Romney made a big mistake by bringing up the "Are you better off?" question. Two reasons: 1) despite the pesky epidemic of political amnesia in America, people still remember when the economy crashed four years ago, and 2) Mitt Romney himself has repeatedly said the economy is getting better. Literally.
January, 2012:
"And [President Obama]'s going to say the economy is getting better," Romney said. "Thank heavens it's getting better. It's getting better not because of him, it's in spite of him and what he's done."
On the Laura Ingraham show:
"Well, of course, it's getting better. The economy always gets better after a recession. There is always a recovery."
Whoops.