It's even possible Romney would have done better if Obama hadn't flubbed the first debate. The first debate debacle basically got Romney all the votes he was likely to gain from the debates in one fell swoop. If he'd gotten over the course of several debates he might actually have built up that momentum he was hoping for. Instead, it was as if the record player was jarred and jumped the needle to an earlier track, but the album of "Obama's Reelection Melodies" was never put into reverse.
I agree. It was likely that the gap would have closed as we got closer to the end; better it happen a month before the election then for Obama to rebound. It highlighted Obama's firewall early on and allowed resources to be targeted effectively. I'm starting to wonder whether Obama 'threw' the first debate on purpose.
