Obama’s riff on Romney’s use of the word “marvelous” to describe Representative Paul Ryan’s budget plans carried a subtle message.

“It’s a word you kind of associate with the upper class, and I think that the intention was to tweak Romney for being wealthy and, you know, sort of brought up in the kinds of circles where they would say ‘marvelous,'” said Kenneth Sherrill, a political science expert at New York’s Hunter College.

“That’s trying to get under his skin a little bit.”…

Obama’s campaign has worked steadily to construct an image of an insensitive and patrician Romney even before he wins the Republican nomination, hoping to create a caricature that sticks with voters once the election officially becomes a two-man race…

“Obama’s smart enough to know … (that) many people in the public are perceiving Romney as an elitist who does not have sympathy for workers or the poor,” said Mark Rom, an associate professor of government at Georgetown University.