It wasn't even four years ago that then-President-elect Barack Obama strode into office on the promise of "hope and change" in Washington.

It seems like a distant memory, doesn't it?

Quite to the contrary, the gulf between Democrats and Republicans today has never stretched wider.

Hope? Change? With Congress? Didn't happen.

On top of that, a general slowdown of economic activity during Obama's watch followed one of worst recessions in memory.

Some 13 million Americans still can't find work — or they quit looking in frustration. The nation's joblessness hovers at an excruciatingly painful 8 percent.

There's no debating whether Americans are better off than they were four years ago — they aren't. The debate is about where we go from here.

There are signs of an economic turnaround, but they are too little too late to salvage the severely damaged Obama administration.

America's foreign policy is in disarray, as well.

U.S. troops are poised to leave Afghanistan in 2014, yet doubts remain about the Afghanis' ability to defend their country against al-Qaida.

It seems that rumors of al-Qaida's demise in the wake of the death of 9/11 mastermind Osama bin Laden were greatly exaggerated. The Muslim Brotherhood is on the ascendency in Eypt. Afghan allies are shooting our soldiers.

The assassination of our ambassador in Benghazi was possible because of a White House whose rose-colored foreign policy could not accept or act on the threat that Islamic fanatics posed. Mounting evidence suggests the White House lied about what it knew about the Benghazi situation and what it did about it.

Meanwhile, Iran is four years closer to nuclear-weapons capability, and tensions remain high with China over trade rules and currency policy.

In just about every category — the economy, taxes, education, health care, the social safety net, foreign policy — the president has not lived up to his promise.

Hope is fading ... and it's time for real change.

Mitt Romney promises a sharp break from the failed policies of the Obama administration.

As a Massachusetts governor, Republican Romney forged relationships with a solidly Democratic majority in the state Legislature to move the Bay State forward.

He did it with Massachusetts lawmakers; he can do it with the U.S. Congress.

As governor, Romney closed a yawning gap in the state budget by cutting spending, increasing fees and closing corporate tax loopholes.

He also developed and helped to enact into law a health care plan that serves as a model for other states.

Romney, a highly successful venture capitalist, turned around the financially ailing 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah.

To spur job growth, Romney proposes further cuts in tax rates for all income levels. He'd also slash corporate rates, reduce regulations and encourage energy production.

As to foreign policy, Romney would seek to level the playing field with China, and he would insist that a nuclear-aspiring Iran is further isolated from the rest of the world.

On education, Romney wants more state and local control, and he supports charter schools and teacher evaluations.

Democrats may not like it, but Tuesday's election will be a referendum on President Obama's first term.

On that score, Obama has failed miserably.

Obama is right about one thing: His vision for America is vastly different from Romney's.

But his vision promises more of the same, and it will not put America on the path to prosperity that it yearns for or that it deserves.

On the other hand, Romney has a proven track record of success in business and politics, not to mention the Olympics, and he knows what it takes to get America working again and how to restore America's stature around the globe.

That's why the New Era enthusiastically endorses Mitt Romney's candidacy for president.