US media have, by and large, declared the Republican candidate Mitt Romney the winner in Wednesday night's presidential debate with Barack Obama.

There were few surprises during the 90 minute debate that The New York Times called "boring". Several US media sources described Obama as appearing "tired" or "not well prepared".

A first opinion poll taken by CNN of 430 Americans immediately after the debate shows that 67% gave Romney the victory, while only 25% preferred the current president. However, a larger poll made prior to the debate placed Obama in the lead with 49% favouring him to remain in office compared to 46% who said they would vote for Romney.

Of note, while the debate focused entirely on US domestic issues, the European debt crisis did have its moment in the spotlight. While arguing against raising taxes to balance the budget, Romney made reference to the weak economy in one of the principal peripheral European countries: "Spain spends 42% of their total economy on government. We're now spending 42% of our economy on government. I don't want to go down the path of Spain. I want to go down the path of growth that puts Americans to work with more money coming in because they're working."

Obama and Romney will face off twice again before the November 6th election. On October 16th, they will hold a town meeting where citizens will be able to ask the candidates questions on foreign and domestic issues. The last encounter will be a debate, scheduled to take place on October 22nd, which will focus on foreign policy.

JM

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