Campaigning for Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn, first lady Michelle Obama tried to persuade voters Tuesday that the economy has improved under her husband, saying she was “talking as a citizen, not as a wife.”
“Remember how bad things were back when Barack took office?” Mrs. Obama asked supporters at a rally in Chicago. “Let me take you back for a moment, because sometimes we forget.”
She then repeated Mr. Obama’s standard campaign line that America is better off today “by almost every economic measure,” citing 10 million new jobs created since 2010, an unemployment rate of 5.9 percent and “more job openings than at any time since 2001.”
Mr. Quinn, a Democrat, is locked in a tight battle for reelection with Republican businessman Bruce Rauner. Pollsters rate the race as a toss-up.
Mrs. Obama said the president needs people such as Mr. Quinn to help complete his agenda.
The first lady, without mentioning Mr. Rauner by name, also listed her concerns about the Republican in a litany that sounded much like the complaints about Mr. Obama from his critics.
“I have seen people who have spent a lot of money and make a lot of promises,” Mrs. Obama said. “But at the end of the day, we have got to ask ourselves, what do these folks really stand for? What do they really stand for? What are their values? What do they believe in? What are they going to do for us?”
• Dave Boyer can be reached at dboyer@washingtontimes.com.
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