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Obama to Romney: 'The 1980's are now calling to ask for their foreign policy back'

President Obama issued a blistering attack against Mitt Romney's shaky and shifting foreign policy pronouncements in the opening of the last presidential debate
obama romney
obama romney

President Obama issued a blistering attack against Mitt Romney's shaky and shifting foreign policy pronouncements in the opening of the last presidential debate before November's election.

"The 1980's are now calling to ask for their foreign policy back," Obama said, referring to a statement by Romney that Russia is "our number one geopolitical foe."

"You've never been in a position to execute foreign policy, but every time you've offered an opinion, you've been wrong," the president said in the debate moderated by Bob Scheiffer in Boca Raton, Florida.

Obama went into specifics on which international relations issue Romney has bungled: Iraq and weapons of mass destruction, Russia and nuclear treaties, Afghanistan and a timeline for troops.

"You said first we should not have a timeline for Afghanistan, then you said we should, now you say maybe, or it depends—which means not only are you wrong, but confusing and sending mixed messages to our troops and our allies," concluded Obama, drawing a sharp contrast between himself and the Republican candidate. What America needs, Obama said, is "strong, steady leadership, not wrong and reckless leadership that is all over the map."

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