It's official: Mitt Romney's running for president

The exploratory committee can commence exploring.

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney formally launched his 2012 presidential exploratory committee on Monday  in a Web video, declaring that “President Obama’s  policies have failed.”

“He and virtually all the people around him have never worked in the real economy,” Romney said in the message. “They just don’t know how jobs are created in the private sector. That’s where I spent my entire career.”

Here’s the announcement video. It’s unusual for its spare approach. There is no building soundtrack, no dramatic scenes or shots of the candidate gladhanding. It’s just Mitt, just talking about Obama’s failure. It may stand out for being so understated in its production.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tAcxwfkAdDY

Romney’s announcement to run for president comes a day before the fifth anniversary of Commonwealth Care, which was Gov. Romney’s 2006 attempt to reform health care. But his announcement doesn’t mention that, though at the time it was considered his signature achievement as governor. Curious.