The final presidential debate: Did Mitt Romney blow it by taking it easy on Obama?

Many conservatives were disappointed in Mitt Romney&#039;s debate performance on Monday.

(Image credit: REUTERS/Rick Wilking)

last updated 8 January 2015

At the final presidential debate on Monday night in Boca Raton, Florida, Mitt Romney took a conciliatory stance on foreign policy, only mildly disagreeing with President Obama on a range of issues, including the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, America's role in the Arab Spring, the West's aid for Syrian rebels, and the U.S.'s approach to Iran's suspected nuclear weapons program. The aftermath of previous debates have been dominated by arguments over who was the winner. But for much of the debate on Monday, it appeared that Romney didn't feel the need to rack up points against Obama the way he did in the first two face-offs. Commentators said Romney was purposely taking modest, middle-of-the-road positions in order to appear more presidential. Here, some reactions from Twitter:

Obama, for his part, was more than happy to go on offense. In one memorable exchange, he delivered a withering indictment of Romney's allegedly old-fashioned view of military power, saying the U.S. had moved beyond "horses and bayonets." Watch the video below: