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Justin Sullivan / Getty Images
Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan sing along with Janna Ryan as the Oakridge Boys perform during a campaign rally at the Marion County Fairgrounds in Marion, Ohio on Sunday.
Ohio's Republican governor said Sunday that private polls show Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney beating President Barack Obama in the all-important battleground state of Ohio just as auto industry politics assume a dominant role in the closing days of the campaign.
Ohio Gov. John Kasich (R) predicted outright that Romney would win Ohio on "Meet the Press" and, with it, the presidential election — a overall contest which Kasich said wouldn't be that close.
"Right now, I believe we're currently ahead. Internals show us currently ahead," he said, referring to the private polling candidates routinely conduct. "Honestly, I believe that Romney is going to carry Ohio."
The governor's show of confidence comes after a week in which Obama and Romney — along with their respective running mates — barnstormed the Buckeye State in hopes of securing the state's 18 electoral votes, which would greatly enhance either candidate's hopes of winning the presidential election.
A Cincinnati Enquirer/Ohio News poll released Sunday and conducted Oct. 18-23 showed the two candidates tied at 49 percent apiece among likely voters in the state. Two other public polls earlier in the week, by CNN/ORC and TIME magazine, showed Obama leading by a small margin.
Romney was set to spend Sunday touring the Buckeye State after canceling a series of stops in Virginia due to the impending Hurricane Sandy; Obama will make a quick trip to Youngstown on Monday before returning to Washington to monitor the hurricane. The president canceled planned stops in northern Virginia and Colorado in the first half of this week.
Both the president and Romney are battling to turn out their supporters to the polls and shake loose the few remaining undecided voters in a handful of swing states. The Romney campaign has claimed that momentum is on their side, a claim which the Obama campaign argues is a bluff.
The Romney campaign circulated on Sunday several newspaper endorsements — the Des Moines Register and the Cincinnati Enquirer among them — to argue that the Republican ticket had made inroads in crucial swing states. The Obama campaign responded in kind by sending reporters endorsement editorials from the Youngstown Vindicator and the Toledo Blade, both of which referenced the 2009 auto industry bailout as a point in Obama's favor.
The auto bailout — which Romney had opposed, memorably, in a New York Times op-ed entitled "Let Detroit Go Bankrupt" — has assumed a central role in the closing days of the campaign, especially as the election plays out largely on a Midwestern, industrial and economically-battered playing field.
RELATED: Auto politics haunt Romney in NW Ohio
Kasich argued that the auto bailout hadn't actually boosted Ohio's economy as much as Obama would have the state's voters think.
"We are thrilled that we have a strong auto industry," he argued, "but it doesn't account for the growth of 112,000 jobs in our state."
Reuters, Getty Images
In the final push in the 2012 presidential election, candidates Mitt Romney and Barack Obama make their last appeals to voters.
The Romney campaign also aired a new ad in Ohio touting an endorsement from the right-leaning Detroit News and iconic automan Lee Iacocca, while also making a controversial claim about productions of Jeeps in China.
"Obama took GM and Chrysler into bankruptcy and sold Chrysler to Italians who are going to build Jeeps in China," the ad says in reference to plans by the auto company to build a new production facility in China to sell vehicles in that country.
The ad is accurate but plays to misinformation that spread earlier this week — partly because Romney had previously voiced the claims — suggesting that Chrysler was planning to move production of all Jeeps to China. The automaker has strongly disputed those reports, though they could have an impact in battleground corners of Ohio like Toledo, a major hub for Jeep production in North America.
First Read: Romney's Ohio fortunes tied to softening bailout stance
The governors of two other battleground states — John Hickenlooper (D) of Colorado and Scott Walker (R) of Wisconsin — relied on more traditional fare to make the case for and against their candidates.
"What are those deductions and tax credits he's going to get rid of?" Hickenlooper asked of Romney's tax reform plan, seizing on the former Massachusetts governor's refusal to specify which loopholes and deductions he would eliminate to finance his proposed tax cuts.
And Walker, whose contentious collective bargaining reforms sparked a standoff with his state legislature and a recall election which he won, argued that Romney has a track record of working in a bipartisan manner.
"He's proven that he can do it in a state like Massachusetts," Walker said.
But neither Walker nor Hickenlooper seemed as confident as Kasich, who predicted that the fate of Ohio's electoral votes — and the election — would be known early on election night.
"I'm not sure the election's going to be as close as what everybody is talking about today," he said.
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Obama had an eight (8) point approval rating just one (1) week ago.
Romney is now leading by three (3) points!
THAT IS AN ELEVEN POINT SURGE!!!!
Jaguars Quarterback Blaine Gabbert predicts the Jaguars beat the Packers Sunday. Tom Brady predicts Patriots will beat the giants in the Superbowl.
WHY DID I CLICK ON THIS MORONS ARTICLE?
The Cincinnati Enquirer poll mentioned in this article showing Obama and Romney tied was conducted Oct 18-23, most interviews occurring before the last debate (Oct 22).
All polls conducted fully after the last debate show Obama ahead by 2-5 points.
Likely voters in Ohio-just in!!!! Romney up by 5 points!!!
God help the USA if Mitt gets elected! It will be a very sad day knowing this is the best you have to run.
Is Ohio the state where Romney's son controls the voting machines?
Polls-shmools; the only one that counts is the one on Nov. 6th.
Jackass wall street, crook!
Why would anyone believe what these rightwing nuts say.
The Obama administration is accused of distorting the account of the attack on Sept. 11 that killed Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans.
