Speaker of the House John Boehner (R-Ohio) was in Pensacola this morning at a private fundraiser for Congressman Steve Southerland (R-Panama City) hosted by Collier Merrill, Lewis Bear, Jr. and Pam Dana at The Fish House.
He declared that Mitt Romney won last night’s presidential debate.
“Mitt Romney did a great job,” said Boehner before a audience of about 30 GOP diehards and elected officials.
“He needed to make the sale, and Mitt made the sale last night. The debate wasn’t about policy issues. It was about how he handles himself,” he said. “The economy was a fidgety place for the president to focus. And it’s with their pocketbooks that people vote. The President wanted to talk about anything other than the economy.”
The Speaker called the polls that show President Barack Obama ahead in the battleground states “goofy.” “I can tell you that in these key states the race is a dead heat,” he said. “The next couple of weeks are important.”
Boehner said that the Republicans have contacted more voters in key states, like Florida and Ohio, than they did in 2004 when Bush was running for re-election and disputed news reports that the Democrats will have more Obama supporters turn out this November than in 2008.
“We’re going to get our people out,” Boehner said. “Blacks, Hispanics and young people are the people must hurt by this economy. Do you really think they are going to vote for this president? I don’t think so.”