Obama campaigning, ties Republicans to big business

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - President Barack Obama painted Republicans as obstructionist allies of corporate America on Monday as he crossed the United States campaigning for his fellow Democrats fighting to keep control of the Congress and for state governorships in November's elections.

At a battery plant in Wisconsin Obama sought to convince voters he can ease high unemployment and has a plan to fix a slowing economy in which fears have grown of a double-dip recession.

He accused Republicans of trying to turn back the clock by resisting his administration's efforts to bolster the sagging economy.

"They said 'no' to small business tax cuts, 'no' to rebuilding infrastructure, 'no' to clean energy projects. They even voted against getting rid of tax breaks for shipping jobs overseas," Obama said.

His plans to revive manufacturing include offering economic incentives to domestic producers of clean-energy products.

"We expect our commitment to clean energy to lead to more than 800,000 jobs by 2012," he told a small crowd at ZBB Energy Corp, a maker of high-tech batteries.

Obama's trip will take him to Wisconsin, California, Washington, Ohio and Florida in three days for a series of fundraisers for Democrats running in the November 2 elections.

In Milwaukee, Obama also spoke at a luncheon event that raised more than $325,000 for Mayor Tom Barrett, who is running to be the next governor of Wisconsin. He then flew to Los Angeles for a fundraiser for Democratic congressional candidates at the home of John Wells, producer of television shows including "The West Wing."

A Democratic party official said that event brought in $1 million.

REPUBLICANS SAY NO VOTES JUSTIFIED

In Milwaukee Obama said Republicans who objected to his healthcare overhaul law were siding with insurance companies who seek to deny coverage to sick patients.

He also charged that Republicans who objected to financial regulatory reform backed Wall Street firms that resist regulation despite their role in the financial crash that helped cause the recession.

Obama, who has struggled to win over some corporate leaders who see him as anti-business, also blasted a congressman who apologized to BP Plc over the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

"That's the choice in this election. On issue after issue, the Republicans in Congress have sided with corporate special interests over middle-class families," he said.

The Democrats' chances in November are complicated by Obama's approval ratings -- which hover in the mid- to lower-40 percent range -- and fears that the economy may slip back into recession. Some Democratic candidates have declined to attend events with the president.

Republicans had good reasons for their opposition to Obama's programs, which raised the deficit, increased taxes and, in the case of financial reform, will hurt small businesses, said a spokesman for Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell.

A sharp widening in the U.S. trade deficit forced economists to revise down estimates for second-quarter growth, indicating the slowdown has come more quickly than pessimists expected.

Steadfast weakness in housing and a stubbornly high unemployment rate of 9.5 percent were among factors that led the U.S. Federal Reserve last week to offer more monetary stimulus to the economy.

In Los Angeles, Obama told the Hollywood crowd his administration had delivered "the most progressive legislative agenda... not just in one generation, maybe two, maybe three." And he urged them to support Democratic members of Congress, who have experienced "just instant, non-stop opposition on everything" from Republicans.

(Editing by Chris Wilson and Sandra Maler)