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Ohio Sen. Portman endorses Romney for president

Move expected to fuel speculation of Ohio senator as VP candidate.

Sen. Rob Portman (right) campaigns in Dayton with former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney (center) during Portman's 2010 Senate run. Portman is expected to endorse Romney for president.

Lisa Powell Sen. Rob Portman (right) campaigns in Dayton with former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney (center) during Portman's 2010 Senate run. Portman is expected to endorse Romney for president.

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By Jack Torry, Washington Bureau 12:09 AM Thursday, January 19, 2012

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Sen. Rob Portman is expected to endorse Republican presidential contender Mitt Romney and appear today with the former Massachusetts governor at a campaign rally in Charleston before Saturday’s crucial South Carolina Republican primary.

Portman, the first-term Ohio Republican, said Wednesday that Romney “would be the right guy to turn things around and bring back jobs. And I think he has the best chance of beating President Obama.’’

Portman’s appearance with Romney likely will fuel speculation that Romney would consider Portman as a potential vice presidential running mate. Portman would help any GOP candidate in the critical state of Ohio in the fall election.

“I have been encouraged by what Governor Romney has been saying on the economy,’’ Portman said in an exclusive telephone interview. “He’s not just focused on what Barack Obama has done wrong. But he is focused on a pro-growth message . . . constructively laying out an aggressive pro-jobs agenda.’’

Portman’s move was yet another sign that the Republican establishment is coalescing around Romney as its likely nominee. Portman is highly regarded among Republicans, in large part because of his past record of serving as White House budget director and U.S. trade representative under former President George W. Bush.

Portman’s endorsement also reinforces Romney’s message of curbing the swollen federal budget deficit and boosting the economy. In a statement hailing Portman’s endorsement, Romney said that “bringing fiscal sanity to Washington is critical for our country’s future economic health and national security.’’

He said Portman has “been a leader’’ in the Senate “in the fight for a balanced budget, and I look forward to working with him to make the federal government simpler, smaller and smarter.’’

Ohio GOP officials had predicted for months that Portman would endorse Romney, who took the time last year to meet privately with Portman in his U.S. Senate office. But Portman originally said he wanted to wait until the Ohio primary in March before backing a candidate.

In addition to campaigning with Romney, Portman also will attend the Republican presidential debate tonight in Charleston. Polls suggest that former House Speaker Newt Gingrich’s aggressive performance in Monday night’s debate has sparked a resurgence in his South Carolina campaign.

At an outdoor rally yesterday at Wofford College in Spartanburg, Romney offered a robust defense of American business, warning that “free enterprise is under attack from the right and left.’’

Describing this year’s presidential election as a struggle for “the soul of America,’’ Romney assailed Obama while simultaneously taking a shot at Gingrich for his criticism of Romney’s work in the 1980s and 1990s as head of a private equity firm.

“This president has got it entirely wrong when he attacks the private sector,’’ Romney said. “Don’t attack the private sector. Don’t attack risk takers. Don’t attack those that are trying to create a brighter future for themselves and their family.’’

“Don’t attack profit,’’ Romney said. “Profit, by the way, is what allows businesses to hire people and grow. Free enterprise is under attack from the right and left.’’

Tracey Snively, a freshman at Wofford, acknowledged that Romney was “a lot better spoken than I thought originally.’’ But he said he yet to decide on who he will vote for on Saturday.

Erin McGaha, a freshman at Wofford, described Romney as “very intelligent and knows what he’s talking about,’’ while Hamp Freshley, a Wofford freshman, said Romney “knows what he’s talking about.’’

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