The final debate, in terms of its main topic, lacked the focus and finesse of the earlier debates. Many topics, besides the ones that were meant to be brought up (foreign policy), were brought up quite frequently by both Mitt Romney and President Barak Obama. It seemed as though the candidates had very different strategies going into this debate, ones that may have left the ultimate winner of the debates very hard to distinguish overall.

According to the man tasked with helping Romney prepare for the debate, Senator Rob Portman, the strategy was “to come across thoughtful, knowledgeable, reassuring…” He followed that strategy greatly, clearly knowing what he was talking about, and seeming as if he had the answers to the problems of the United States’ predicaments on more than one front. This strategy seemed to be very helpful to Romney and helped him to hold his own.

Obama’s strategy, from the start, was one of criticism of Romney and his ideas. Although he was mocking at some points, the overall strategy seemed to prove effective for Obama. However, it is not the strategy that he has demonstrated throughout the entire campaign.

There seemed to be a bit of a role reversal in terms of the strategies and manners of the candidates. In general, the Republican Party may have been expecting more of an attack on the current president rather than the more cordial appeal that Romney seemed to have for President Obama.

In terms of the actual content, the winner of the debate is totally up to the viewer. Romney “won” in terms of sticking to the topic. Viewers who believe that fixing our nation on the home front is an integral part of strengthening our presence around the world would have agreed with Romney’s main points in the debate.

This, however, was how he would often get off topic. Although this does deal with foreign policy in the sense that our power has weakened around the world, it still brings the debate back to the economy here at home, rather than focusing on the events outside of our nation.

President Obama brought a different view to the debate. He tended to be on the offensive, calling Romney’s plans “wrong and reckless.” Obama also attacked his challenger by stating that he waivers on the issues. Obama’s main hit was the following: “Governor, the problem is that on a whole range of issues, whether it’s the Middle East, whether it’s Afghanistan, whether it’s Iraq, whether it’s now Iran, you’ve been all over the map.”

Neither candidate really stayed on topic, so it is difficult to distinguish a clear winner. It is up to personal preference. Obama played an offensive game, while Romney maintained a dignified appearance and seemed to keep his cool. For those Republicans expecting Romney to throw down, you may be very disappointed. For those wishing that politics would remain more dignified and less attack oriented, you would be proud of Romney.

For Obama, those wishing he would throw more, you would be pleasantly surprised. For those looking for finesse in politics, you may have been swayed more towards Romney. In terms of the actual issues, they did not get very far. There was back and forth on both sides and foreign policy was quite a rarity. Some good points were made, but many issues fell by the wayside.