Obama, Romney duel as many vote early

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. -- President Barack Obama pledged Thursday to create many more jobs and "make the middle class secure again" in a campaign-closing appeal -- more than five weeks before Election Day -- to voters already casting ballots in large numbers.

Republican Mitt Romney, focusing on threats beyond American shores, accused Obama of backing dangerous cuts in military spending.

"The idea of cutting our military is unthinkable and devastating. And when I become president we will not," declared the challenger, struggling to reverse a slide in opinion polls.

In a race where the economy is the dominant issue, there was a fresh sign of national economic weakness as the Commerce Department lowered its earlier estimate of tepid growth last spring. Romney and his allies seized on the news as evidence that Obama's policies aren't working.

There was good news for the president in the form of a survey by The Washington Post and the Kaiser Family Foundation suggesting he has gained ground among older voters after a monthlong ad war over Republican plans for Medicare.

Early voting has already begun in Virginia, as well as in South Dakota, Idaho and Vermont. It began during the day in Wyoming and in Iowa, like Virginia one of the most highly contested states.

Campaigning in Virginia Beach, Obama said, "It's time for a new economic patriotism, an economic patriotism rooted in the belief that growing our economy begins with a strong and thriving middle class." It was a line straight from the television commercial his campaign released overnight.

He said that, if re-elected, he would back policies to create a million new manufacturing jobs, help businesses double exports and give tax breaks to companies that "invest in America, not ship jobs overseas."

Romney campaigned at an American Legion hall in Springfield, Va., accusing Obama of supporting cuts in the defense budget that would hurt the nation's military readiness.

"The world is not a safe place. It remains dangerous," he said, referring to North Korea, Syria, Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan. "The idea of cutting our military commitment by a trillion dollars over this decade is unthinkable and devastating."

The $1 trillion Romney mentioned in defense cuts had the support of Republicans and Democrats alike in Congress, although he says GOP lawmakers made a mistake in voting for the reductions and several now want to prevent them from taking effect.