Romney Campaign Press Release - In Weak Economy, Obama Turns to Frustration and Division

"With unemployment at a five-month high and the slowest economic growth in a year, President Obama has resorted to frustrating and dividing Americans. But these shameful tactics won't get middle-class Americans back to work and won't deliver the hope and change candidate Obama promised. Americans deserve better than a president doing nothing to create jobs, but saying anything to save his own job." — Ryan Williams, Romney Campaign Spokesman

President Obama's Campaign Has Concluded The Economy "Is Not Strong Enough To Sustain Their Campaign":

Bill Galston, A Former Senior Adviser To President Clinton: "The Obama Team Has Concluded Their Economic Narrative Is Not Strong Enough To Sustain Their Campaign." "'I have to believe, and this surprises me, that the Obama team has concluded their economic narrative is not strong enough to sustain their campaign,' says Bill Galston, who was a senior adviser to President Clinton." (Tory Newmeyer, "Obama: A President Ready For A Showdown," CNN Money, 8/16/12)

Why Does The Obama Campaign Think The Economy Isn't "Strong Enough To Sustain Their Campaign"? High Unemployment And Sluggish Growth:

Last Month, "The Unemployment Rate Ticked Higher To 8.3%" — A Five-Month High. "The unemployment rate ticked higher to 8.3% in July from 8.2% in the previous month. This is the highest rate since February." (Greg Robb, "Nonfarm Payroll Up 163,000 In July, Rate At 8.3%" MarketWatch, 8/3/12)

• "The Unemployment Rate Has Been Stuck Above 8 Percent For More Than Three Years, The Longest Run Since The Great Depression." ("U.S. Unemployment Climbs To 8.3%," Reuters, 8/3/12)

Americans Without College Diplomas Have "Continued To Lose Jobs During The Sputtering Recovery." "After suffering the largest share of job losses in the recession, Americans with no more than a high school education have continued to lose jobs during the sputtering recovery while better-educated people have gained millions of jobs, according to a Georgetown University study." (Richard Pérez-Peña, "Job Losses Persist For The Less-Educated," The New York Times, 8/15/12)

"The Slowest Growth In A Year Adds To Worries That The Economy Could Be Stalling Three Years After The Recession Ended." "The U.S. economy grew at an annual rate of just 1.5 percent from April through June, as Americans cut back sharply on spending. The slowest growth in a year adds to worries that the economy could be stalling three years after the recession ended." ("Economic Growth Slowed To 1.5 Percent Rate In 2nd Quarter, Slowest In A Year," The Associated Press, 7/27/12)

The Philadelphia Fed's Manufacturing Index "Stayed In Negative Territory In August" For The Fourth Straight Month. "The Philadelphia Fed's manufacturing index stayed in negative territory in August, coming in at negative 7.1 vs. negative 12.9 in July, which marks the fourth consecutive negative reading. Economists polled by MarketWatch expected a negative 5.0 reading." ("Aug. Philly Fed Negative For Fourth Month," MarketWatch, 8/16/12)

Without An Economic Record To Run On, The Obama Campaign Has Resorted to Frustrating And Dividing Americans:

For More Than A Week, The Obama Campaign "Has Refused To Disavow" The Obama Super PAC's Disgraceful Ads. "Despite that, the Obama campaign has refused to disavow the ad, despite repeated calls from the Romney campaign to do so, claiming they were unfamiliar with the man's situation." (Zeke Miller, "Obama SuperPAC Ad Accusing Romney Of Contributing To Woman's Death Now On TV," BuzzFeed, 8/14/12)

• Obama Campaign Strategist David Axelrod, On Obama Super PAC Ad: "Whatever. We Didn't Do The Ad." AXELROD: "No one should or could blame Governor Romney for the death of that guy's wife. I don't believe that ad said that. But whatever. We didn't do the ad." (MSNBC's "Morning Joe," 8/16/12)

Vice President Biden "Raised Eyebrows" When He Made Divisive Remarks Claiming Republicans Wanted To Put Americans "In Chains." "Vice President Biden raised eyebrows today when he referred to the Republican party as wanting to put voters in chains. ... 'Every Republican's voted for it. Look at what they value and look at their budget and what they're proposing. Romney wants to let the — he said in the first hundred days he's going to let the big banks once again write their own rules, 'unchain Wall Street.' They're going to put y'all back in chains.'" (Jake Tapper, "VP Biden Says Republicans Are 'Going To Put Y'all Back In Chains'," ABC News, 8/14/12)