YouSpeak: The Next Debate
What the president has to do to make his case
More than 67 million Americans tuned in on October 3 to watch the first debate between President Barack Obama and his Republican challenger, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney—the largest audience for a presidential debate in more than three decades.
After it was over, political pundits and late night comedians were quick to deride Obama’s performance, saying he appeared detached, failed to make eye contact with his opponent, and missed key opportunities to question Romney’s record. Time magazine’s Joe Klein described it as “one of the most inept performances I’ve ever seen by a sitting president.”
The public agreed. Polls taken just after the debate found that an overwhelming majority of Americans believed Romney won the debate.
The candidates will share a stage again tomorrow night, when they face off in the second of the three scheduled debates, at 9 p.m. at Hofstra University. With the race in a dead heat and just three weeks to go until Election Day, the stakes couldn’t be higher.
So this week’s “YouSpeak” asks: “What does the president have to do in tomorrow’s debate to improve his performance?”
“YouSpeak” typically appears each Monday.
If you have a suggestion for a question we should ask, post it in the comments section below.
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