Race for White House now clearly a Romney-Obama battle

WASHINGTON — For all the turmoil of the long primary season, President Barack Obama is right where he expected to be — taking on Mitt Romney and targeting him as a wishy-washy protector of the rich.

With the November outcome likely to hinge on the economy, Obama will now engage more directly with the help of an experienced, well-financed campaign organization.

The campaign for the White House took on a decidedly different feel Wednesday, a true two-man race for the first time.

Yet even as Republican Rick Santorum’s withdrawal a day earlier changed the dynamic, beginning the general election in earnest, the contours of the Romney-Obama race had already been becoming clear.

Both sides will keep pounding voters with ferocious arguments over who has the best vision for jobs, economic security and giving Americans a shot at a better life. In sharp and steady doses, directly or through aides, Obama and Romney also will accuse the other of being dishonest with voters and out-of-touch with their daily woes.

Everything gets faster and louder now.