In a wide ranging, substantive, and passionate interview with Diane Sawyer, of ABC News, President Obama says he is eager for the second debate at Hofstra University in New York on Oct. 16, where he promises to more aggressively confront Romney:
"Governor Romney had a good night. I had a bad night. It's not the first time," Obama said in his first televised interview since the Denver debate on Oct. 3. Despite Romney's post-debate momentum and surge in the polls, the "fundamentals of what this race is about haven't changed."
President Obama said he had analyzed the split-screen video of the debate with First Lady Michelle, and that "Michelle is always my best adviser, my toughest critic."
"We've been married 20 years. We've gone through all kinds of ups and downs. And I think that's true of the American people as well. And I think what folks ultimately have focused on is…those lasting principles, those foundational principles that make this moment so important."
Our president also shows a more aggressive attitude as he describes Mitt Romney's attempt to hide his previously conservative positions on abortions, below the squiggle.
You can sense a foreshadowing of some of President Obama's debating points peaking out in these next paragraphs.
"What he spent most of his time doing [in Denver] was hiding the ideas that he's been running on for the last year and that the American people had essentially rejected," Obama said in the interview. "And so they desperately tried to cover up what exactly they've been proposing."
"Over the past few weeks, Romney has appeared to be trying to moderate his positions on key issues, including taxes, immigration, health care and abortion, forcing Obama to abruptly change his strategy after months of telling voters they should take Romney at his word. ... "Four weeks before an election, he is trying to cloud the question" on abortion rights, Obama said, "because he understands that most women think they can make their own health care decisions." ... "His attempt to try to keep that under wraps until after the election, that's not going to work," Obama said. "Because, you know, the American people need to understand what it is that we stand for."
A separate ABC News article provides a few extra quotes:
Barack Obama Wants a Second Go at Romney – In an interview with Diane Sawyer, the president admitted he had a “bad night” last week and said he can’t wait for next Tuesday. ... He’s determined to win. Will he win, Sawyer asked? “Yes,” said Obama.
“Four weeks before an election, he is trying to cloud the question” on abortion rights, Obama said, “because he understands that most women think they can make their own health care decisions.”
“This was one event. We’ve got four weeks to go. Nobody is going to be fighting harder than I am,” Obama told Sawyer, aiming to reassure his base. “What they need is to make sure they tune in on Tuesday next week.”
The first link is worth a complete read for an extensive transcription of the whole interview. It's good to see our President psyched up, and preparing to be more aggressive about this important debate, as well as calling Romney out on his deceptions.