Tim Pawlenty says President Barack Obama’s 2008 campaign of hope and change has become the campaign of “bait and switch” in 2012. “It is an easy case to make why Barack Obama shouldn't be re-elected president of the United States,” the former Minnesota governor told Fox News’ Sean Hannity Monday.
“You know, he made all of these great promises and hope and change has become bait and switch,” added Pawlenty, who is considered a strong front-runner as a possible vice presidential running mate for Mitt Romney.
Despite polls showing increased support for Obama over Romney in a number of key battleground states, Pawlenty insisted the American people won’t be tricked this time around by the president’s promises.
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“The American people are not dumb. They are wise,” he said. They won’t want to be duped twice.
“So these big speeches . . . that he gives, they don’t put gas in the car; they don't pay the mortgage; they don’t pay the grocery bill; they don’t take care of your kids’ college,” Pawlenty continued. “We can’t eat and live on his teleprompter speeches. That’s not working. People have figured it out.”
The Romney campaign is expected to name the pick for vice president soon, but Pawlenty declined to comment on whether he’s still in the running.
Regardless, Pawlenty, who has become one of Romney’s most visible surrogates on the campaign trail, said any of the candidates mentioned as the Republican nominee’s potential running mate would be able to make the case that Obama “should be terminated from his job.”
“He doesn’t deserve re-election,” Pawlenty said. “And you have to make the case why he has failed as president.
“It’s not hard to do. I mean a third-grader could do this,” he added, reeling off a list of reasons for the country to dump Obama, ranging from the bad economy to Obamacare.
Pawlenty also cited a new, extremely negative campaign ad by a super PAC supportive of the president as more evidence that Obama should go. The ad features a steelworker who essentially blames Romney’s actions as head of Bain Capital for the death of his wife, who had cancer.
The worker says in the ad he was laid off and lost his family health insurance after Romney’s company shut the plant down.
Republicans have criticized the ad as going too far and Pawlenty called it a “factual lie” about Romney’s time at Bain.
“That’s not befitting of the office [of the president], and it reflects a campaign and a super PAC agenda that is not befitting of the country,” he charged.
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