Protesters greet Romney in Toledo

Protesters gave Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney a rough greeting before his fund-raising appearance at the Toledo Club today.

Tammy Van Riper, of Monroe, said it was ironic Mr. Romney would come to northwest Ohio since his policies would have harmed working class families in the Toledo area.

“I am a United Auto Worker, and I am here to support President Obama and show my disappointment in the decisions Romney was making during the crisis, saying we could go bankrupt,” she said. “If that happened, a lot of us would be in jeopardy right now, and a lot of middle-class families would be in trouble.”

The protesters chanted “Outsource Romney,” and “Go home Romney,” while a plane overhead pulled a banner that read “Tricky Mitt: What are you hiding?”

Marcia Young, who lives in Toledo and works at Chrysler Group LLC’s Toledo Assembly Complex, told the crowd of protesters that she would be out of work if President Obama’s auto industry bailout had not occurred.

“President Obama saved Toledo, as far as I’m concerned,” she said.

The presumptive Republican presidential candidate’s fund-raising luncheon, which was closed to the media and the public, appeared to attract between a dozen and 25 people, about half of whom drove vehicles with Michigan license plates.