April 30, 2012, PORTSMOUTH — Help is on the way for struggling business owners in the form of likely Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney, said New Hampshire Sen. Kelly Ayotte during a campaign appearance with Romney.
Romney highlighted rising gas prices during his late-morning appearance at the Portsmouth Fish Pier today, and argued government regulation is one of the largest impediments to the improvement of the American economy.
Yellow and green fishing traps served as the backdrop for Romney's appearance, which took place beside the entrance on a rocky outcropping of land at the foot of Portsmouth Harbor.
Romney and Ayotte were surrounded by more than a dozen local fishermen, and used the setting to highlight new limits on commercial fishing that went into effect in 2010.
Romney said regulators are multiplying like “proverbial rabbits” under Obama's administration, and “union stooges” are controlling competitive bidding processes to keep labor markets closed.
With the masts of fishing vessels bobbing behind him, Romney explained that fishermen are suffering both from strict limitations from the government and the rising price of fuel. Romney said commercial fishermen burn an average of about 100 gallons of diesel fuel a day, and the president's reluctance to tap the country's oil resources will only exacerbate the price increases.
“We need a President who understands the power of free enterprise because he's lived it, and I have, and I will, and I'll make sure that's part of our future,” Romney said.
Read the full story at Foster's Daily Democrat.