MARSHALLTOWN, Iowa — Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney reached back to World War II on Thursday, comparing Democratic candidate Barack Obama to the British prime minister who sought to appease, rather than oppose, Nazi Germany.

Romney was responding to Obama’s statement in a debate Monday that he would meet directly with leaders of countries hostile to the United States, such as Syria and Iran.

“It’s absolutely extraordinary that someone could be so out of touch with the nature of our world. It’s a bit like Chamberlain. It’s more Chamberlain than it is Churchill,” Romney said.

Neville Chamberlain was prime minister of the United Kingdom from 1937-1940.

He sought to negotiate with Germany and resigned after the Nazis invaded France.

He was succeeded by Winston Churchill.

Romney’s criticism echoes that of Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, who said Tuesday that Obama’s stance is “naïve” and “irresponsible.“

Contacted for a reply, Obama spokesman Tommy Vietor issued a statement:

“Unlike Gov. Romney and others, Sen. Obama had the judgment to oppose the war in Iraq before it started. Our next president can’t keep showing bad judgment by continuing the Bush-Cheney style of foreign policy and stubbornly refusing to talk to countries we don’t agree with.”

Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, made his comments at a hotel restaurant in Marshalltown, the first of 10 “Ask Mitt Anything” events Thursday and today.

He spent much of his time taking shots at Democrats and said almost nothing about the Republicans he is running against in the Iowa caucuses.

He leads in Iowa public opinion polls and in fundraising.

Among Democratic candidates, Clinton, Obama and John Edwards are dueling for the lead in Iowa.

While Romney reserved most of his scorn for Obama, he also made reference to Clinton’s ill-fated health insurance proposal from the mid-1990s and questioned Edwards’ fitness to deal with the threat of terrorists.

Lynn Ridenour, a retired auto worker who lives in Marshalltown, saw Romney for the first time Thursday and walked away impressed.

“He’s very assertive, very down to earth. He communicates well with the people he talks to,” Ridenour said.

Outside the restaurant, a Romney critic dressed as a dolphin handed out fliers accusing the candidate of being a flip-flopper in his opposition to abortion.

The dolphin has appeared at events across the country in an attempt to undermine Romney’s conservative credentials.

Dan Gearino can be contacted at (515) 243-0138 or dan.gearino@lee.net.