The Republican National Convention culminated in Tampa Thursday with Mitt Romney accepting the party's presidential nomination and making the case why he, and not President Obama, is the man to lead the country forward. NY1 political reporter Bobby Cuza filed the following report.

Mitt Romney didn't waste any time criticizing President Barack Obama in his big speech Thursday night. In a theme he touched on early and returned to often, he said the president had inspired optimism, but delivered only disappointment.

"Hope and change had a powerful appeal," Romney said. "But tonight, I'd ask a simple question: If you felt that excitement when you voted for Barack Obama, shouldn’t you feel that way now that he’s President Obama? You know, there’s something wrong with the kind of job he’s done as president when the best feeling you had was the day you voted for him."

Romney said the president lacked a basic credential: he had no experience working in a business. By contrast, he portrayed his time at Bain Capital as a strength, arguing he helped build businesses. And he presented a five-step plan for job creation, which includes energy independence, deficit reduction and championing small business.

"That means reducing taxes on business, not raising them," Romney said. "It means simplifying and modernizing the regulations that hurt small business the most. And it means that we must rein in the skyrocketing cost of healthcare by repealing and replacing Obamacare."

Romney also rounded out his personal story, citing the importance of his Mormon faith in his life and speaking affectionately about his wife and family.

"If you ask Ann and I what we’d give to break up just one more fight between the boys or wake up in the morning and discover a pile of kids asleep in our room, well, every mom and dad knows the answer to that," he said.

Romney also referenced his views against abortion and gay marriage and chided Obama for failures of foreign policy.

"I will begin my presidency with a jobs tour," Romney said. "President Obama began with an apology tour. America, he said, had dictated to other nations. No, Mr. President. America has freed other nations from dictators."

After a farewell rally in Florida Friday morning, it's off to the campaign trail and a 10-week sprint to Election Day for Romney and running mate Paul Ryan, even as the media's attention turns to the Democrats, who hold their convention next week in Charlotte.