Obama ‘too polite’ during first debate

WASHINGTON - Reuters

‘It’s not the first time I’ve had a bad night,’ says Obama on the debate. AP photo

U.S. President Barack Obama said on Oct. 10 he was “too polite” in a presidential debate that stunned many of his supporters and re-energized Republican rival Mitt Romney’s campaign, and promised a more aggressive approach in the remaining encounters.

“I think it’s fair to say I was just too polite,” Obama said on the “Tom Joyner Morning Show” radio program. Obama insisted the “fundamentals” of the race for the White House remained unchanged despite a “bad night” for him. “Governor Romney had a good night. I had a bad night,” Obama told the ABC World News.

“It’s not the first time I’ve had a bad night. But I think what’s important is the fundamentals of what this race is about haven’t changed,” Obama said as he sought to play down the overall impact. “You know, Governor Romney went to a lot of trouble to try to hide what his positions are.” The Romney camp said it was not just a single sluggish performance that explained the president’s slide in the polls.

“We heard from President Obama that he believed he had a ‘bad night’ during the first debate, but in reality, he’s had a bad four years and the American people suffered because of it,” Romney spokeswoman Amanda Henneberg said. According to the latest polls Romney has pulled ahead of Obama in the race for the first time. Obama’s aides have hinted he will use a more aggressive approach at the next debate - a townhall-style event in Hofstra University in New York state on Oct. 16.