President Obama: "They have tried to sell us this trickle-down fairy dust before. It did not work then, it won't work now."

By Michael J.W. Stickings

Romney has spent much of the campaign so far lying about President Obama.

Having embraced the far-right Republican orthodoxy of the likes of his running mate, and having been exposed as a vulture capitalist, a privileged rich douchebag with a plutocratic sense of entitlement, and a knee-jerk ignoramus on foreign affairs, as a candidate hiding the details of his agenda, it's all he's got.

And you never know, right? The economy is still fairly weak (and voters may blame the president for it, even though he pulled it back from the brink of collapse), the media can't be counted on not to turn into a mouthpiece for the Republican smear machine, and the electorate is deeply divided. All of which is to say, the election could still go either way.

But you know what fills me with confidence? President Obama on the campaign trail. Ultimately, he's the best messenger for his own policy agenda and for the vision of hope and change he still offers the country. And, simply, he's amazing out there -- raising the level of discourse, inspiring his supporters, reaching out to independents and undecideds in a serious and genuine way, and presenting clearly the stark contrast between two competing visions for America this election provides.

Just watch him here, and listen to him, discussing the Romney-Ryan plan for America, particularly what it would mean for the middle class -- from today in Boone, Iowa: