Romney tries to put PA in play
Norfolk, Virginia (CNN) –In a late campaign push to change the battleground map, Mitt Romney will travel to Pennsylvania on Sunday in the hopes of capturing the traditionally Democratic-leaning state. A Romney campaign official confirmed to CNN the GOP nominee will stop in the Philadelphia area Sunday afternoon.
The Pennsylvania event falls into the Romney campaign's newly adopted strategy of expanding the battleground map in the final week of the race. Top strategists to the GOP nominee targeted Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Minnesota this week for potential gains, pointing to polls in the states that show Romney gaining on the President.
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A Franklin and Marshall College poll released Wednesday, for example, indicated President Obama Obama had a 49%-45% edge over his Republican opponent.
Romney's campaign began purchasing air time in the state this week–a move that was countered by Obama's team. The campaign also announced Rep. Paul Ryan, Romney's running mate, will be traveling to Middletown, Pennsylvania on Saturday.
The Obama campaign immediately scoffed at Romney's Pennsylvania trip as an "act of desperation."
"Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan are going all in Pennsylvania, following the lead of every Republican presidential candidate since 1992 who have made last ditch investments in the Keystone State. Not one of them carried the state," Obama campaign northeast regional press secretary Michael Czin said in a statement.
The Romney campaign instantly fired back, accusing the president's re-election advisers of reacting from a "defensive crouch."
"We are looking at an expanded map, while the Obama campaign is pouring resources into states that were supposed to be safe for them," a Romney campaign official said.
"I totally understand why Chicago is freaking out, but I just thought they'd be better at hiding it," the official added.
In the final days before the 2008 election, then GOP nominee John McCain and his running mate, former Alaska governor Sarah Palin made campaign stops in Pennsylvania with similar hopes but to no avail.
In a strategy memo, Romney campaign officials referred to recent comments made by former Pennsylvania governor Ed Rendell who said Democrats could let down their guards in the state, opening up the possibility of a "startling upset."
Former Pennsylvania governor Tom Ridge, a Romney surrogate, predicted the GOP nominee would win the state in an interview on Fox News Thursday.
Romney's upcoming visit to Pennsylvania was first reported by The Daily.
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Hurry up Tuesday,tired of hearing BS......ya think Romney will be a gracious winner? What world does he live in,I can't see any sane ,educated people voting for this man thinking he can change history. We are recovering from the worst economy in more than fifty years and Romney will ruin that!!!
i could only imagine that some last minute Romney exposure would scare up some Republicans from their hidey-holes.
He knows the electoral math isn't working for him. I'm glad to see him putting resources in PA, a state he can't win.
And again the dems have an edge over repukes.
oh hurry up elections so mittens can go away
An act of desperation. More than anything I've heard to date it proves Romney is loosing. The fact he's desperate enough to go after states he's clearly loosing in proves he has little chance of winning days before the election. He would have been better off sticking by his guns than rather playing to the middle out of desperation. The middle doesn't believe he's sincere and the radical right is loosing faith. Finally a ray of hope this country might survive this election. Now we have to survive the 2016 attempt to destroy what 200+ years has seeked to build!
the election is over. romney has lost. plain and simple.
PREDICTION: President Obama will win re-election on November 6.
Obama/Biden 2012
FORWARD
I just attended an economics conference and all signs point to deep recessions if Obama is re-elected. Mark my words, job cuts, higher unemployment rates, stock prices crashing, and hiring freezes till at least 2014. The market is efficient and it does well immediately following the election of a fiscally conservative president, and poor when a non-fiscally conservative is elected. Remember the end of 2008 and the beginning of 2009? Do you really want that all over again?
Typical of a drowning person - must clutch anything on his way. Romney is down and down and drowning
when will the mittiocy stop?
Ridiculous, Pennsylvania hasn't voted Republican since 1988. And both Bushes, father and son were superior statesmen compared to Romney. Obama has a better chance of flipping Texas blue than Romney has of flipping Pennsylvania red.
Don't waste your time Mr. Romney. Just start working on that concession speech.
"Former Pennsylvania governor Tom Ridge, a Romney surrogate, predicted the GOP nominee would win the state in an interview on Fox News Thursday."
And Bob Jones predicted that Obama would win the traditionally-Democrat and totally patriotic state of Pennsylvania, in a landslide.
Romney is sccrewed now. I wonder WHAT he was thinking?!?!?
Vote for me! So I can ship your job to China.
Mitt Romney there are people suffering from Hurricane Sandy Please give America a break and go away. You are an unethical man and America does not want or need a fake insincere corporate raider as President.
A desparation move, similar to that of Robert E Lee's invasion of Pennsylvania in 1863. Remember how that turned out.
If I were american i would be so sick of seeing ads and listening to politicians bashing eachother. It's indecent, especially if i was living in the states hit by the hurricaine.
keep it going for obama we need him badd he's are only hope.and i am voting we need everyone to vote
This a surprise move by Romney. It means that he is hedging against Colorado or he has given up on Florida. Ohio is still a toss-up, so Penn. could be the spoiler in all this.
This is ridiculous, he trying to grab a state that will never support him. He truly is desperate!!!
Romney sinking fast... that's what happens when everything you have to say is a lie.
Don't matter what he does not fit for presidency.
Sorry Mitt, it's not going to happen! Nice try though.