Barack Obama and Mitt Romney don’t agree on much, but both candidates know how important the National Football League is in the heartland states of Wisconsin and Ohio — especially in November.
Mr. Obama, a Chicago Bears fan, hit the campaign trail in Wisconsin last month with a couple of Green Bay Packers, tight end Jermichael Finley and linebacker Desmond Bishop in tow — even though the Pack had just handed his beloved Bears a 23-10 loss.
The president said their presence shows that the nation isn’t as divided as people think. “We’re not Bears fans first, we’re not Packers fans first, we’re Americans first,” he told a rally in Milwaukee.
Not to be outdone, Mr. Romney has been campaigning throughout battleground Ohio with his own NFL star, Hall of Famer Anthony Munoz, the former Cincinnati Bengal many consider the game’s all-time best offensive lineman.
On Saturday afternoon at a rally in Lebanon, Ohio, Mr. Romney drew raucous cheers after acknowledging Mr. Munoz during his stump speech.
Mr. Munoz, the only member of the Bengals franchise to be selected to the NFL Hall of Fame, has long been a fixture in conservative politics in Ohio.
