Republican ad attacking Obama economic record airs in Norfolk

Ahead of Tuesday evening's State of the Union address, the Republican National Committee has launched a new television ad critical of President Barack Obama's economic stewardship that's airing in Norfolk and other media markets.

It highlights the 13 million Americans out of work and 49 million living in poverty to drive home the message that Obama hasn't fixed an economy still wobbly after the Great Recession. The ad can be viewed below.

“Barack Obama has a lot of a explaining to do in tonight’s State of the Union Address,” RNC chairman Reince Priebus said in a statement about the ad. “One year ago, he stood before the American people and promised he would tackle the housing crisis, rampant joblessness and get our economy back on track. But one year later, it’s more than clear that his sole priority is getting reelected.”

Obama is expected to offer ideas for strengthening the middle class in his Tuesday night speech to the nation.

The Republican spot is also on the airwaves in the Washington D.C.; Charlotte, NC; and Grand Rapids, MI markets.

It comes about one week after the debut of an Obama re-election campaign spot highlighting his clean energy record and follows the release Monday of a new digital ad (see below) touting private sector job growth on his watch.

UPDATE: Responding to a request for comment, a national Democratic Party official Tuesday dismissed the GOP ad as a distortion of Obama's words and records.

"The RNC is doing what it does best -- misleading voters on the President's record to keep from talking about the GOP's plans to reinstate the same failed policies that drove this economy into recession," Democratic National Committee spokeswoman Melanie Roussell said in a statement.

Democrats say Obama save 1.4 million American jobs through the auto bailout, noting the private sector has added 3.1 million jobs over 22 consecutive months while manufacturers added 334,000 jobs in the past two years, the first time industry employment has risen since 1997.

"The President has shown us what change is by steering this economy in the right direction -- the RNC doesn't want to talk about that because the failed GOP policies of the past nearly drove us off a cliff," Roussell added.

-- Julian Walker

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