Obama Tries to Move Focus From Jobs to Medicare Doug Mills/The New York Times The president told a rally on Saturday at St. Petersburg College, Seminole, that unlike his Republican rival, he would "never turn Medicare into a voucher system." SEMINOLE, Fla. - President Obama on Saturday began hammering away at the Republican ticket's plans for Medicare, using a campaign swing through Florida, with its large number of retired and elderly voters, to try to turn the page from anemic employment growth, his biggest weakness, to entitlements, a Democratic strength. Kicking off a two-day bus tour through this perennial swing state, the president told a rally here that Mitt Romney's running mate, Representative Paul D. Ryan of Wisconsin, had proposed overhauling Medicare and replacing it with a voucher system that could mean higher costs for beneficiaries. "Florida, you should know I will never turn Medicare into a voucher system," Mr. Obama said to rousing cheers from a crowd of 11,000 at St. Petersburg College, Seminole. No American should have to spend their golden years at the mercy of insurance companies. The president's advisers have indicated that they are eager to re-engage their opponents on their Medicare plan, while the Romney camp would prefer to talk about the economy. A government report on Friday showed that employers had eased up on hiring in August, adding just 96,000 jobs, compared with 141,000 in July. The unemployment rate dropped to 8.1 percent from 8.3 percent, but that was largely because of people leaving the work force entirely. Mr. Romney has sought to blunt Mr. Obama's Medicare offensive with attacks of his own, something Obama advisers appeared to await eagerly. "If they want to have a discussion about who do you trust on Medicare for the next 60 days as their central argument, you know we ought to send them an in-kind contribution," David Plouffe, Mr. Obama's senior adviser, told reporters aboard Air Force One on Friday. We're happy to have that discussion. We think people trust the president more on Medicare. The president grabbed that mantle on Saturday and ran with it. "We will reform and strengthen Medicare," he told the rally, "but we'll do it by reducing the costs of health care, not by dumping the costs on seniors." For good measure, he threw in several more lines in his stump speech aimed at older people, who he said "are saving an average of $6,000 on prescription drugs because of Obamacare. And by the way, I do care. That was a reference to the name that Republicans have derisively given his health care overhaul. These days, the president has embraced the label with open arms. "I like the name "Obamacare," " he said, adding that Mr. Romney "says he's going to repeal it. That's because Romney doesn't care. With 58 days to go until Election Day, the battle for seven or so fiercely contested swing states has intensified. No state is more crucial than Florida, with its 29 electoral votes and its diverse mix of conservative Southerners, Hispanics, African-Americans and elderly and Jewish voters. Mr. Obama does not appear to have much of a shot with conservative Southerners, but he is fighting mightily for the rest. That is why his weekend bus tour was straddling the center of the state, in the territory that hosted the Republican National Convention two weeks ago. The campaign announced Saturday that former President Bill Clinton would stump for Mr. Obama in Miami and Orlando next week. Mr. Obama won Florida in 2008. After Seminole, the president traveled up Interstate 4 toward Orlando, with a stop in Kissimmee. On Sunday, he was to head down to Melbourne and then West Palm Beach, ground zero for the Bush-Gore election recount of 2000. As the crowd sustained a screaming standing ovation, Mr. Obama stood back and marveled. "When the reception's this good, I just want to say thank you and leave the stage," he said. How can I top this?