WILLIAMSBURG, Virginia — Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell, a leading Republican figure, said Friday that Mitt Romney's time at the helm of Bain Capital isn't part of the record voters should consider in choosing a president.

Asked during a press conference here whether he thought Romney's experience at Bain should be part of his "record," McDonnell shook his head and said "No. No."

"All of these attacks are things that happened after Mitt Romney left as the managing director of Bain — he left to run the Olympics, some of the best Olympics in history in 2002," McDonnell said. "He left to do that in 1999. To the degree that there is any truth to these sorts of outsourcing allegations, they happened after 1999 when he was not the managing director."

McDonnell added that Obama "ought to pull those ads," that attack Romney on Bain.

McDonnell also rejected the notion that Romney would need to release more tax returns, saying "he’s released everything he needs to and more," and accusing President Barack Obama of running a negative campaign.

Providing Obama with "a warm welcome" to the Commonwealth of Virginia today, McDonnell sharply criticized Obama's plan to raise taxes on the wealthy, and highlighted his opposition to the health care exchanges implemented by ObamaCare.