# The second presidential debate: 10/16/2012 **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [October 16, 2012, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-second-presidential-debate-10-16-2012/637847 "2012-10-16T04:35:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 31
**Author:** ![elbowj](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9adbd/32.png) [@elbowj](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbowj)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2012, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-second-presidential-debate-10-16-2012/637847/601 "2012-10-17T03:53:35Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > The context: > > Of course, yesterday was already a painful day for our nation as we marked the solemn memory of the 9/11 attacks. We mourned with the families who were lost on that day. I visited the graves of troops who made the ultimate sacrifice in Iraq and Afghanistan at the hallowed grounds of Arlington Cemetery, and had the opportunity to say thank you and visit some of our wounded warriors at Walter Reed. And then last night, we learned the news of this attack in Benghazi. > > As Americans, let us never, ever forget that our freedom is only sustained because there are people who are willing to fight for it, to stand up for it, and in some cases, lay down their lives for it. Our country is only as strong as the character of our people and the service of those both civilian and military who represent us around the globe. > > No acts of terror will ever shake the resolve of this great nation, alter that character, or eclipse the light of the values that we stand for. Removing the next sentence when he mentions the attacks in Benghazi doesn’t really put into context. It does just the opposite. ---
**Author:** ![Hippy\_Hollow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hippy_hollow/32/4841_2.png) [@Hippy\_Hollow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hippy_Hollow)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2012, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-second-presidential-debate-10-16-2012/637847/602 "2012-10-17T03:54:12Z")
> [@MeanOldLady](#): > > this shiny negro I don’t know what debate y’all are talking about, but this won the thread. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hentor_the_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2012, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-second-presidential-debate-10-16-2012/637847/603 "2012-10-17T03:55:11Z")
> [@HurricaneDitka](#): > > Dems now complaining about poll over-sampling? Not complaining. Just observing that even among samples with more Republicans than there are at large, people thought Romney was the loser. ---
**Author:** ![HurricaneDitka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/96bed5/32.png) [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2012, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-second-presidential-debate-10-16-2012/637847/604 "2012-10-17T03:55:36Z")
> [@bengangmo](#): > > Obama seems to have totally owned this one - I do hope it leads to a poll bounce, especially on the back of Ryan being exposed last week by Biden. I guess you don’t read the poll results, do you? ---
**Author:** ![Kozmik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/8dc957/32.png) [@Kozmik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kozmik)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2012, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-second-presidential-debate-10-16-2012/637847/605 "2012-10-17T03:55:46Z")
> [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](#): > > They were clapping for the truth. Quoted for truth. Also when a few audience members started to clap. They aren’t robots, as much as the Republicans would wish otherwise. ---
**Author:** ![Jas09](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d07c76/32.png) [@Jas09](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jas09)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2012, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-second-presidential-debate-10-16-2012/637847/606 "2012-10-17T03:56:16Z")
> [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](#): > > I really believe that this is where the right wing disconnection from reality does them a disservice. They believe this shit. They all sit around telling each other things that are not true and convincing each other that the lack of corroboration from outside sources is a product of colluding forces. > > Then they have their candidate step on his dick on national tv as a result. I’d like to think it will matter, but in this very thread you have people insisting that Romney was right. Fox News, and others, will just repeat that until it becomes a point of controversy rather than a dick-stepping. ---
**Author:** ![jshore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b5e925/32.png) [@jshore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jshore)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2012, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-second-presidential-debate-10-16-2012/637847/607 "2012-10-17T03:56:27Z")
> [@jtgain](#): > > The moderator is simply there to enforce the debate rules, which she did not do by allowing Obama to speak for 4 more minutes than Romney. Unfortunately, it sometimes takes a little more time to refute horseshit than it does to spew horseshit. ---
**Author:** ![bengangmo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@bengangmo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bengangmo)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2012, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-second-presidential-debate-10-16-2012/637847/608 "2012-10-17T03:57:28Z")
> [@HurricaneDitka](#): > > I guess you don’t read the poll results, do you? Huh? What polls are you talking about? At least two in this very thread give it to Obama by a pretty good margin, a third quoted poll scores it a draw. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2012, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-second-presidential-debate-10-16-2012/637847/609 "2012-10-17T03:57:32Z")
