The first presidential debate of the 2012 election season is over and done with, and what a difference this debate was compared to the 2008 presidential debates.
Overwhelming, from critics on both the left and right have declared Romney the winner of this first debate. This is a huge momentum shift for the Romney campaign, which has had a rough month, with the release of a secret video tape and criticism of Romney’s comments about what happened in Libya.
Millions of Americans got to see Mitt Romney in action for the first time, while millions of Americans who were ready for Obama to shine like he did in the 2008 debates, were left very disappointed. Romney seemed to be on his game with quick comebacks, and tended to be on the offensive side all night.
Romney when he would address his points would either look at the audience or look Obama in the eyes. While Obama for the most part would either look at the debate moderator or look down at his podium with his quintessential smirk. Clearly tonight Obama needed to have his teleprompter. Romney spoke about a number of specific plans like his plan to cut taxes for the middle class, and not increase taxes on the rich. While Obama spoke about the middle class, the difference is he wants to raise taxes on the upper class.
By raising taxes on the upper class, you are discouraging the wealthy from hiring new people and invest more of their money in business and the economy. Since when did a poor person hire you for a job? The answer to this question is simple, a poor person is not going to hire you, we need the wealthy to keep investing money in our businesses and economy in order keep a strong middle class, and to create more jobs. Obama seemed out of it at the debate tonight, like it was a headache that he had to show up and go through this entire process.
Obama is a good debater, but he does not enjoy it and that was clearly evident tonight in his performance. Obama looked down for a majority of the time at his notes, and often stuttered and did not give many specific answers. Clearly John Kerry will not be back tomorrow helping Obama with his debate prep. What happened to the Obama that was energetic and passionate in 2008? He had one glimpse of hope when it came to education and he became somewhat passionate when he began to talk about investing in our future and the education system. If you were to treat this debate as a boxing match, Romney won the most rounds and won the match.
Obama was not knocked out, but this certainly is a wake up call for Obama and his campaign. In the next two debates he needs to get his act together, stop hanging around with Jay-Z and other celebrities, and study up on the issues facing the American people. Clearly we saw two distinct directions that each candidate wants the country to go in. Be it through their policies when it comes to taxes, to the size of government, and what to do about entitlements. We have had 40 plus months of unemployment above 8 percent, we are 16 trillion dollars in debt, and people are loosing faith that the American Dream still exists.
We need a change, and this time around one that moves us in the right direction. Romney talked about reaching across the aisle, while Obama defended his health care law that was bi-partisan legislation that was forced down the throats of the American people. This was Romney’s moment to define himself, and he did just that. This is a huge step forward for the Romney campaign, and if this trend continues, look for positive things from the Republican candidate.
By Kenny Liszewski Creator of DormRoomPolitics
