“Like other presidents before him, Barack Obama inherited a recession. But unlike them, he has made it worse, not better,’’ Romney wrote in an opinion piece published yesterday in USA Today.

 

The former Massachusetts governor - who made his name and fortune at private equity firm Bain Capital, ran for the GOP presidential nomination last year, and could very well run again in 2012 - derides Obama’s economic know-how.

 

“His failure to stem the unemployment tide should not have been a surprise. With no experience whatsoever in the world of employment and business formation, he had no compass to guide his path,’’ Romney wrote.

 

Romney also joined in the GOP criticism of White House remarks that the $787 billion economic stimulus is working, and accused the administration of trying to “disguise the truth’’ by touting “inflated figures of jobs ‘created.’ ’’

 

“Focusing solely on jobs created while ignoring the far greater numbers of jobs lost is Harry Houdini economics,’’ he added.