Romney to Obama: More jobs, less Big Bird

Mitt Romney took President Obama to task about focusing on Big Bird, as he spoke to Iowans on Tuesday about jobs and the economy.

"These are tough times with real serious issues," Romney said at an event in Van Meter, Iowa. "So you have to scratch your head when the president spends the last week talking about saving Big Bird. I actually think we need to have a president who talks about saving the American people and saving good jobs and saving our future and also saving the family farm."

The folks at Sesame Street are miffed by an Obama campaign ad featuring the 8-foot-2-inch star of the children's TV show. The ad mocks Romney's debate pledge to cut funding for PBS as a way to cut the deficit. Sesame Workshop has asked the Obama campaign to pull the ad, reports USA TODAY's David Jackson.

Romney was greeted Tuesday by protesters dressed up like Big Bird, Elmo and other Sesame Street characters, The Des Moines Registerreports. The Elmo protester shouted, "Trickle down economics does not tickle me."

And the gang, identified by the newspaper as supporters of the liberal Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement, sang a ditty about the economy and Wall Street to the tune of the Sesame Street theme song. It began: "Stormy days ... taking our jobs away."