Local

Romney's campaign stop in Mooresville draws thousands

MOORESVILLE, N.C. — Nearly 3,000 people showed up at the NASCAR Technical Institute in Mooresville on Sunday morning to watch a joint appearance by GOP running mates Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan.

A total of 1,700 people crammed inside the building to hear the speeches, and just as many people waited outside in overflow areas.

The amount of supporters outside backed up traffic for miles in Mooreville. It even created standstill traffic on I-77.

Mitt Romney and his wife, Ann, made a point of discussing the traffic during their speeches, saying how important it is to see that kind of support for the general election in November.

Romney and Ryan appeared relaxed when they took the stage together. Neither wore a tie; their sleeves were rolled up.

They said they were busy getting down to the business of restoring America.

"We're going to recapture something that some people have thought was lost," Romney said.

Congressman Ryan hammered President Barack Obama for what he called a failed economic recovery.

He repeatedly mentioned North Carolina's 9.4 percent unemployment rate.
_____________________________________________________________________________

Blair's Blog: Inside Romney/Ryan NC bus tour
_____________________________________________________________________________

"You know what, North Carolina? We can do better than this," he said to raucous applause. "Help is on the way."

Many supporters said working in a small business is a daily fight to stay afloat.

"It's difficult. You have to cut corners. You can't have overhead or anything just to pay your bills," said Kelvin Burton.

Romney said his top priority will be to reduce the deficit as a way to spur economic growth.

"We're not going to restore the economy and get people to spend their life savings to start a small business or to invest in America if they think the dollar is going to become worthless," he said.

Romney drew big cheers from the crowd when he talked about the need to balance the budget and reduce the deficit. But he got the biggest applause when he said he would repeal Obamacare as president.

Romney and Ryan brought their wives and children up to the stage near the end of the event.

"America is in trouble, and these are the two guys that are going to save it," Ann Romney said.

Several voters said seeing the families on stage would be their lasting memory of the day.

"What stuck out for me is that they're so real. They're so down to earth," said Linda Mace.

There were about a dozen protestors outside the NASCAR Technical Institute.

They held up signs like "Outsource Mitt" and "Romney has 100 Million in His IRA, How Much Do You Have?"

There were no disturbances during the campaign appearance.

After leaving Mooresville the Romney campaign bus headed for its next appearance in High Point.