As Tide Shifts, Romney Pins Hopes on Ohio

Just two weeks ago, Mitt Romney advisers were talking about ways to win the election without winning Ohio—a state every Republican president has carried. Now, with 28 days left to campaign and the incumbent floundering, Romney is doubling down on efforts in the state, seeking a path to victory via Ohio, Virginia, Florida, and Iowa. Both candidates are visiting Ohio today, but Romney will stay on for what the New York Times calls some of his most aggressive stumping yet. That includes his first ad speaking directly to voters.

Up to this point, ads from President Obama and his backers had appeared 1,100 times in Youngstown, while almost no pro-Romney ads had appeared in the city. "We’ve got a great opportunity to keep the momentum going," says state campaign boss Sen. Rob Portman. Obama heads to Ohio State University for a rally today; Romney will rally with Chris Christie this evening in Akron. Team Obama, meanwhile, is homing in on Big Bird in a cheeky ad out this morning, the AP reports. "Big. Yellow. A menace to our economy. Mitt Romney knows it's not Wall Street you have to worry about. It's Sesame Street." The ad, however, will not air in battleground states. (More Mitt Romney stories.)