Obama set off on his own mini election trail.

Euronews - Barack Obama has set off on his own mini election trail, carrying Tuesday's State of the Union message to five swing-states.

His speech to Congress called for higher taxes on the wealthy, and over the next three days the president aims to expand on his "fairness for all" theme.

"If you make more than a million dollars a year, you should pay a tax rate of at least 30 percent. I hear folks running around calling this class warfare. This is not class warfare. Let me tell you something: asking a billionaire to pay at least as much as his secretary – that's just common sense," Obama told supporters in Iowa.

While Obama was in Iowa, millionaire Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney attacked his speech from his campaign platform in Orlando.

"He seemed so extraordinarily detached from reality," said Romney. "I think on that basis, if we ask the American people if they think things are going well or not so well and he wants to get the votes of those who think it's going well, he is not going to be president very long."

Romney who is favourite to take the Republican nomination is still smarting from having to release his tax returns due to political pressure. They revealed an income of over 20 million dollars last year, while paying an effective tax rate of 14 per cent.