News Editor
The polls are looking better for Republican
candidate Mitt Romney after the October 3 presidential debate. According to a
CBS poll, 46% of Americans thought Romney won the debate while only 22% thought
Obama won.
The debate, which had an official topic
of domestic policy, was heavily focused on the economy and job creation. One of
the biggest points of the night was when Obama said Romney’s plan “calls for a
$5 trillion tax cut,” which Romney steadily denied. Obama failed to mention
that this figure was cumulative over a ten year period. According to the Tax
Policy Center, Romney’s tax cuts would lower federal tax liability by $480
billion in 2015.
On the topic of healthcare, Obama claimed
that because of his Affordable Care Act, health care premiums have gone up
“slower than any time in the last 50 years.” This is true about health care
spending in general, but not specifically premiums (FactCheck.org). Romney
stated that the Congressional Budget Office has estimated that “20 million
people will lose their insurance” due to the Affordable Care Act. The CBO
stated that this may happen, but only in the worst case scenario and it is not
a realistic outcome.
Another topic of discussion after the
debate was the lack of control moderator Jim Lehrer had over the candidates.
Both candidates went over their time limits on many questions, simply blowing
over moderator Lehrer when he tried to cut them off at the time limit.
The vice presidential debate will take
place at Centre College in Danville, Kentucky on Thursday, October 11. The next
presidential debate will take place at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New
York on Tuesday, October 16.
