Who won the Debate?

[traininthedistance]

Yeah, Romney definitely won this round.  Obama was very hesitant and long-winded, and Mitt ran hard to the center.  He played fast and loose with the facts a couple times, but nobody's going to care.

I think Obama had the edge early, as Romney seemed to get flustered a few times and spar with Lehrer; but the second half was definitely strong for Mitt.

[Fmr. Pres. Duke]

Hate to tell you folks this, but a CNN poll already shows that most viewers felt Obama won. Romney only seems to win in the minds of political junkies like us.

Obama seemed above the fray, while Romney came across as a spoiled, rambling loser.

Sometimes you have to be honest with yourself bandit. Even James Carville says Obama was off tonight.

Obama was definitely off his game in the second half but do keep in mind that Carville is a Clinton diehard and clearly hates Obama as a person.

Doubt he is being serious... I haven't seen a poll on CNN and I've been watching for a while

[Eraserhead]

You do all realize that Obama will probably win the instapolls right?

[Warren 4 Secretary of Everything]

CBS KN instant reaction poll: Big win for Romney. By 46-22 say think  won, 56% have better opinion of Romney, Romney cares up from 30 to 63.
We need to hit him, and hit him hard.

[Ty440]

Hannity is probably giddy as a kid on Christmas right now.

[J. J.]

You do all realize that Obama will probably win the instapolls right?

They are doing the focus group later.  

Romney at 31.8% on Intrade.

[traininthedistance]

As long as we're throwing soccer scores around, I'd call this one 1-0 Romney.

[Marokai Backbeat]

A very typical sort of Democratic way of losing. Obama spent most of the debate desperately trying to make the debate substantive and coming at Romney under the assumption of how Romney previously described his own policies. But whenever tax cuts were brought up, Romney basically just started denying his own plan in whatever way he could. "Tax cuts? Huh? Five trillion? Who? Me? I would never!"

It's a very bluntly dishonest way of performing in a debate but it's a frustratingly successful one because Obama can't have any response. How can you respond to someone who has such a sparsely detailed plan that he just changes it on the fly?

[AmericanNation]

You do all realize that Obama will probably win the instapolls right?

CBS KN instant reaction poll: Big win for Romney. By 46-22 say think  won, 56% have better opinion of Romney, Romney cares up from 30 to 63

Romney will get a significant bump out of this.  CO, WI, NH, VA, and maybe IA will swing into Romney's favor.  OH is the only state left for Obama.  

[tmthforu94]

Say what you want about FOX News, but in a focus group they're talking to right now, an overwhelming % thought Romney won the debate, and a decent chunk of the undecideds said they've made their mind up from the debate.

[LiberalJunkie]

I expect Obama campaign to hit Romney hard on throwing his tax plan under the bus.

[AmericanNation]

A very typical sort of Democratic way of losing. Obama spent most of the debate desperately trying to make the debate substantive and coming at Romney under the assumption of how Romney previously described his own policies. But whenever tax cuts were brought up, Romney basically just started denying his own plan in whatever way he could. "Tax cuts? Huh? Five trillion? Who? Me? I would never!"

It's a very bluntly dishonest way of performing in a debate but it's a frustratingly successful one because Obama can't have any response. How can you respond to someone who has such a sparsely detailed plan that he just changes it on the fly?

LOL, at Dems.  Obama wants to attack the technocratic guy with over ten times more details and specifics than him.  Hypocritical whining is all you got?  

[pepper11]

I expect Obama campaign to hit Romney hard on throwing his tax plan under the bus.

He didnt change his plan.

www.mittromney.com

[old timey villain]

Nate Silver ran a post today talking about how the first debate usually helps the challenger. It's usually their final chance to put themselves and their ideas out there free of caricature from the other side. People think, "hmm, maybe he's not so bad after all." Mondale actually gained in the polls after his first debate with Reagan. But debates usually aren't the game changers they are made out to be, unless one guy just completely blows it out of the water/sucks it up.

Romney won, but not enough to shake up the race in any big way. And there's still two more debates to go, in which, historically, the incumbent comes back swinging.

[Ichabod]

I love the "In Soccer terms..." comments. I'd say 3-1 or 4-1.

That's my boy.
The Austrian thinks it was 3-2 but well, what Austrians know about football?
It was a 4-1,

Just remember, Hungary won 8-3 against West Germany in 1954 and West Germany won the Championship anyway.

