By Pat Garofalo
The Romney campaign this week is reprising former President Reagans are you better off? question, in an attempt to paint President Obama as a failure when it comes to the economy. He cant tell you that youre better off, said Vice Presidential candidate Paul Ryan. Simply put, the Jimmy Carter years look like the good old days compared to where we are now. Romney introduced the theme during his speech before the Republican National Convention, saying, every president since the Great Depression who came before the American people asking for a second term could look back at the last four years and say with satisfaction: you are better off today than you were four years ago. Except Jimmy Carter. And except this president.
Saying that things are better off is an insult, added Romney campaign adviser Eric Fehrnstrom. But if its an insult to say that the economy is better off, then Mitt Romney has been slinging some insults of his own, considering how he answered a question from conservative talk radio host Laura Ingraham back in January:
INGRAHAM: Youve also noted that there are signs of improvement on the horizon in the economy. How do you answer the presidents argument that the economy is getting better in a general election campaign if you yourself are saying its getting better?
ROMNEY: Well, of course its getting better. The economy always gets better after a recession, there is always a recovery. [ ]
INGRAHAM: Isnt it a hard argument to make if youre saying, like, OK, he inherited this recession, he took a bunch of steps to try to turn the economy around, and now, were seeing more jobs, but vote against him anyway? Isnt that a hard argument to make? Is that a stark enough contrast?
ROMNEY: Have you got a better one, Laura? It just happens to be the truth.
More: Romney On Whether We're Better Off: 'Of Course It's Getting Better' | ThinkProgress