“Here’s the problem he faces: There has been this weird wholesale change in the way voters in New Hampshire see him,’’ said Jennifer Duffy, senior analyst at the nonpartisan Cook Political Report.
The state Democratic Party blames much of the negative perception on the near-daily presence of GOP presidential candidates, who have crisscrossed the state pummeling the president and his policies.
“It’s pretty constant,’’ state party spokeswoman Holly Shulman said. “We’re really excited for [Obama] to be here.’’
But his visit will not be without even more pummeling.
Romney is launching his first television ad in New Hampshire targeting the president today, and two surrogates, Senator Kelly Ayotte, Republican of New Hampshire, and former Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty, have scheduled a conference call after the president’s appearance.
Romney said on Fox News yesterday that his TV spot will contrast Obama’s promises of 2008 with economic realities of his third year as president.
“The contrast between what he said and what he did is so stark,’’ Romney said, according to a Fox transcript, “people will recognize we really do need to have someone new lead this country.’’
The president, who is scheduled to speak at an event at Manchester Central High School, visited the same high school when he was running for president in 2007. His last trip to the state was in February 2010, when he talked up his health care legislation at a high school in Nashua.
Today’s visit is the latest in a string of presidential trips to battleground states since he introduced his jobs bill in September. The White House has said the forays are designed to take the president’s case for passage of the legislation directly to the public with hopes of pressuring Congress to pass it.
