I continue to be in a fog of disbelief following the non-debate, debate between Messrs. Obama and Romney. It is of course, difficult to have any kind of a debate without a moderator. Don’t know where Jim Lehrer was, but he wasn’t at the debate.
That being the case, Mitt Romney, came out like a verbal steamroller, leaving Mr. Obama pancaked in the middle of the road. Romney did it by becoming the mother of all flip-floppers, reversing himself on positions he had held for months, including his new-found acceptance of Obamacare, or Romneycare, or the Affordable Care Act, take your pick. He isn’t trumpeting support for the whole thing, just portions of it, apparently. With Mitt, you can’t be sure what he’s supporting from one minute to the next, which might be something the President should have seized upon. He could have mentioned the 47-percent comment, although I’m pretty sure Mitt would have denied saying what he said by way of a prepared staccato attack condemning Obama for twisting his words and intentionally turning an innocent comment into evil intent. He never really said it and if he did, he didn’t mean what you thought he meant. Of course. All a misunderstanding.
Romeny said the 47 percent are Americans “…who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims, who believe the government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, to you-name-it — that that’s an entitlement. And the government should give it to them. And they will vote for this president no matter what. … These are people who pay no income tax. … [M]y job is not to worry about those people. I’ll never convince them they should take personal responsibility and care for their lives.”
The truth, according to CBS News, quoting numbers from the Tax Policy Center, is that “only 18.1 percent of American households paid neither federal income taxes nor payroll taxes in 2011.”
I’m sure it’s all just a misunderstanding.
If we can believe nothing Romney said during the primary when he was going after his base, then why should we believe anything he’s telling us now? I’m not saying the President should have called the man a liar, although that’s what it used to be called. It’s entirely possible to suggest someone is less than genuine without calling that person a liar. With apologies to the legal profession, Mr. Obama, has a law degree, he knows how it’s done. Remember the etch-a-sketch comment? That came from Romney’s own people. And Obama was apparently unprepared to attack Romney for his incessant and shameless flip-flopping?
Had Obama been there to debate as opposed to appearing as though he was prepared for nothing more than polite dinner-table conversation with close friends, he would have punched back. Instead, Mitt Romney, Republican candidate for President of the United States, threw Mr. Obama against a wall and pounded away. Obama was in an alley fight, but instead of swinging back, he tried to take Romney down with grace and intellect.
Note to the President: When being beaten to a pulp, intellectual grace and propriety count for nothing.
I have to keep telling myself that Barack Obama was a community organizer on the South Side of Chicago. I have to keep telling myself that he’s the guy who gave the “go” sign on getting Osama bin Laden. I need to be reminded that it was Mr. Obama, who got healthcare reform through the Congress, something so many before him had attempted but failed to do.
The British were unusually kind with a headline reading, “Obama Stumbles In First Debate.” “Stumbles?” He got the stuffings kicked out of him. A story in the Guardian, says a member of Mr. Obama’s team, Stephanie Cutter, “…admitted Romney had won on style and preparation.” Ya, right, style, preparation and delivery. Mitt Romney handed Obama his hat. And I have to wonder why. I have to wonder where the President’s getting his advice, or if he’s getting good advice but not listening? Something’s going to have to change. He’d better pull in somebody new for debate prep or pay more attention to what he’s being told. One or (God forbid) two more episodes like the debacle of last night could put an end to Mr. Obama’s political career, leaving us with Willard “Mitt” Romney, a man who is willing to change positions on a moments notice and say almost anything to win. If a majority of the country is comfortable with that, then the country will get what it deserves.