“From the start of his re-election campaign, President Barack Obama’s aides have said national security would be the toughest flank for opponents to penetrate,” Bloomberg/Business Week writes, adding, “In tonight’s final presidential debate, devoted to foreign policy, the different paths Obama and Mitt Romney favor will be on trial. The president emphasizes working with allies to put pressure on adversaries; his Republican rival stresses U.S. military might and says he’d be tougher on Russia, China, Iran and terrorists. While many of their core policies are similar, even small contrasts may mean a lot.”
“When Mitt Romney declared during his first debate with President Obama that “I like coal,” it caused Senator John F. Kerry to cock his ear because it didn’t quite ring true with his understanding of the Republican presidential nominee’s record,” the Boston Globe’s Johnson writes. “This past week, when Romney again expressed his affinity for the coal industry during their second debate, Obama pounced. ‘When I hear Governor Romney say he’s a big coal guy,’ the president said, ‘keep in mind, when you were governor of Massachusetts, you stood in front of a coal plant and pointed at it and said, ‘This plant kills,’ and took great pride in shutting it down. And now suddenly you’re a big champion of coal.’
“Chalk up one victory for Kerry’s role as Romney’s stand-in during the president’s debate preparation sessions. Credit all those hours he’s spent reading Romney’s news clippings, speeches, and interview transcripts with a very public payoff for the candidate he is serving.”
The New York Times: “Wall St. May Not Cheer, but Obama’s Been Good for Stocks.” From the story: “Through Friday, since Mr. Obama’s inauguration — his first 1,368 days in office — the Dow Jones industrial average has gained 67.9 percent. That’s an extremely strong performance — the fifth best for an equivalent period among all American presidents since 1900. The Bespoke Investment Group calculated those returns for The New York Times.”
Johnson goes to Iowa to take the temperature of the race in Newton, a former Maytag town.
