WASHINGTON (CNN) - Following the release of a television ad earlier this week that criticizes his own party, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney has released "an open" letter to his "friends and fellow Republicans" calling on them to "start acting like Republicans."
“The blame, we must admit, does not belong to just one party," he writes in the letter set to be published in the New Hampshire Union-Leader this Sunday and the Capitol Hill paper Roll Call this Monday.
"If we’re going to change Washington, Republicans have to put our own house in order," Romney continues. "We can’t be like Democrats – a party of big spending. We can’t pretend our borders are secure from illegal immigration. We can’t have ethical standards that are a punch-line for Jay Leno. When Republicans act like Democrats, America loses."
The letter will also be circulated among Republican National Committee members and supporters of the campaign, Romney spokesman Kevin Madden said.
- CNN Ticker Producer Alexander Mooney