Romney Returns to His Mainstay: The Economy

By ASHLEY PARKER

BETTENDORF, Iowa - With the unwanted distractions of Representative Todd Akin's “legitimate rape” comments still swirling in the background on Wednesday, Mitt Romney returned to his political mainstay during a campaign stop at LeClaire Manufacturing here - hitting President Obama over the economy.

From the signage in the backdrop (“We Did Build It!”) to the shirts the company's employees wore (navy blue T-shirts, courtesy of the campaign, saying “Government didn't build my business - I did”), Mr. Romney's rally in Iowa was designed to return attention to comments Mr. Obama made last month, when he said, “If you've got a business - you didn't build that.”

The president was referring to the government infrastructure that he said helps businesses thrive. But the Romney campaign quickly pounced, seizing the remarks as a convenient shorthand to explain why, in their view, the economy is not growing as quickl y as it should.

Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds, who helped introduce Mr. Romney, said that he understood what went into creating a successful enterprise.

“Isn't it exciting to have someone running for the president who understands what it takes to build a stronger economy?” Ms. Reynolds said. “Mitt Romney understands that this economy runs on and was built by individual entrepreneurs pursing the American dream. President Obama's naïve economic policies have failed us.”

Mr. Romney also wasted no time before tearing into Mr. Obama.

“President Obama, bless his heart, has tried to substitute government for free people, and it has not worked, and it'll never work,” Mr. Romney said. “I mentioned he said he'd cut the deficit in half - he doubled it. He said he'd get people good jobs. Instead, we've gone 42 straight months with unemployment over 8 percent. Twenty-three million Americans out of work or stopped looking for w ork. It's inexcusable.”

He also echoed a point that both he and his running mate, Paul D. Ryan, have previously made on the trail: that individuals are not empowered by their government.

“That insight of the power of the individual is what led the founders of this country, in the founding documents of this nation, to write words that changed the world,” he said. “They said that our rights came from God, not from government, from God.”

Mr. Romney urged the crowd to be skeptical of government investments.

“We're finally going to have to stop spending at the government level more than we take in,” he said. “Let me tell you, you've got to beware of government bearing gifts because you're paying for those gifts.”

At one point, roughly midway through his speech, Mr. Romney was interrupted by a heckler.

“I'll answer your question in a moment, but if you'll sit down and let me speak, then I'll let you ask your question,” Mr. Romney told the rowdy man. “You know there is always an occasion to ask me questions. I'm happy to answer those questions, but only when we come to question-and-answer time.”

As the crowd drowned out the heckler with chants of “U.S.A.,” Mr. Romney added: “If that gentleman wants to wait outside, and ask me a question, I'm happy to answer it.”

After the event, however, Mr. Romney headed to a private area to do some local television interviews, and the heckler had already left the property, having been escorted out of the event by the police.