We’ve seen a lot go down in the past two presidential debates.
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The two contentious candidates duked it out last week during the town hall-style debate at Hofstra University, while Obama supporters were shocked and disappointed to see the Democratic incumbent take a beat down at the hands of his fiery opponent Mitt Romney in the first debate.
Now, the two will square off one last and final time. At 9pm (ET), President Obama and his Republican challenger Mitt Romney will meet at Lynn University in Boca Raton, Florida for the third presidential debate. The debate will focus on foreign policy and be moderated by host of CBS’ Face the Nation, Bob Schieffer. The topics of debate are: America’s role in the world, our longest war in Afghanistan and Pakistan, where to draw the “red line” in Iran and Israel, the changing Middle East and the new face of terrorism (I and II) and the rise of China and tomorrow’s world.
During the debate, Obama will tout his foreign policy achievements, which include killing Osama bin Laden and ending the War in Iraq. For Romney, this will be an opportunity for him to prove that he will not only be a savvy business leader, but also a competent commander-in-chief.
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Here’s what else you can expect at tonight’s debate!
1. Go out with a bang!
Both candidates will be charged up and ready to rumble. During the first debate, Mitt Romney appeared passionate and combative. In the second, he seemed more enthused and even displayed bully-like aggression towards the President. However, both of his debate performances effectively electrified the Republican base and helped him build and continue his campaign momentum. In effect, expect him to deliver the same energy tonight.
On the other hand, Obama learned his lesson when he came across as disengaged and “too polite” at the first debate. Expect the President to be assertive and play offense as well as defense in response to Romney’s attacks like he did in the second debate.on
2. Bring It Home
Although the debaters will be asked questions about foreign policy, many people are still highly concerned about the American economy and building it back up. While Obama and Romney address foreign policy issues, they will also direct the conversation back to the economy and jobs.
3. Talk On Libya
The US attacks in Benghazi, Libya that killed four US diplomats will be a likely focal point. Schieffer will probably raise the issue and Romney is likely to emphasize the Obama administration’s failure to clarify the growing confusion about what went wrong and caused the violence last month.
Obama will argue that Romney has politicized the tragedy, and turn the tables on him to see what he would have done differently to handle the Arab uprisings.
In the second debate, the candidates argued over word semantics and whether or not and when the President described the Middle Eastern attack as terrorism. However, the real issue is how the next president will apply the learned lessons from the Benghazi attack in order to handle al-Qaeda and its sympathizers, and prevent another attack over the next four years.
4. A Pro-Israeli Approach On Iran
Both the President and the Governor will pander to pro-Israeli supporters by promising to be tough on Iran. Obama will gloat on the fact that under his presidency, Israel has received record levels of US military aid, while Romney will boost about his personal relationship with Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin “Bibi” Netanyahu.
Obama is also likely to paint Romney as warmonger who is more than ready to wage war against Iran. In Romney’s defense, he may refer to a recent New York Times article that accused the Obama administration of engaging in backroom conversations with Iran about nuclear weapons. Obama will probably address this issue by falsifying the report.
5. The “Red Line”
Another point of discussion will be where the candidates plan to draw the “red line” in Iran and our perpetual wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan. The “red line” is the term of reference regarding when and how to stop Iran from developing nuclear weapons.
Overall, Obama’s goal at the last debate will be to frame Romney as an incompetent leader for the US, while Romney will try to paint the President’s foreign policies as a failure to the American people. This should be good!
