AD WATCH: New Ad Shows Romney Will Say Anything to Hide Failed Leadership

Washington, DC - On the same day McClatchy News reports that President Bush and his fellow Bush Republicans have raised government spending to its highest level in more than 40 years, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney is using yet another new ad to try to smooth talk voters into thinking he offers a new direction. Despite his vague promise to "audit" Washington and "cut spending," his record as Massachusetts governor and his rhetoric on the campaign trail show that all Romney has to offer is four more years of President Bush's failed fiscal leadership.

Not only did the state's budget increase every year Romney was governor, but on his watch Massachusetts lost 10,000 jobs, property taxes rose to their highest level in 25 years, and he raised so many fees on Massachusetts taxpayers that he earned a nickname in his home state: "Fee-Fee." In fact, on the whole, Romney's mismanagement of the Massachusetts economy prompted economists to declare the state's performance "one of the worst in the country."

Romney's ad mentions none of these facts, and fails to point out that on everything from the reckless Bush tax cuts to privatizing Social Security, Romney has switched his positions to bring them into alignment with President Bush's failed leadership. By contrast to the failed Bush-Romney vision, the only president to balance the budget in the last 40 years was Democratic President Bill Clinton, who left office with record surpluses that President Bush promptly translated into the worst deficits in history.

"Smooth talking Mitt Romney's slick ad campaign can't change the fact that, just like President Bush, Romney failed hard working families with economic policies that led to lost jobs and higher government spending," said Democratic National Committee spokesman Damien LaVera. "The American people are not going to replace one failed president whose economic policies have been a disaster for working families with another one cut from the same cloth."

Mitt Romney's Real Economic Record

WEAK ECONOMY: Economic Performance During Romney's Tenure as Mass Governor Was "One of the Worst in the Country." According to economists at Northeastern University, an analysis of the Massachusetts economy "reveals a weak comparative economic performance of the state over the Romney years, one of the worst in the country." [Boston Globe, 7/28/07]

RAISING FEES: Earned Nickname "Fee-Fee" For Raising Taxes and Fees. [Associated Press, 8/28/07] Boston Globe reported, "A survey of states grappling with spending crises has found that Massachusetts imposed more fee hikes than any other state in the nation this year - at least $500 million…The study by the National Conference of State Legislatures found that Massachusetts was one of 30 states that enacted fee increases this year…Of the 30 states to raise fees, only nine [brought] in $100 million or more from those fee hikes. Massachusetts reported $501.5 million in fee hikes." [Boston Globe, 7/24/03]

FLIP-FLOPPING ON SOCIAL SECURITY CUTS: Romney Weighing Deep Benefit Cuts After Saying He Would NOT Cut Social Security to Balance Federal Budget. In 1994, when Mitt Romney ran for U.S. Senate, he said he would not cut Social Security to meet his goal of balancing the federal budget. Romney said, "I don't think you go back and rewrite the contract the government has with people who've retired, but I do think there's a wide range of action we can take on entitlement programs: government pensions is one, our whole welfare system is another, and I think Medicare and Medicaid costs could be brought down by much more aggressive management." [Boston Globe, 10/17/94] Now, Romney is weighing a cut in the top individual tax rate from the current 35 percent; a reduction in the corporate income tax; and deep cuts in automatic-benefit programs such as Medicare and Social Security. [Bloomberg, 2/7/2007]

Privatizing Social Security: Romney Praised Personal Accounts for Social Security. Mitt Romney supported the notion of personal accounts for Social Security recipients, a key component of President Bush's Social Security reform plan that failed in Congress. Romney said it would be a good idea to use the Social Security trust fund to allow personal accounts, which could earn higher rates of return for beneficiaries. Romney said, "Personal accounts would be a big plus." [New Hampshire Union Leader, 6/7/07]

HIGHER PROPERTY TAXES: Romney Forced Hike in Local Commercial Property Taxes; Property Taxes Rose to Highest Level in 25 Years. According to Associated Industries of Massachusetts, the state's largest business group, Romney signed a measure that allowed local officials to raise the commercial property tax rate, which cost business owners $100 million. Romney's cuts to local aid forced Massachusetts property taxes to their highest level in 25 years. [Quincy Patriot Ledger, 12/16/05; Boston Globe, 10/24/05] Romney's cuts to local aid forced Massachusetts property taxes to their highest level in 25 years. [Quincy Patriot Ledger, 12/16/05; Boston Globe, 10/24/05]

LOST JOBS: Massachusetts Lost 10,000 Jobs During Romney Administration Watch. Romney oversaw a net decrease of more than 10,000 jobs in Massachusetts. [BostonHerald, 2/21/07]

INCREASED SPENDING: Gov. Romney Increased Budgets Each Year. The Romney Administration proposed four budgets while in office: covering fiscal years 2004-2007. Each budget increased spending over the previous year. The Administration's FY 04 budget called for $23.270 billion in funding. The Administration's FY 05 budget called for $24.514 billion in funding. The Administration's FY 06 budget called for $25.097 billion in funding. And the Administration's FY 07 budget called for $26.882 billion in funding. [Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation, 6/23/03, 6/704, 6/10/05, 6/22/06]

FLIP-FLOPPING ON TAX CUTS: Romney Supports Tax Cut He Once Mocked as Cut for Fat Cats. In 1996, Mitt Romney ran ads against Steve Forbes' flat tax plan, saying he "will not support a specific proposal unless it taxes investment income." Romney's ads asserted that the Forbes plan to eliminate taxes on dividends, interest and investment profit and institute a 17% tax on wages that would result in huge tax cuts for the "Kennedys, Rockefellers, and Forbes." The ad said, "It's a tax cut for fat cats." [BostonGlobe, 1/21/96; Hotline On-Call, 3/28/07]

• Mitt Romney 2003: Refused to Publicly Endorse Bush Tax Cuts. "Romney refused to endorse tax cuts at the heart of President Bush's economic program in 2003. Romney's spokesperson said that it's 'just not a state matter." [Boston Globe, 4/11/03]

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