Bob McDonnell Urges Tax, Regulatory Certainty

AP

Mitt Romney

Fresh off the campaign trail with Mitt Romney, Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell laid out his case for why the Republican should occupy the White House next year.

“This is a candidate, Mitt Romney, that’s created 100,000 jobs, went from 50th to 30th as governor of Massachusetts,” he said on CNBC’s “The Kudlow Report.” “He is the American dream. He can talk about it, and he’ll inspire people to grow.”

McDonnell, who has been mentioned as a potential running mate for the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, criticized President Obama over jobs. He did not address the topic.

(Related Story: Eric Cantor Pushes Bob McDonnell for VP Spot)

“If I had an abysmal record like Barack Obama when it came to job creation, I certainly wouldn’t be criticizing anybody else about their jobs record,” he said. “We have lost certainty and predictability in the regulatory and tax climate in America, and this is why we’re recovering so slowly.”

A recent Obama campaign ad cast Romney as “outsourcer-in-chief” over what he said was a record of sending jobs abroad.

Earlier in the day Obama, who was fundraising in Atlanta and Miami, expanded upon the assertions made in the campaign ads.

“His basic vision is one in which if wealthy investors like him, folks at the very top, are freed up from any kind of regulations, if they are maximizing their profits, even if they are polluting more, or offshoring jobs or avoiding taxes or busting union, whatever the strategy is — if they are doing well, then everybody else is automatically doing well," Obama told an Atlanta crowd, according to an Associated Press story.

McDonnell struck back regarding the Obama campaign’s label for Romney.

“He’s talking about his positive vision, and he’s not going to respond to every little attack that the Obama people come up with because they can’t run on their failed record of leadership,” he said.

McDonnell also took a shot at the Environmental Protection Agency.

“You’ve got to get rid of all this unbelievable bureaucratic mandate from the EPA,” he said. “You’ve got to be positive and confident about having the attitude for business development. You’ve got to have the right tax and regulatory policy.”

McDonnell said that the Romney campaign had a clear message.

“It's focusing on jobs and economic recovery and developing of our energy resources, getting us out of debt,” he said.

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