When Ann Romney stepped up to the microphone in DeWitt, Mich., Tuesday afternoon and held up the palm of her hand, the crowd erupted in cheers.
Standing in front of hundreds of supporters, she pointed to places on her hand corresponding to places in the state she and her husband, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, had lived.
“Mitt and I are Michiganders, as you know,” she said. “I am so excited to be back in Michigan.”
Mitt and Ann Romney made a stop at Sweetie-licious Bakery Cafe in DeWitt Tuesday as part of a six-state campaign tour this week.
Mitt Romney emphasized his Michigan roots and his support for local small business, thanking Sweetie-licious owner Linda Hundt for her hard work while chiding President Barack Obama for creating more government regulation hoops for small business to jump through.
Another large part of Mitt Romney’s speech criticized Obama for not improving job growth in the U.S. during his presidency.
“Four years ago we elected a president we didn’t know very much about,” Mitt Romney said. “He talked about hope and change. He was going to make the economy better with hope and change. Now he’s hoping to change the subject.”
But Mitt Romney was met with opposition by more than a dozen protesters from Good Jobs Now, a Detroit coalition of community members coming together to solve problems they face.
Latoya Walker, a member of Good Jobs Now, said Mitt Romney’s wealth illustrates an income inequality that is unfair toward poorer people, and he should work to create better jobs to even those inequalities out.
“We thought maybe we could get people together and give him a word,” Walker said.
The group gave Mitt Romney a few words during his speech, as they chanted “Four more years!” referring to supporting a second term for Obama as president.
Mitt Romney playfully responded to the protesters by asking the crowd of his supporters if they would tolerate four more years of low job growth, government regulation and unemployment.
“This election comes down to a dramatic choice in direction, of what kind of America we want,” he said, chastising Obama for leading the U.S. down a reckless spending path.
Lansing resident Rhonda Fuller said she originally supported Newt Gingrich for president, but after his presidential bid began to fall apart, she switched her allegiance to Mitt Romney.
“Gingrich was my man, but I’ll take Romney over Obama any day,” she said.
Mitt Romney alluded to growing up in Michigan until he was 19, and said he was excited to be back in his home state.
Fuller said Mitt Romney campaigning in Michigan helps him connect with his roots as a Michiganian, which could be beneficial come the November election.
“I suppose it does help him because there’s a pride in having a president who is from the state,” Fuller said. “I think it’ll help him, and I think it’s a great thing he’s getting to see the real people, because that’s what we are.”
Mitt Romney said Obama’s leadership is harmful to maintaining the U.S.’s position in the global market and keeping government spending to a minimum for future generations.
“It’s our turn to grab that torch and to hold it aloft,” he said. “It’s the torch of freedom and opportunity, of hope and liberty. It’s not America’s torch, but it’s America’s duty and America’s honor to hold that torch aloft.”
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