John Sununu, a top surrogate for Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, had some harsh words for President Barack Obama on Tuesday in a sign that the campaign rhetoric is heating up along with the summer weather.
In a conference call with reporters, Sununu claimed that Obama did not understand how the American economy functions, slamming the president for his recent comments suggesting that entrepreneurs owe their success to outside forces.
"The men and women all over America who have worked hard to build their businesses from the ground up is how our economy became the envy of the world -- it is the American way," Sununu said. "I wish this president would learn how to be an American."
The last remark attracted a lot of attention, as some believed Sununu was hinting at the allegations that Obama was not born in the U.S.
Sununu, a former New Hampshire governor and White House chief of staff, sought to clarify his comments later in the call, saying that Obama has to "learn the American formula for creating business."
Still, Sununu remained on the attack throughout the call, calling the Obama campaign "stupid" for suggesting Romney may have avoided paying taxes and referencing the president's ties to convicted felon Tony Rezko that were an issue in the 2008 campaign.
Other Romney supporters on the call claimed that Obama's economic policies are akin to "socialism" and mocked him for using a teleprompter.
Obama campaign spokeswoman Lis Smith said the content of the call was a sign that the Romney campaign has "officially gone off the deep end."
"The question is what else they'll pull to avoid answering serious questions about Romney's tenure at Bain Capital and investments in foreign tax havens and offshore accounts," Smith said.
She added, "This meltdown and over-the-top rhetoric won't make things better- it only calls attention to how desperate they are to change the conversation."
by RTT Staff Writer
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