Filed by KOSU News in US News.
October 27, 2012

Not only has the Des Moines Register switched its endorsement from President Obama to Mitt Romney, it is also favoring a Republican for the first time since Richard Nixon in 1972.

The paper cited the economy as the issue that fueled its decision, saying Romney’s plan, “coupled with his business acumen, should unlock this nation’s economic potential.”

The Register endorsed Obama in 2008, but says his actions have not been sufficient:

“The president’s best efforts to resuscitate the stumbling economy have fallen short. Nothing indicates it would change with a second term in the White House.”

Where Obama found political stalemate, the Register sees hope for compromise with a Romney administration.

“Voters should give Mitt Romney a chance to correct the nation’s fiscal course and to implode the partisan gridlock that has shackled Washington and the rest of America — with the understanding that he would face the same assessment in four years if he does not succeed.”

The tally of newspaper endorsements in swing states now tips in Romney’s favor, Poynter.org reports. Romney now claims seven to Obama’s six. Poynter shows that at least six papers that endorsed Obama in 2008 are endorsing Romney in this election, including the Des Moines Register.

The paper was involved in a dispute with the White House earlier this week over an off-the-record conversation with the president, Politico notes. A post about the issue by the Register’s editor, Rick Green, was published Wednesday. [Copyright 2012 National Public Radio]