Reuters/Bexley, Ohio
President Barack Obama sought again on Tuesday to paint rival Mitt Romney as out of touch with ordinary Americans, telling students in Ohio he was more committed than the Republican to making college affordable.Students and young voters made up a critical part of the coalition that elected Obama in 2008, and the Democrat’s advisers are eager to retain that support this year despite a dip in enthusiasm that has sometimes dogged his campaign.The Obama team has spent months trying to define Romney, a wealthy former private equity executive, as not being able to relate to middle class Americans for refusing to release several years of his tax returns and keeping cash in overseas accounts.The president, himself a millionaire and a Harvard graduate, continued that attack line in the battleground state of Ohio, highlighting Romney’s suggestion that students borrow money from their parents to pay for school as an example of the former Massachusetts governor’s mindset.“Not everybody has parents who have the money to lend,” Obama told a group of more than 3,000 people at Capital University outside of Columbus. “That may be news to some folks,” he said, to laughter.Obama noted that he and his wife, Michelle, did not come from wealthy families and both graduated with a high debt load.He criticised Romney for failing to talk about grants or community colleges but instead encouraging students to “shop around” for the best deal on their education.“That’s it - that’s his plan,” Obama said.Romney’s campaign said Obama’s failure to fix the economy had made life tougher for students and young people.“Under this president, too many young Americans are suffering from higher college costs, more debt, and a lack of good jobs when they graduate,” Romney spokeswoman Amanda Henneberg said.“The Romney-Ryan plan will deliver 12mn new jobs to help recent graduates - and all Americans - enjoy a more prosperous future,” she said.The partisan fight over tax policies and budget cuts has taken on greater weight in the US presidential campaign with Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan’s addition to Romney’s ticket.The White House has emphasised its belief that the US must invest in education to remain competitive, despite pressure to reduce spending and reduce the deficit.As Obama headed for Nevada, his campaign office announced that Vice President Joe Biden would campaign in Florida next Monday and Tuesday, including events in Tampa on the opening day of the Republican national convention where Romney will formally become his party’s nominee later in the week.Man arrested over e-mail threatAn armed man was arrested in the western US on Tuesday for allegedly sending an e-mail that threatened President Barack Obama, a justice official said. “He had sent an e-mailed threat against the president,” said Emily Langlie, a spokeswoman for the US Attorney’s Office in Washington state, confirming that the man was detained at a suburban apartment in Seattle. “When the Secret Service and local police went to his apartment to investigate, they discovered that he was armed, he was taken into custody without incident.” Law enforcement officers were searching the house for weapons and suspicious material, Langlie said, but she did not comment on the nature of the alleged threat, noting that further information would be released later.