ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — Michigan's Republican governor says the "mess in Washington" is holding back the nation's recovery, but he doesn't blame any single person for high jobless rates.

Gov. Rick Snyder told The Associated Press in a Friday interview that neither the nation's 8.3 percent unemployment rate for July nor Michigan's 8.6 percent rate for June are "good enough."

But he also points out that Michigan's rate is down from the 14.4 percent peak it hit in fall 2009. He says the national rate "really needs to come down."

He says Democratic President Barack Obama and Republican opponent Mitt Romney should spend more time talking about what they want to do "rather than spending time talking about why the other person has issues."

He says the nation's economy needs "common-sense solutions."