President Obama's campaign manager responded to Rick Santorum's departure from the presidential race with a statement attacking Mitt Romney, now the presumptive Republican nominee.
“It’s no surprise that Mitt Romney finally was able to grind down his opponents under an avalanche of negative ads. But neither he nor his special-interest allies will be able to buy the presidency with their negative attacks," said the campaign official, Jim Messina.
Though his comments were headlined "Statement on Today's Developments in the Campaign," Messina never mentioned Santorum by name. Instead, he linked Romney to a hodgepodge of campaign buzzwords. Negative ads, special interests, the tea party, and failed economic policies all got a mention.
"The more the American people see of Mitt Romney, the less they like him and the less they trust him. While calling himself the ‘ideal candidate’ for the tea party, he has promised to return to the same policies that created the economic crisis and has alienated women, middle-class families, and Hispanic Americans," Messina wrote.
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee also called the nomination for Romney—and held that up as a reason for supporters to donate right away to the party's House candidates.
"Now that it’s clear Mitt Romney is their nominee, Republicans will focus their unified resources toward defeating President Obama,” DCCC Research Director Kevin McKeon said in an email. “The next 24 hours are crucial. Democrats must have the strongest showing possible to prove we have what it takes to fight Republicans’ attacks and win in 2012.”
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