The Republican presidential candidate Friday also challenged Obama to "rein in" his campaign team and called the comment "absurd" and "beneath the dignity of the presidency."

Romney campaign adviser Kevin Madden said Sunday that news agency fact-checkers have repeatedly said records accurately show his candidate left Bain in 1999.

"This has been established, yet the Obama campaign and even the president himself continue to pursue" these inaccuracies, Madden said on CBS' "Face the Nation."

During the TV interview, the president also tried to deflect criticism that he has attacked Romney for running a firm that made money and created jobs.

"As the head of a private equity firm, [Romney's] job was to maximize profits and help investors," Obama said. "There is nothing wrong with that. On the other hand, that company also was investing in companies that were called by The Washington Post 'the pioneers of outsourcing.' Mr. Romney is now claiming he wasn't there at the time except his filings with the SEC listing says he was the CEO, chairman and president of the company."