Romney plan calls for middle class tax cuts, sanctions on China

Romney is also attempting to control the terms of the debate ahead of a major Republican forum tonight at the Reagan Library in Simi Valley, Calif. - and just two days before President Obama delivers his own speech on the economy before a joint session of Congress.

“We should have a job-creating machine in America,’’ Romney said yesterday. “Growth is the answer. Not government.’’

Waving an iPhone that he had pulled out of his pocket, he declared: “President Obama’s strategy is a pay-phone strategy in a smart-phone world.’’

Many of Romney’s policy ideas reflect long-held Republican orthodoxy and in some cases are proposals that he himself has already put forward. Both before and after his speech, Romney’s opponents, as well as Democrats, pounced on the notion that Romney should be considered the jobs candidate in the race.

“As governor of Massachusetts, Mitt Romney failed to create a pro-jobs environment and failed to institute many of the reforms he now claims to support,’’ Perry spokesman Mark Miner said. “Governor Perry has the strongest pro-jobs record and best philosophy to get America working again.’’

Romney’s plan, outlined in a 33-minute address and a 160-page book distributed ahead of his speech, suggests that, if elected, he would submit a jobs package on his first day in office consisting of five proposals, from reducing corporate income taxes to consolidating federal job retraining programs. Romney’s policy advisers project that the plan would create 11.5 million jobs over four years, lowering the unemployment rate to 5.9 percent and steering the country back to 4 percent annual growth.

Romney also made a concerted effort yesterday to appeal to middle-class Americans, and proposed eliminating taxes on interest, dividends, and capital gains for individuals earning less than $200,000 a year. His campaign declined to say how much the proposal would cost the government in lost revenue.