Romney doesn't back down from his opposition to a multibillion-dollar federal bailout

"The people who are struggling to get this economy going ... will see that President Obama and Mr. Romney are less rivals than running mates," the congressman said in a written statement.

In his Michigan appearances, Romney criticized Obama for the slow pace of the economic recovery in Michigan and the U.S.

"The economy overall has been terribly managed by the president. I don't think there's any way he can defend his economic record," Romney told reporters.

He talked up his background as a business consultant and venture capitalist, saying it gives him the skills to help reverse the job loss that has given the state a 10.2 percent unemployment rate. The message echoes one used by former computer executive Rick Snyder in his successful 2010 campaign for Michigan governor. Snyder and Romney didn't meet during Romney's visit.

His advisers have said Romney is counting heavily on winning Florida and Michigan, and he had no trouble attracting supporters to fundraisers Tuesday and Wednesday in Grand Rapids and the well-heeled Detroit suburbs of Grosse Pointe and Birmingham.

He also had a light moment Thursday when speaking to students at Bizdom U, a center in Detroit for teaching young adults to be entrepreneurs. Asked by an official if he'd be willing to return at a later date to serve as a mentor, Romney joked, "It's conceivable that in 18 months, I will need a job."

Hoffman can be reached at http://twitter.com/kathybhoffmann

Householder can be reached at http://twitter.com/mikehouseholder