WASHINGTON (AP) - Days before a crucial Republican presidential primary in Michigan, President Barack Obama is claiming credit for the U.S. auto industry rebound in the state.

His re-election campaign is launching a new television ad in the state on Friday highlighting the revival of General Motors and Chrysler following a multibillion-dollar federal bailout.

The ad notes that none of the Republican presidential hopefuls supported federal intervention and that Mitt Romney once penned a column titled "Let Detroit Go Bankrupt."

Romney and rival Rick Santorum are locked in a tight contest in Michigan, which votes Tuesday. The contest has become a must-win one for Romney, a Michigan native whose father was an auto company executive and governor of the state.