Obama-Romney Round II

The debate started with a university student question about jobs that set up the stage for what can we expect during the contest: An intensive and intellectual fight between two presidential contenders about who is more prepared to lead the country.

President Obama seemed to be more secure than in the first debate. Governor Romney looked more aggressive and interrupted Obama several times. During the second question, Romney and Obama exchanged blows, but the moderator took the helm and set the tone for the rest of the night. In sum, Obama spoke three minutes more than Romney.

The debate consisted of eleven questions asked by undecided voters. I scored six questions for Obama (oil prices, taxes, gender disparity pay, Obama's record as president, assault weapons, and misperceptions about the candidates) and five questions for Romney (jobs, Bush's foreign policies, immigration, Lybia, and outsourcing). I was surprised that Romney distanced himself from Bush's foreign policies, risking hardline Republicans but appealing to moderate voters.

For me, Obama won the debate slightly. On the other hand, Romney delivered the best quote of the night: “China is not playing by the rules.” A CNN's post-debate poll about who won the contest gave Obama a seven percent advantage (46% to 39%) over Romney among debate's viewers.