Biden, Ryan Debate; Romney Closes In On Obama’s Lead - The Road to the White House - Election 2012 - Week 41
- Details
- Category: Beltway Insider
- Published on Saturday, 13 October 2012 22:43
- Written by Janet Walker
President Barack Obama and Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney spent the last few days before their second Presidential debate stumping heavily in swing states where polls indicate the GOP challenger is surging.
Crisscrossing Ohio the Romney-Ryan team has been chipping away at the slim Obama-Biden swing state lead and the gap between the two is narrowing.
With 24 days until the general election, according to Gallup, President Obama’s Job Approval dropped two percentage points over the past week to 48% of those polled who approve of his effectiveness as President and those who disapprove of his effectiveness gained one percentage point to 46%.
As of October 14, 2012, among registered voters President Obama’s national popularity remained constant at 49% and Mitt Romney’s national popularity remained unchanged at 46%.
As we edge closer to the November election Gallup has added an additional poll that tabulates likely voters as opposed to only registered voters. According to Gallup among Likely voters, Mitt Romney’s national popularity is 49% and President Obama national popularity among likely voters is 47%.
Vice-Presidential Debate
Vice-President Joseph Biden and Congressman Paul Ryan came together for the only VP debate of the Election 2012 Campaign.
Martha Raddatz, a long time foreign correspondent and journalist for ABC News, moderated the ninety minute debate which focused on domestic and foreign policy, personal and faith issues. She was effective in moving the debate along without getting caught up in long monologues that can eat into the necessary time needed to present the agenda and platforms of both parties. The debate seemed more like a Sunday Morning News Show Roundtable and it was obvious Ms. Raddatz was clearly respected and both men who deferred to her leadership position.
The entire debate was informative and dealt with serious issues that affect all Americans. The main areas of concerns which produced the most heated exchanges were on the subject of unemployment, Social Security and Medicare as well as a final question on faith and abortion.
Foreign Policy issues were first on the agenda and while Vice-President Biden eloquently outlined the foreign terror hot spots, the current revelation of a pre-planned assault that resulted in the murder of Libyan Ambassador Chris Stevens who was killed along with three other Americans left the current administration somewhat at a disadvantage and will clearly be high on the list at the October 22 Foreign Policy Presidential debate.
Abortion
The final question of the evening dealt with faith and abortion. Both men publicly profess the Catholic faith as their religion. When asked how their religious beliefs affected their position on abortion the responses where the closest to a personal faith statement ever heard from Vice-President Biden and Congressman Ryan, an outspoken advocate of reversing Roe vs. Wade, soften his personal beliefs to conform to the GOP platform.
Congressman Ryan, a professing Catholic, stated “The Romney platform opposes abortion except in the cases of rape, incest and when the life of the mother is in jeopardy. “
Vice President Biden, a practicing Catholic his entire life, stated, “I accept my church’s position on abortion” and that while life begins at conception he "refuses to impose his church doctrines on others outside his faith.”
Reproductive medical decisions should be made with the counsel of faith and physician. Hardliners would want Roe v. Wade reversed leaving women, from the most accomplished and intelligent among us to the least, subject to rule of law that limits reproductive medical decisions without room for rape, incest and when the life of the mother is in danger and like a scarlet letter, those women would be branded, and forced to carry a child conceived in hate and violence, suffering through any issues including ostracizing, medical, financial or other loss and hardship.
With the landmark Roe v. Wade always on the agenda, the next president will have the possibility of reshaping the Supreme Court with at minimum one new justice and possibly two and have great room to sway the court.
Presidential Debate
The next major televised opportunity for the American public to judge the effectiveness of President Obama and republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney is scheduled for October 16, 2012 at Hofstra University.
The second Presidential debate will be in a town hall forum with undecided voters from Gallup comprising the audience. CNN’s Candy Crowley will moderate the 90 minute question and answer session. Candidates will have two minutes to respond with an additional minute for the moderator to interject.
Moderating the final Election 2012 Presidential Debate scheduled for Monday October 22 will be Bob Schieffer host of CBS Sunday morning’s “Face the Nation’s.” The final debate, which should be heated, will be on Foreign Policy.
For more information on both candidates:
Obama/Biden Official web site: http://www.barackobama.com/
Romney/Ryan official web site: http://www.mittromney.com/