Officials first blamed it on a mob set into motion by an anti-Islamic film. Obama administration officials have pointed to U.S. intelligence reports that showed conflicting information.
Administration officials did not respond to requests for comment.
9/11/2001 WTF Hypocrit?
HEHEHEHE .. ROMNEY CAMPAIGN BUSTED PHOTOSHOPPING .... go check out the photo shopped (horribly done) so the crowd at Romney's rally looked bigger .... the photo had far too many ERRORS in it to be worth anything ... too funny .... then another photoshop error at a military rally .... same group of men ... posted in one photo but several times over and over ....
..... you think he could at least hire a good photo shop person to make it look realistic .... heck my 12 year old grandson coulda done a better job with his camera .....
... go check out the photo's ......EPIC photo shop disaster .... just type in Mitts imaginary rally crowd ...
LIAR LIAR LIAR .... OMG ... Can u believe this guy ..... cheat and liar ...
OBAMA 2012
Before voting - Please read Pastor E.W. Jackson's commentary Exodus Now - he is a black Marine Minister.
Roselle,
It seems you and Pigotry just can't help yourselves. You just have to vomit up the democratic party line. To listen to you, your savor of the common man is already elected. Um, did anyone tell you he is part of the 1%. I will say again that I am curious as to how he has amassed an estimated 11 million dollars working what amounted to part time jobs until he became President. Curiouser and curiouser.
Paul-401431:
It's called royalties from BOOK SALES. Whether you like it or not, President Obama's books were best sellers.
I just love these 2-4 week old poll numbers quoted by Democons!!
I love the smell of desperation in the morning.
Democons don't surf!
Getting desperate, are we?
Obama up two to one, in early voting in Ohio!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Lack of leadership and responsibility leads to failure...
Example: Barack Obama 2008-2012
Nov 6 provides the opportunity to end the Obama No Plan, No Deal, No Ideas presidency
The GOP mafia is going down.
If Romney wins, Ohio like many other "used to be" industrial and manufacturing states in the midwest region will be grave yards and ghost towns. As far as the 12 million jobs Romney keeps B.S.ing about. I think he's making reference to the 12 million American jobs that will be lost here, and outsourced to Sri Lanka and China. BTW, didn't Romney say once that "Government doesn't create job"? BTW, Romney still supports Richard "I believe pregnancy as a result of rape is a Gift from God" Mourdock out in Indiana. Mitt Romney's a "Political Moderate". Yeah, in a pig's eye.
Give women credit, they are smart enough to know what to do with their own bodies. GM and auto needs re-structure-AGAIN, or ALL of the auto jobs will be gone. Ford shuttering three plants in EU last week, Volt production line shut off, 73% of reported sales are channel-stuffed to dealers or sold at discount to MSRP overseas. These fixes are akin to building clown cars, not a real foundation for auto.
One last gasp to try and breathe life into the base; show a positive front and maybe it'll turn our way. I think the GOP knows it is over. Do the math, the numbers are against the Governor. Ohio, like NH, Wisconsin, Nevada and Iowa, will all go to President Obama.
And just like in 2004 when is some counties there were more rep votes than voters Kasich will make sure that happens. Hamilton County and Cincy are fascist strongholds so that explains the poll. If Ohio really picked the guy who wanted US auto industry to be picked over by vulture capitalists like Romney then the people are truly stupid and when austerity leads to 25% unemployment like Europe they can suck on it. They can also count on war with Iraq since Romney's advisors are neo-cons. How does adding another war to the budget help the deficit. Romney and his ilk want to BK America so they can kill the New Deal and great Society.
The math doesn't work no matter how much the right tries to put a spin on it. Obama will win and hopefully Romney will stop running for President after 2 failed attempts.
Barack was caught in a lie "off the record" on sequestration in Iowa Thursday but it is now being reported in the Des Moines Register....contradicting his earlier position
"Yes We Lie!" (and it doesn't matter) Obama/DNC 2012 Legacy
Republicans are desperate. They tout this Cincinnati Enquirer poll which was conducted mostly before the last presidential debate. Post debate polls show Obama up by 2-5 points in Ohio.
Team Obama/Biden counting on you to be stupid.
Raise your hand if you think or know.....he was talking about you
Right wing predictions never turn out so well, remember the predictions on Iraq before we invaded?
"We'll be out in less than a year, with minimal loss of life and at a cost of less than $50 billion"
Not to mention never finding WMD's!!!
Wrong...
Obama/Biden 2012!!!
Why would anybody vote for a man that lied to the American people about the 4 Great Americans being killed and they just sat their and watched then the next day he goes to Nevada and does fund raising Obama has the worst agenda he has a bad economy, way to many people on Welfare, the debt is out of control and to many people out of work DemocRATS are all the same tax and spend and that don't work AMERICANS NEED TO WAKE AND LOOK AT THE FACTS ROMNEY 2012
Why would Cheney and Bush lie about Iraq,4700 dead,32,000 wounded,Ditto Head. Plus we don't know all the facts.Did the CIA hold back support?Wh knows..But we all know about the Iraq fraud.
Bill your stupid
how funny is it that this close to the election muzlim barry and his senile sidekick are still trying to rally their sponge voter base in states that should be easy wins for them. the writing is on the wall libs. enjoy your last few days of your king.
BTW - my prediction is Obama by 4% with 283 Electoral votes.
Don't believe polls - the only poll that could have any credible figures is a poll on - Who is sick and tired of polls?-be sure to believe in yourself and vote your head and heart - your vote is essential, please vote.