And The Winner Is, ???

The CNN post debate poll showed Obama to be the overall winner 46% to 39% but on the issues everyone seems to care about Romney won.

• On who would better handle the economy: 58 percent Romney; 40 percent Obama
• On who would better handle health care: 49 percent Romney; 46 percent Obama
• On taxes: 51 percent Romney; 44 percent Obama
• On who is a stronger leader: 49 percent Romney; 46 percent Obama

Obama comes off a bit more likable, 47% to 41% and yes he cares more about the voters' lives. Some seem to think this will stem Romney's surge but I disagree. Once again Romney was able to both lay out his his five point plan for economic growth and to recite the litany of Obama's failures. It's not what happened in the debate that pushes the voters' button but rather what has been happening for the past 4 years and like a good campaign ad the redundancy not the eloquence drives the vote. The public has heard every talking point Obama has in his repertoire. His prose are hackneyed and trite and he is overexposed and shopworn.

Romney is novel to many undecided voters who do not follow politics closely. He would benefit from an appearance on the Home Shopping Network or the Weather Channel. Simple exposure in an unfiltered environment is enough to pull in some undecided voters.

Inevitably Obama played the 47% card and it fell flat. The fact, that like everything else in Obama's stump speeches, it's hackneyed seemed to take off the edge. I'm not aware that any commentator even mentioned it in the post debate analysis.

Moderator Candy Crowley may have inadvertently made Romney the ultimate winner when attempting to play the role of fact checker got her facts wrong relative to the Benghazi bungle. She then had to correct her error after the debate once again putting Obama's failure to call the raid an act of terrorism and spinning it as an understandable reaction to a video no one had seen back into the news cycle. Romney was knocked off balance but no matter. He will ample time to make the point again in the next debate which centers on foreign policy.

To venture a bit off topic, I was surprised and pleased to hear several members of two focus groups consider Romney's business background as a huge positive. "Well of course he would know that; he's a businessman." Yes, and as we used to boast, the business of America is business.