Obama Team's New Mission: Call Out Serial Evader Mitt Romney

     I think Josh Marshall has it right. While the conventional wisdom is that Romney won this debate handily, it was on the level of style. On substance, Romney actually increased his problems. When the dust settles, there were no new specifics last night. And he actually got himself into some tricky obfuscations while also admitting that he wants to voucherize Medicare and is opposed to any tax increases in reducing the deficit.

     "President Obama’s top aides didn’t deny on Thursday that Mitt Romney had a strong first debate. But by taunting fact checkers with a vague set of newly centrist claims, they believe the governor has left himself open for a major counteroffensive this week.'

     'Obama senior strategist David Axelrod characterized Romney’s debate strategy as “effective in the short term, vulnerable in the long term.”

    “Governor Romney came to give a performance and he gave a good performance and we give him credit for that,” he told reporters in a conference call. “The problem with it was that none of it was rooted in fact.”

     http://2012.talkingpointsmemo.com/2012/10/obama-camps-post-debate-plan-expose-serial-evader-romney.php?ref=fpa

     Greg Sargent hinted at a call to arms to the media to maybe pick up the slack for the beleaguered fact checkers:

      "The bottom line is that, for all his success last night, Romney remains burdened by a deeply unpopular agenda. That’s why he relentlessly distorted and obfuscated the true nature of that agenda last night. And let’s face it: He pulled it off brilliantly. The question is whether the Obama campaign can, in upcoming debates and through TV ads, cut through the haze produced by the Romney campaign’s fog machine of dishonesty and reveal Romney’s true agenda to voters. And who knows — maybe the news media will have a crack at doing this, too."

     http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line

      If anything bodes well for the media doing it's job, it's Ezra Klein. Note that the media did a pretty good job after Ryan's shocking obfuscations in Tampa. Klein is something of a media bellwether. As he's been very vocal already about just how deep was Romney's evasions and obfuscations last night, this may have a major impact on many in the media.

      Klein, after all, has a very high profile and he's very respected-and very smart and knowledgeable to say the least. With Klein calling out Romney early and often for Denver, many of the media's lesser lights-who ten to front run may be influenced by Klein's good example. He already has lots of good pieces on Romney's many policy distortions from last night.

      One good one-among many-is how Romney was flat out incorrect in claiming that the 3% Obama says would pay higher taxes if the top rate goes up creates 54% of new jobs in small businesses. The number is likely closer to 12%.

      http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/ezra-klein/wp/2012/10/04/romney-says-most-workers-at-small-businesses-will-see-a-tax-hit-heres-why-hes-wrong/