[Peeperkorn]

CSPAN giving the triumph for Romney.

[AmericanNation]

Nate Silver ran a post today talking about how the first debate usually helps the challenger. It's usually their final chance to put themselves and their ideas out there free of caricature from the other side. People think, "hmm, maybe he's not so bad after all." Mondale actually gained in the polls after his first debate with Reagan. But debates usually aren't the game changers they are made out to be, unless one guy just completely blows it out of the water/sucks it up.

Romney won, but not enough to shake up the race in any big way. And there's still two more debates to go, in which, historically, the incumbent comes back swinging.

Obama lost yardage every time he tried to go on offense.  Straw men are harder to sell when you aren't the only one on stage.  

[Orion0]

Romney did what was required; he was energized to be there, showed that he cared and has a plan, and despite blinking a bit much (bright lights maybe?) appeared poised and presidential.

Obama underperformed. Looked out of sorts, with enough awkward silences that when added together could fill their own segment. Tired or just not jazzed to be there, he spent too much time looking down (bright lights perhaps?) and trailing off on tangents most vague it was hard to tell if he even cares. Long story short, it was his to lose and that he did.

[Marokai Backbeat]

A very typical sort of Democratic way of losing. Obama spent most of the debate desperately trying to make the debate substantive and coming at Romney under the assumption of how Romney previously described his own policies. But whenever tax cuts were brought up, Romney basically just started denying his own plan in whatever way he could. "Tax cuts? Huh? Five trillion? Who? Me? I would never!"

It's a very bluntly dishonest way of performing in a debate but it's a frustratingly successful one because Obama can't have any response. How can you respond to someone who has such a sparsely detailed plan that he just changes it on the fly?

LOL, at Dems.  Obama wants to attack the technocratic guy with over ten times more details and specifics than him.  Hypocritical whining is all you got?  

Technocratic? Romney is a lot of things but he ain't technocratic. He proposes repealing Obamacare, but what to replace it with? No specifics, and two competing answers for that matter; on the one hand, it's a state issue, on the other, he'll actively replace it with something. What? We don't know. His tax cuts would cost roughly 5 trillion, how do you make up the money? He can't really say. Obama asks how he would avoid savage domestic spending cuts to make up for the cost, Romney just says "I won't do that." No, seriously, just trust him. Repeal and replace Dodd-Frank? With what, we don't know.

Each time Obama tried to establish, not what Romney's policies would affect as Obama saw them, but simply what Romney's policies self-descriptively are, Romney would just immediately deny whatever they were characterized as. We weren't having a debate over policy effects, because Romney continued again to be deliberately evasive on what his policies even are. It is ridiculous that a candidate is campaigning on shapeshifting policies that change from audience to audience, from sentence to sentence. It seems to display poorly on a candidate that doesn't seem to have the confidence in his own policies to even openly and specifically lay out what they even are, let alone defend them.

It is an effective strategy, but the least you could do is admit its cynical dishonesty.

[old timey villain]

Nate Silver ran a post today talking about how the first debate usually helps the challenger. It's usually their final chance to put themselves and their ideas out there free of caricature from the other side. People think, "hmm, maybe he's not so bad after all." Mondale actually gained in the polls after his first debate with Reagan. But debates usually aren't the game changers they are made out to be, unless one guy just completely blows it out of the water/sucks it up.

Romney won, but not enough to shake up the race in any big way. And there's still two more debates to go, in which, historically, the incumbent comes back swinging.

Obama lost yardage every time he tried to go on offense.  Straw men are harder to sell when you aren't the only one on stage.  

Don't worry, Romney will have just as tough a time selling outright fabrications in the next two debates.

[Peeperkorn]

Now I'm listen to Obama's fans on CSPAN crying because they haven't enough time.

[Likely Voter]

CNN RV POLL

Who won?
Romney 67%
Obama 25%

[Dereich]

CNN Flash poll out: Romney wins 67-25

[DrScholl]

At the end of the day, Romney is still Romney, his policies are still the same and there was no game changer in the debate. Romney's win is that he made it through the debate without giving the opposition any fodder to use against him.

I hardly think it would have been a good idea for Obama to go too aggressive, that can backfire.

[pepper11]

67-25 Romney victory

REGISTER VOTERS CNN

WOW!

You were right Bandit...Obama won