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During a one-on-one interview Tuesday, Texas Gov. Rick Perry said President Obama's reliance on economic advisers with an academic background, instead of ones with business experience, fatally wounded his fiscal policies.

"He has academics who have gone to some great schools and they are intelligent and very, very smart, but he does not have wise men and women around him," Perry told conservative talk show host Sean Hannity on his radio program. "And that's what his real problem is."

Perry stayed mostly on script during his interview Tuesday, focusing primarily on his 10-year record as governor, which featured some of the most robust job creation of any state in the country.

"People have watched us, maybe not terrifically closely, but they know the story of Texas," he said. "They know there's something special going on here. And the leadership that has been exhibited from the governor's position has been powerful."

The interview came hours after Perry's chief rival for the GOP nomination, Mitt Romney, took a thinly veiled shot at Perry's 26-year career in government during a speech in San Antonio, saying career politicians can't solve the problem they created. But the Texas governor steered clear of controversy. Asked what he thought of Romney, Perry said he didn't know him well enough to make a judgment before declaring that Republican voters aren't interested in personal squabbles between candidates.

"Americans are not interested in petty attacks on personalities and what-have-you," said the Texas governor. "They want to see a leader to stand up and say, 'Here's where we're going, here's how we're going to get there -- let's go.'"