Economy Dominates GOP And Democratic Campaign Events In NH
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Not long after launching his general election campaign in Manchester, presumptive GOP nominee Mitt Romney hit the Seacoast
Both the Obama and Romney camps campaigned in New Hampshire today. Governor Romney made a stop along the waterfront in Portsmouth with fellow Republican–and US Senator–Kelly Ayotte. Meanwhile, Lilly Ledbetter (of Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act fame–more on that in a minute) campaigned for Obama in Hanover. And both, in their own ways, focused on issues tied to jobs and the economy.
Let’s start with Romney, who opted for a hyper-local approach in his brief stump speech. Charles McMahon of SeacoastOnline.com reports:
“…presumptive presidential nominee Mitt Romney told members of the local fishing community that he was here to help.
Romney, who was introduced by U.S. Sen. Kelly Ayotte, said if elected as president, he would fight to fix the over-regulation of small businesses, particularly of the fishing industry.
He also blasted the current Obama administration for what he called its failure to cultivate a friendly business environment for business owners such as fishermen.”
And on the Obama side, if the name “Lilly Ledbetter” sounds familiar, but you can’t quite place it, she’s the Alabama Goodyear worker who filed an equal pay lawsuit against her employer on the grounds that she was making less than her male counterparts. She ultimately took her case to the US Supreme Court and lost, on the grounds that her window to sue–180 days after her first discriminatory paycheck–had expired. But in 2009 the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act became the first piece of legislation President Obama signed into law. Under the act, a worker can challenge any paycheck he or she believes to be discriminatory within 180 days, not just the first check. Lilly Ledbetter was a cause célèbre for Obama during his 2008 campaign. And now, it seems, she’s been called back to campaign against Romney. Holly Ramer of the AP writes:
“Romney’s campaign has said he has no interest in changing the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, the first legislation President Barack Obama signed into law as president. Campaigning for Obama in Hanover on Monday, Ledbetter said that’s not good enough because he has what she called a history of flip-flopping. Romney’s campaign also won’t say whether he would have signed it if he were president, which Ledbetter said she takes as a ‘no.'”
