HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. — In a critical debate three weeks before Election Day, President Obama and Mitt Romney turned a Town Hall conversation with several dozen voters into a combative duel on Tuesday, delivering punches and counterpunches on the economy, foreign policy, and social issues.
Unlike the previous debate in Denver, in which Obama was widely described as disengaged and listless, their second face-to-face encounter was animated and pointed. The candidates frequently spoke over each other, pointed at each other, and fought for time with moderator Candy Crowley of CNN.
Comments
This comment has been removed.
“You know,” Obama said, “I don’t look at my pension. It’s not as big as yours, so it doesn’t take as long.” See nothing but softball, smart alec responses from our President. Time to move on Mr. Obama
And you thought the smarmy poking for an irrelevant answer was indicative of leadership or a crybaby? Much of the world's manufacturing is done in China, at least many of our companies are there. Why? Because they get cheap labor for a few sheckles more profit. They would still make money making it here but choose to screw the American worker and while they are at it, screw Chinese workers who are essentially slave labor. The President's point was that Mr. Romney through Bain Capital was the mover and shaker in shipping the company overseas. If a stock shows up in your portfolio making something Made In China, that is something that is unavoidable. It all depends where you think the problem is. The President had it right. Mr. Romney embraces bigger profits no matter who it hurts, the proverbial zero sum game, I win you lose.
Barack Obama said "That’s not what we do. That’s not what I do as president. That’s not what I do as commander in chief.”--Unfortunately that IS what we do. Mitt was afraid to pull the trigger and call him on it. All he had to do was mention the Obama speech at the UN in which he mentioned The Video 6 times. But the moderator's interruption and wrong analysis helped Obama. Obama go away with BIG LIE here.
should have responded about all the security leaks, including the latest about Special Ops on the ready to go in Libya
This comment has been removed.
Interesting that Mr. Romney would say, ""For me, I look at what’s happened over the last four years and say, this has been a disappointment. We don’t have to settle for this,” Romney said. “We don’t have to live like this. We can get this economy going again."", since the last four years he has made money hand over fist at the expense of the people he says he's trying to help and the middle-class has just started to get out of the hole that the Bush Era created for us which he thinks is a good idea to go back to. Why? Because it benefits the RICH and takes more from the middle-class!
Seriously? He thinks he's one of the Common People? He's a multi-millionaire who has NO CLUE what the worker in Ohio or Iowa really goes through! Mr. Romney, you're a fool as well as an idiot; a rich one, but still an idiot.
I posted my response to System below the original comment. As for considering who won the debate, I found it fascinating that even the Republican commenatators on the network I had tuned in acknowledged that Obama had won the debate, and then the local news reported that local response was 1/3 Obama, 1/3 Romney, and 1/3 a draw. Whether that was the reporters fudging, a result of who took the time to check in, or a reflection of people being guarded about how to respond, it poses an interesting window into how people tally and report the same event.
What was your response? System's comments tend to disappear...
Romney could not even get his head above water. Slam dunk for Obama.
When are they going to find a moderator who can control these debates? They need to stick to the two minutes each on the first round. When the two minutes are up a BIG red light comes on and their mic is turned off. If they keep going, strobe lights start flashing in their face.
Give them each a little more time to respond, but not too much.
Seriously, this debate was better. I like the exchange, but often both failed to answer the question. Neither, but especially Obam, failed to answer the gentleman's question about the Ambassador's security before the attack. I believe that it has been stated in the news media that he had asked for additional security, but it was denied. Further, Romeny could have picked up on the fact that this was the anniversary of 9/11, so why wasn't everyone on high alert?
they should get the guy frokm Bravo who hosts the sit downs w/ all those crazy house wives.
Are we supposed to feel better about Obama that every time Romney was about to hit him Candy Crowley came to his rescue??!?!?! How many times did she BLATANTLY rescue Obama??!?!? If you think this makes me comfortable giving Obama four more years, you could not be more mistaken. This country needs a 'leader'!!
Romney tried hard to soft pedal his record and statements, tried to look like a Democrat, but failed to convince anyone who is familiar with the Republican historical record.
The Globe censors have gotten up and running today. Guess that's the end of free speech on this line. Pretty questionable threshold for removing comments.
I'm going to go out on a limb and guess you're referring to the "Never Waste a Tragedy" spiel system has been cut and pasting to every article on the debate. They let it stand over in Scot LeHigh's column, but let's face it -- it's both libel AND spam.
libel? Rahm said it
Obama behaved like the school yard bully: He rudely interrupted, smirked, and was unable to provide any plans for another 4 years. The Obama-Biden team can only attack the ideas of others, but fail to articulate their own ideas! Those two men talk down to their colleagues with icy scorn & mocking. No wonder there is Washington GRID-Lock.
Romney was the one with no specifics. He was called out on it directly and had no answer.
it is funny how things get perceived - I thouhgt Obama's pension remark was clever, my wife thought it was obnoxious.
Obama did a good job at this debate, you gotta credit someone interviewing for a job with four years of utter failure on almost all work requrements in his last four years of emploment, who can show up and pretend the 800 pound gorilla that is his record, is not on the stage. Maybe he has started smoking the you-know-what again.
Amazing that here are people claiming Obama was a bully. Romney set the stage for interupting and disrespecting the moderator once again. There were times where he clearly was trying to physically get up in Obama's space and throw him off his game. Not presidential at all, it was a presidential debate afterall, not the thrilla in Manilla. Romeny was clearly flustered that he didn't run into the same Obama as the first debate. He was completely flustered when Obama called him out for his lies regarding the Arizona immigration law. After a two debates, it's easy to see when Romney is pulling stats out of his you know what and Obama will be even more ready for him in debate three. Also, would love to know more about the "25 dead birds" comment. I mean why let that get in the way of some old fashioned fracking? It's not like the 25 dead birds may have been pointing to some larger concerns, such as representing a danger to humans. One thing is for sure, after two debates, we know that this man sure hates birds.