> [@monstro](#): > > Saving the 47% remark for the end = win > [@Mahaloth](#): > > What was his exact quote? From the transcript of the last question: > [@President Obama](#): > > I believe Governor Romney is a good man. Loves his family, cares about his faith. But I also believe that when he said behind closed doors that 47 percent of the country considered themselves victims who refuse personal responsibility, think about who he was talking about. ---
**Author:** ![aldiboronti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc348/32.png) [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2012, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-second-presidential-debate-10-16-2012/637847/610 "2012-10-17T03:57:35Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > Did these people watch the same debate as the rest of us? Of course they did. They just watched it with less partisan eyes. ---
**Author:** ![Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/7ba0ec/32.png) [@Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omg_a_Black_Conservative)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2012, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-second-presidential-debate-10-16-2012/637847/611 "2012-10-17T03:58:23Z")
> [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](#): > > They were clapping for the truth. Except they weren’t. [First](http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/election-2012/wp/2012/10/16/fact-check-libya-attack/), is that. [Secondly](http://videos.mediaite.com/video/Candy-Crowley-Romney-Right-That), that. It was a complete and obvious lie and the stupid moderator covered for him. The whole thing was a farce. ---
**Author:** ![Kozmik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/8dc957/32.png) [@Kozmik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kozmik)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2012, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-second-presidential-debate-10-16-2012/637847/612 "2012-10-17T03:59:24Z")
This 24-hour news cycle is almost over. 20 24-hour news cycles to go. 10/16/2012 is history! One more debate to go!!! ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2012, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-second-presidential-debate-10-16-2012/637847/613 "2012-10-17T03:59:33Z")
Stupid moderators. _sulk_ ---
**Author:** ![UltraVires](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecccb3/32.png) [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2012, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-second-presidential-debate-10-16-2012/637847/614 "2012-10-17T03:59:34Z")
Candy Crowley now admits that she was wrong about Romney’s remarks on Libya. Oopsy. > **[Candy Crowley: He Was Right](https://freebeacon.com/politics/candy-crowley-he-was-right/)** > > After the debate, debate moderator Candy Crowley said Republican nominee Mitt Romney was "right in the main" but "picked the wrong word" on the Obama administration's immediate response to the terrorist attack in Benghazi, Libya, that left... ---
**Author:** ![MsWhatsit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eb8c5e/32.png) [@MsWhatsit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsWhatsit)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2012, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-second-presidential-debate-10-16-2012/637847/615 "2012-10-17T03:59:36Z")
> [@aldiboronti](#): > > Of course they did. They just watched it with less partisan eyes. Everyone has partisan eyes. I said after the VP debate that I feel like the side that comes out afterward complaining about the debate moderation and too many interruptions is the side whose guy probably didn’t do so well. Because when your guy slam-dunks it, you aren’t worried about who interrupted or what the moderator was doing. Romney didn’t slam-dunk it. ---
**Author:** ![Jas09](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d07c76/32.png) [@Jas09](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jas09)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2012, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-second-presidential-debate-10-16-2012/637847/616 "2012-10-17T03:59:49Z")
> [@aldiboronti](#): > > Of course they did. They just watched it with less partisan eyes. They also may, like me, not have seen the first debate. Without that lens I thought Obama won, but on points not TKO. He clearly was more forceful and more factual, but Romney continued to build up the “moderate Romney” image. ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2012, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-second-presidential-debate-10-16-2012/637847/617 "2012-10-17T04:01:18Z")
> [@Kozmik](#): > > 20 24-hour news cycles to go _o/~ I wanna be sedated o/~_ ---
**Author:** ![HurricaneDitka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/96bed5/32.png) [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2012, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-second-presidential-debate-10-16-2012/637847/618 "2012-10-17T04:01:23Z")
> [@bengangmo](#): > > Huh? What polls are you talking about? > > At least two in this very thread give it to Obama by a pretty good margin, a third quoted poll scores it a draw. The CNN Poll: Obama 46% and Romney 39%. That’s a mild win, but I don’t think it’s realistic to characterize it as “Obama seems to have totally owned this one”. A scientific sampling of debate watchers didn’t see it that way. ---
**Author:** ![Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hentor_the_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2012, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-second-presidential-debate-10-16-2012/637847/619 "2012-10-17T04:02:18Z")
> [@jtgain](#): > > Candy Crowley now admits that she was wrong about Romney’s remarks on Libya. Oopsy. Proceed with a cite. Or did you just hear that from the right wing blogosphere. Because regardless of Crowley, several people have quoted the transcript here already. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2012, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-second-presidential-debate-10-16-2012/637847/620 "2012-10-17T04:02:36Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > CBS Poll of undecided voters: 37% say Obama won, 30% Romney. And the other 33% are – “undecided,” right? :rolleyes: [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-second-presidential-debate-10-16-2012/637847.md?page=30) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-second-presidential-debate-10-16-2012/637847.md?page=32)