"His real victory was in provoking Mr Romney to reveal the snappy, irritable side of his character" [View all]

[Nye Bevan]

I know some DUers view the Telegraph as a RW source, but this analysis is spot on.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9615825/US-Election-Mitt-Romney-loses-his-cool-under-fire-Barack-Obama-plays-the-President.html

US Election: Mitt Romney loses his cool under fire; Barack Obama plays the President

.....

Time and again Mr Romney allowed Mr Obama to get under his skin, in what was clearly a deliberate strategy to tackle the man as much as the questions, with direct attacks on his record that were designed to impugn his integrity. The plan worked. "You'll get your chance in a moment. I'm still speaking," snapped Mr Romney when interrupted by Mr Obama. Such peevishness – and there were several incidences - is very dangerous when addressing a sitting president.

This is a 'threshold' issue. If a candidate cannot take a bit of ribbing from an irritating debate opponent, how will he cope in negotiations with Iran's Ayatollahs or even worse, China's zero-sum trade negotiators?

"Have you looked at your pension?", he said, invading the president's personal space, "Have you looked at your pension, Mr President?" he pressed again, voice shrill with indignation.

"I don't look at my pension. It's not as big as yours," flashed back Mr Obama, the smart kid in the playground, raising a ripple of laughter. It was a telling moment. Mitt wanted to 'step outside' while Barack was saying (infuriatingly) 'keep your hair on'. These are the moments – like Mr Romney's bungled confrontation over the Benghazi attacks - that give Mr Obama precious momentum heading into the final showdown on foreign policy in Florida on Monday.