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"First, we learned that Gov. Romney may keep his investments offshore in order to claim special tax breaks," Obama spokesman Ben LaBolt said. "Now, we found out that he may have engaged in questionable maneuvers to drive up the value of his IRA." Obama himself is far more wealthy than the average voter, though not in Romney's class, and he earned his fortune in recent years. The president and his wife, Michelle, reported income of $1.73 million in 2010, mostly from the books he's written, according to his tax return. That was down from the $5.5 million of a year earlier. Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., a rising star in the GOP who endorsed Romney on Friday, suggested that criticism from Obama and Santorum would fall flat. "Here in Wisconsin we appreciate people who are successful. We reward hard work," Ryan said. "Since when is that a bad thing?" Exit polling suggests that Romney may have to broaden his appeal to middle-class voters. He has consistently performed better than his rivals among voters with higher family incomes. Although Romney has lost the overall vote in eight of the 18 states where exit or entrance polls were conducted, he only lost voters with six-figure incomes in three of them.
In Louisiana, the high-dollar tilt in Romney's support was particularly pronounced: A majority of those who voted for Romney had six-figure family incomes though that group made up just three in 10 voters. He's trying to broaden his appeal, in part, by chatting about gambling. "We were talking about that. I guess there is a massive, massive lottery," Romney said while visiting a restaurant Friday evening as Mega Millions ticketholders across the country awaited a record drawing. "I'm not planning on playing the lottery." With a dry smile, he took a shot at a mega-donor and casino mogul who supports Newt Gingrich's campaign. "I understand that Sheldon Adelson has bought some tickets," he said.
[Associated
Press;
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