Romney: Obama will 'cower' from debating his record

(CNN) - Brushing aside his recent spat with Newt Gingrich, GOP presidential hopeful Mitt Romney on Wednesday said he's more geared up for a fight with national Democrats.

"I think it's kinda curious that they want to jump into our primary and try and throw the primary to someone who they think has a better chance of losing to the president," Romney said in an interview on Sean Hannity's radio show. "I'm kind of invigorated by the fact that they've decided to go after me."

Romney has been the subject of several major Democratic-backed campaigns targeting the former Massachusetts governor as a flip-flopper.

The Democratic National Committee launched its latest strike on Monday, releasing a commercial that paints Romney's record as inconsistent in several likely swing states.

But Romney said those efforts are simply a tactic aimed at maneuvering attention away from what he calls the president's failure in office.

"Every time they try it, we'll just smile and come back and say, 'Mr. President, you said [when you took office] you'd hold unemployment below 8%. It hasn't been below 8% since," he said.

Romney stirred controversy last week when his campaign took Obama's comments about the economy out of context, and his campaign called foul when the DNC made a similar move in its commercial against Romney this week.

While Romney has held a steady spot in the top tier of the GOP presidential race for much of the cycle, he now finds himself up against Gingrich, who's accelerated to the top at a rapid pace in recent weeks.

The two have taken knocks against each other in the last few days, but Romney on Wednesday shifted almost all of his criticism on Obama, saying he thinks the president will struggle in the general election.

"He will try and cower from any of debates which will have him have to talk about his record," Romney said. "That's the last thing he wants to do."

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