HENDERSON, NV-- Mitt Romney fired up supporters here today, telling them the presidential debates have "supercharged" his campaign and arguing that President Obama's strategy of attacking Romney rather than outlining a second term agenda is backfiring.
"My guess is you have the chance to watch that debate last night, maybe a couple of debates," Romney said, in his first public appearance since Monday's third and final presidential debate. "And these debates have supercharged our campaign, there's no question about it. We're seeing more and more enthusiasm, more and more support."
As both campaigns jockeyed today to claim victory in the final debate, Romney and running mate Paul Ryan both told a crowd of some 6,000 supporters at their first of two joint rallies of the day that momentum was on their side.
"I had to look at the president's campaign as well, through the eyes of those debates and well you know he's ah, he's been reduced to try to defend characters on Sesame Street and ah, word games of various kinds, and then misfired attacks after one another," Romney said. "You know the truth is that attacks on me are not an agenda."
"What we saw last night was Mitt Romney being concerned about America’s position in the world and President Obama more concerned about his position in this race,” Ryan said.
Earlier Tuesday, the Obama campaign pushed back on claims that the president lacks a second-term agenda, publishing a 20-page pamphlet that Obama himself brandished at a campaign event in Florida this morning. Romney campaign senior adviser Kevin Madden dismissed the pamphlet as a "glossy panic button," and Romney too brushed off Obama's plans as more of the same.
"His is a status-quo candidacy. His is a message of going forward with the same policies of the last four years. And that’s why his campaign is slipping and ours is gaining so much steam," Romney said.
With just 14 days to go before Election Day, the VP nominee helped fire up the base as well in the rally outside of Las Vegas.
“And in 2 weeks from today, he is going to become former President Barack Obama, and Mitt Romney is going to be the next president of the United States,” Ryan said.
The Obama campaign fired back after the rally, calling Romney "dour, defensive and dishonest," and insisting it was Romney who stumbled in last night's debate, and who "failed to present any specific plans for what he'd do as president."
The GOP ticket’s appearance in the Silver State comes on the same day NBC News updated it’s battleground map, using a combination of poll data and reporting from both campaigns to move Nevada into the “lean Dem” category. Despite its significant Mormon population and economic struggles, Romney advisers concede that Colorado is a more likely pickup than Nevada among the Western battlegrounds.
That leaves just 89 electoral votes in the “toss up” category. The seven remaining Toss-up states: Colorado, Florida, Iowa, New Hampshire, Ohio, Virginia, and Wisconsin.
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Romney and Ryan head to Colorado next, holing an evening rally with Kid Rock and country singer Rodney Atkins, as well New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez, making only her second appearance on the trail with the Republican candidate.
