Obama fixes Romney with bayonet

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BARACK Obama dominated the third and final presidential debate in Florida, aggressively deploying detail and sarcasm to portray Mitt Romney as inconsistent on foreign policy. It is unclear whether his apparent victory in the debate will translate into votes in a fortnight in an election that polls show remains deadlocked. The two concentrated on terrorism and its causes and issues of concern to constituencies in the two swing states that could decide the election. Those issues include the Iranian nuclear threat, which resonates among Jewish voters in Florida, and China's alleged currency manipulation, which is crucial to employment in Ohio.Both men constantly turned to domestic policy, with Mr Romney restating his claim to have a plan to create 12 million jobs and Mr Obama accusing him of wanting to return to failed policies of previous administrations. Advertisement The Asia-Pacific region came up only in a passing reference by Mr Obama to the ''pivot'' of American attention towards the region. Though Russia was discussed, Europe was barely considered, aside from references to its failed economies. Climate change did not rate a mention.Mr Obama went in hard early, telling Mr Romney: ''I know you haven't been in a position to actually execute foreign policy - but every time you've offered an opinion, you've been wrong.'' Challenging Mr Romney's claim that he had allowed the US naval fleet to decline dangerously, Mr Obama said: ''We also have fewer horses and bayonets, because the nature of our military's changed. We have these things called aircraft carriers, where planes land on them. We have these ships that go underwater, nuclear submarines.'' When Mr Romney suggested Mr Obama had strained relations with Israel by visiting its Arab neighbours early in his presidency, the President said: ''When I went to Israel as a candidate, I didn't take donors. I didn't attend fund-raisers. I went to Yad Vashem.'' Mr Obama said Mr Romney's claim that he had been on a global ''apology'' tour was ''probably the biggest whopper that's been told during the course of this campaign''. Mr Romney presented himself as a moderate and sober alternative, often agreeing with the substance of US policy. Many of his positions were so similar to Mr Obama's that commentators used boxing metaphors to describe him not only as ducking and weaving, but of hugging the President. Some of Mr Romney's positions might startle the right of the Republican Party. He said that in the battle against Islamist extremism, ''we cannot kill our way out of this mess'', before offering his support for foreign aid. ''We have to help these nations create civil societies.'' Mr Romney also said he supported the troop ''surge'' in Afghanistan and the drawdown timetable for US troops, both policies he criticised in the past. Given the opportunity, he chose not to attack Mr Obama for the response to the murder of US diplomats in Libya. And early on, he congratulated Mr Obama for the killing of Osama bin Laden, expressing support for the use of drones. Mr Romney's key criticism was that the administration had failed to introduce a strategy to draw people away from extremism, that it had presented the US as weak and irresolute and that pending defence cuts would exacerbate that weakness. National polls had the two men in a dead heat last night, with Mr Obama enjoying a slight advantage in key states. But the polling trend remains in Mr Romney's favour. Any slight advantage carved out in the debate could prove to be crucial.