Texas Gov. Rick Perry made a stop in Pueblo Sunday afternoon to campaign for Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney.
Perry spoke mainly about the economy to a crowd of about 60 people in the 4H Building at the Colorado State Fairgrounds.
"One of the reasons I think it's important to elect Mitt Romney is because of areas like Pueblo," Perry said to the crowd. "With unemployment reaching up to 12 percent here, it's unsustainable from the standpoint of being able to take care of families."
Perry touched on the energy jobs Texas has been able to create during his time as governor and said it's possible to create much of the same in Pueblo and throughout Colorado.
"The jobs that can be created here in just the energy sector alone with the right policy can be huge," Perry said.
A good portion of Perry's 10-minute speech was spent juxtaposing Romney with President Barack Obama.
Perry said Obama has gone 3-1/2 years without addressing the issue of how to get Americans back to work.
"The president has overseen an economy that has almost doubled the price of gas and almost doubled the amount of national debt and the best he has to say is, 'Give me another four years,' " Perry said. "Romney has given a clear message about how to get the country working again."
Perry also criticized Obama's stimulus package.
"We created a lot of public sector jobs with stimulus dollars but it didn't translate to the economy because the fact is the economy responds to the private sector," Perry said. "The private sector will always be smarter than the government and will make the right decisions about where jobs will be created."
Colorado Senate District 35 candidate Larry Crowder, Colorado House District 47 candidate Clarice Navarro-Ratzlaff and Vera Ortegon, Pueblo County chairwoman for the Romney campaign, also spoke at the event.
"We have seen what Obama has done in four years, we cannot afford to see what he can do in eight," Navarro-Ratzlaff said.
Distributed by MCT Information Services
