 general election.

“I didn’t think he would be this personable,” she said. “He’s a business person first rather than a politician.”

(my emphasis)


► Jayde Wyatt

The video’s title says it all. Please watch and share:

#ObamaIsntWorking