Romney: Obama neglecting the economy

BOSTON, July 19 (UPI) -- Presumptive GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney said Thursday President Obama has spent too much time fundraising and not enough time on fixing the economy.

The White House responded that the president has taken action on the council's recommendations to a greater degree than Congress has.

"We're surprised that the president has not met with his Jobs Council in the last six months, and the White House asked why that was and they said, 'Well, the president has a lot on his plate,'" Romney said at a campaign stop in Massachusetts. "And so we took a look at his schedule and over the last six months he has done 106 fundraisers, and so I think you learned something about the president's priorities."

"I want to be clear -- the president is extremely appreciative of the initiatives and ideas that have been put forward by his Jobs Council," White House Press Secretary Jay Carney told reporters aboard Air Force One Thursday on the way to a campaign rally in Florida, one day after saying Obama has "a lot on his plate," ABC News reported.

"You should know that the administration has acted on 90 percent of those initiatives that we can act on -- that the president can act on through his executive authority," Carney said, noting Congress has acted on just 20 percent of the proposals that require congressional action.

"This president is focused on job creation and economic growth and he is using every tool in his toolbox to advance job creation and economic growth through his executive action," Carney said. "But we need Congress to act, too. Every economist whose Ph.D. is worth the paper it is printed on will tell you that the initiatives that Congress has so far refused to pass in the American Jobs Act would create at least a million jobs and would add to our economic growth."

The American Crossroads super PAC backing Romney added more negative advertising to the already crowded airwaves this campaign season, alleging Obama's own negative ads are meant to distract voters from his record on the economy, the Los Angeles Times said.

The $9.3 million ad buy from American Crossroads is well timed for Romney, who can't use his own campaign funds to buy TV time until the general election campaign begins, after he is nominated at the Republican convention in August.