Obama: Romney selling 'sketchy deal'

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ATHENS, Ohio, Oct. 17 (UPI) -- U.S. President Barack Obama said Wednesday Republican nominee Mitt Romney is "trying to sell you a sketchy deal."

Addressing supporters at Ohio University in Athens, Obama said Romney has "a tax plan that doesn't add up. He's got a jobs plan that doesn't create jobs. He's got a deficit plan that doesn't reduce the deficit."

Obama went on to say Romney is "not on the level," pointing out when Romney was governor of Massachusetts he "stood in front of a coal-fired plant and said, 'This plant kills people' -- and now he's running around talking like he's Mr. Coal."

Earlier Wednesday, addressing supporters in Mount Vernon, Iowa, the president said Tuesday's presidential debate in Hempstead, N.Y., made clear Romney's "tax plan doesn't add up; his jobs plan doesn't create jobs; his deficit reduction plan adds to the deficit."

"So, Iowa, everybody here has heard of the New Deal; you've heard of the fair deal; you've heard of the square deal," Obama said. "Mitt Romney is trying to sell you a sketchy deal."

The president repeated his charge Romney has refused to say how he would pay for "his $5 trillion tax cut that favors the wealthy" -- a claim the Romney campaign has disputed. At Tuesday night's debate, Romney said he would limit deductions to $25,000.

"He said he'd let you know after the election," Obama said. "Now, here's a tip: Usually when a politician tells you he's going to wait until after the election to explain a plan to you, they don't have a pleasant surprise in store for you."

Obama repeated his claim the Romney tax plan would mean "blowing a hole in the deficit or raising taxes on middle-class families." He also repeated a comment he made during the debate, that although Romney is campaigning on a five-point plan for the economy, the former Massachusetts governor has only "a one-point plan. It says folks at the very top can play by their own set of rules."

The president noted early in-person voting is under way in Iowa and urged those in the crowd to "vote for me today" if they haven't already voted.