The pundits this morning are gnashing and grinding their teeth to limit the amount of damage Obama took last night. It was a veritable thrashing and even the most liberal of the news shows are having to admit that Obama's performance was lackluster and that he was on his heels for most of the debate.
This came as no surprise to me as far as the issues are concerned. Obama has a dismal record overall and he continues to blame Bush for it. However, I was concerned that Obama's polish would far outshine Romney. During the campaign, Romney has come across as weak, stiff, and unsure of the direction his campaign was going. Obama's campaign on the other hand, has been relentless in their attacks and have kept Romney off balance. Since the "You didn't build that" gaffe, Obama's rhetoric has been toned, honed, and concise. Too bad the same can't be said for Biden. But, that's another story.
Therefore, I believed the stage was set for a knockout last night. I feared that Romney would further disassociate himself from the independents who might have been thinking 'better the devil we know than the devil we don't'. I sat down to watch an Obama that was prepared to deliver striking blows with a rapier wit and see Romney stutter and squirm under the assaults.
Yet, what I saw was a complete reverse of what I was expecting. It was Obama who was on the ropes and Romney who was taking the fight to him. It became evident early on that Obama, without a prepared script or teleprompter to go by, was uncomfortable and unsure of his responses. This may not have been the case, but this is how it appeared to me. The only time Obama looked sure of himself was in his 'memorized/prepared' two minute statement at the end. Apart from that, he failed and everyone is saying he lost the debate. Everyone.
However, his promoters are smiling this morning and claiming something that I find curious, if not unexpected. They are saying that Romney won with style and performance, but not substance. How alarming. All along they have been raking him over the coals about his lack of style and lack of performance. Obama has been held up as the pinnacle of style, grace and being steady under fire. Now, all of a sudden, Romney has more style and panache than the greatone? Hilarious. They have been attacking him today for lack of specificity, that he didn't lay out his plans in detail and that this is a huge detraction of points for him. They are claiming Obama won on substance. I can't hardly write this from laughing about it.
What candidate...EVER....has unfolded an entire plan for all to see at this stage in the game? Wasn't it Nancy "I Sold My Soul To The Devil" Pelosi who said, "We have to pass the bill so we can see what's in it." Not only that, with the time allotted, there was no way either person could exhaustively detail their plans during this debate. That isn't what this was about. It was a show. Nothing more, nothing less. And Obama...the great speaker, the great presence, the great bastion of liberal ideals...was overshadowed by the presence of Mitt Romney. Neither man brought substance. One doesn't have any, and the other didn't have to. What they brought was their attack and defense plan, and Romney's was better for even the blind to see.
I do not believe these debates will win or lose the election for either man. But Obama was embarrassed last night, plain and simple. Romney elevated himself to being a viable candidate that opened some eyes. The pro-liberal agenda media are doing all they can to prop up their man. If there was a victory for Obama in this first debate, it was Pyrrhic.
Look for Obama to come out in Debate Number Two with fire in his eyes. He will not be so forgiving of Romney and the gloves will be off. Of that I have no doubt. On the other side, Romney's trainers better have him ready. Today's news should tell them that. For no matter how well he does, the cartoon below tells the truth of how the spin will turn. How well that spin works depends solely on Romney performing even better as the debates roll on. He won this one. But it's now in the past. One battle does not a war win.
This came as no surprise to me as far as the issues are concerned. Obama has a dismal record overall and he continues to blame Bush for it. However, I was concerned that Obama's polish would far outshine Romney. During the campaign, Romney has come across as weak, stiff, and unsure of the direction his campaign was going. Obama's campaign on the other hand, has been relentless in their attacks and have kept Romney off balance. Since the "You didn't build that" gaffe, Obama's rhetoric has been toned, honed, and concise. Too bad the same can't be said for Biden. But, that's another story.
Therefore, I believed the stage was set for a knockout last night. I feared that Romney would further disassociate himself from the independents who might have been thinking 'better the devil we know than the devil we don't'. I sat down to watch an Obama that was prepared to deliver striking blows with a rapier wit and see Romney stutter and squirm under the assaults.
Yet, what I saw was a complete reverse of what I was expecting. It was Obama who was on the ropes and Romney who was taking the fight to him. It became evident early on that Obama, without a prepared script or teleprompter to go by, was uncomfortable and unsure of his responses. This may not have been the case, but this is how it appeared to me. The only time Obama looked sure of himself was in his 'memorized/prepared' two minute statement at the end. Apart from that, he failed and everyone is saying he lost the debate. Everyone.
However, his promoters are smiling this morning and claiming something that I find curious, if not unexpected. They are saying that Romney won with style and performance, but not substance. How alarming. All along they have been raking him over the coals about his lack of style and lack of performance. Obama has been held up as the pinnacle of style, grace and being steady under fire. Now, all of a sudden, Romney has more style and panache than the greatone? Hilarious. They have been attacking him today for lack of specificity, that he didn't lay out his plans in detail and that this is a huge detraction of points for him. They are claiming Obama won on substance. I can't hardly write this from laughing about it.
What candidate...EVER....has unfolded an entire plan for all to see at this stage in the game? Wasn't it Nancy "I Sold My Soul To The Devil" Pelosi who said, "We have to pass the bill so we can see what's in it." Not only that, with the time allotted, there was no way either person could exhaustively detail their plans during this debate. That isn't what this was about. It was a show. Nothing more, nothing less. And Obama...the great speaker, the great presence, the great bastion of liberal ideals...was overshadowed by the presence of Mitt Romney. Neither man brought substance. One doesn't have any, and the other didn't have to. What they brought was their attack and defense plan, and Romney's was better for even the blind to see.
I do not believe these debates will win or lose the election for either man. But Obama was embarrassed last night, plain and simple. Romney elevated himself to being a viable candidate that opened some eyes. The pro-liberal agenda media are doing all they can to prop up their man. If there was a victory for Obama in this first debate, it was Pyrrhic.
Look for Obama to come out in Debate Number Two with fire in his eyes. He will not be so forgiving of Romney and the gloves will be off. Of that I have no doubt. On the other side, Romney's trainers better have him ready. Today's news should tell them that. For no matter how well he does, the cartoon below tells the truth of how the spin will turn. How well that spin works depends solely on Romney performing even better as the debates roll on. He won this one. But it's now in the past. One battle does not a war win.
