Romney campaign forms black council

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BOSTON, Sept. 5 (UPI) -- Mitt Romney's presidential campaign announced Wednesday the formation of a Black Leadership Council.

The group is chaired by Rep. Tim Scott, R-S.C., Rep. Allen West, R-Fla., and Florida Lt. Gov. Jennifer Carroll. Its advisory council includes Mia Love, who as mayor of Saratoga Springs is the first black woman to govern a Utah city. Love was one of the stars of the Republican convention last week in Tampa, Fla.

In recent decades, blacks have been the most reliably Democratic group in the country and voted overwhelmingly for Barack Obama, the first black to receive the presidential nomination from a major party.

The Romney group's leaders argue this year their candidate is the one who can help blacks.

"Barack Obama spoke to the best in us when he ran for president in 2008," West said. "Today, he's running a negative campaign that says nothing about how we will end this economic downturn and put our country back on the path to prosperity. In Mitt Romney, we have a proven leader who will not speak to America with empty platitudes and soaring rhetoric, but will restore the exceptionalism of our Republic and secure the American dream for future generations. President Obama has been, and will continue to be, a disappointment."