AKRON, Ohio (AP) — The presidential campaign is pressing into the heat of summer just as the government issues new jobless numbers that will define the state of the economy and the political contest four months from Election Day.
President Barack Obama continues a bus tour of Ohio and Pennsylvania, hotly contested states, eager to leverage their modest economic successes into a case for his re-election.
The Republican challenger, Mitt Romney, remains at his New Hampshire vacation home amid speculation that his list of potential running mates might include a woman.
The jobless numbers promised to command attention Friday. Economists are predicting 90,000 new jobs in June, more than in May but still not enough to dent the 8.2 percent unemployment rate.
A bad employment report could damage the public's already wavering economic confidence.
