US News

Mitt to O: Ax adviser

BOSTON — Following news of a disappointing unemployment report, 2012 presidential hopeful Mitt Romney said yesterday that President Obama should fire David Plouffe, a key adviser who said most Americans don’t care about jobless figures.

“If David Plouffe were working for me, I would fire him, and then he could experience firsthand the pain of unemployment,” Romney said in a statement, referring to Obama’s top political aide.

“His comments are an insult to the more than 20 million people who are out of work, underemployed, or who have simply stopped looking for jobs.”

The former Massachusetts governor and Republican presidential hopeful took issue with Plouffe’s remarks earlier this week that played down the importance of the unemployment rate on everyday Americans.

The Romney campaign has been trying to cement its front-runner status for months by targeting the president, instead of other Republicans in the field.