The presidential debate: Did Mitt Romney win the argument over the economy?

The Romney campaign says its candidate outperformed President Obama on the No. 1 issue for voters

It has been Mitt Romney's goal this campaign to convince voters that President Obama is bad for the economy, and Tuesday night he might have done just that.
(Image credit: Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

Mitt Romney has received some flak for his debate performance on Tuesday night, with both liberals and conservatives acknowledging that he flubbed a golden opportunity to attack President Obama for his administration's muddled response to the Sept. 11 terrorist attack in Benghazi, Libya. In addition, Romney didn't do himself any favors with his remarks about "binders full of women," or quibbling constantly about the debate rules. However, his campaign says Romney dominated on the most important issue of the night: The economy. Team Romney is "contending that the debate strengthened their position — and they may have a point," say Zeke Miller and McKay Coppins at BuzzFeed. A CNN insta-poll shows viewers favored Romney on "virtually every issue he's chosen to place at the center of his campaign, from handling of the economy and tax policy, to the deficit and health care." Did Romney win on the economy?

Yes. Obama can't escape the grim facts: Obama "countered Romney effectively," but Romney "was on his game" when it came to the economy, says Scott Galupo at The American Conservative. "For two minutes that seemed like five, Romney unleashed a torrent of horrible data on unemployment, underemployment, food stamps, poverty rates, and exploding deficits." There's no way to get around the reality of the situation. "The record is there, and Obama is lumbered with it."

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