Anyone who harbored doubts about President Obama's ability (and/or willingness) to take on Mitt Romney at the 2nd debate had those doubts washed away in the first 15 minutes. The president relentlessly pointed out the lies in Romney's statements and lack of specifics in his platforms. Romney's frustration was palpable, and desperation pushed him to be rude and overtly aggressive to the moderator and the President.

In fact, it wasn't so much about the good points that President Obama made - there were no real surprises there. The debate seemed to be more about how badly Mitt Romney did. President Obama came prepared to compare his record and plans against Romney's and Romney didn't like it. As the evening wore on, Romney became more desperate and frustrated, and it showed. He interrupted and disrespected both the moderator (Candy Crowley) and Obama. The end result was a contrast between a cool and collected president and a jackass.

Some Romney gems from last night:

Women in Binders: The question was about equal pay for women. President Obama went first, which was like a slow underhanded pitch which he smacked out of the park detailing the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act. When it was Mitt's turn, he tried to explain how when he was governor that he wanted to hire some women. He said they had a hard time and someone had to bring him "binders full of women" to go through. It instantly became an internet meme. He also said "We’re going to have to have employers in the new economy, in the economy I’m going to bring to play, that are going to be so anxious to get good workers they’re going to be anxious to hire women." Yes, companies are going to be SO desperate for workers, they'll even stoop to hiring women.

At the same pay?... he never mentioned that.

Taxes: Romney still didn't have anything to back up his nebulous tax plan. He said that when it came to deciding which deductions people would get and which they would lose, he would just pick a number. This says to me they still haven't done the math and are expecting you to trust them that they'll do what's best for the middle class. He did mention that they'd keep the deductions and low rates for capital gains, because - you know: people struggling to get by generally have a lot of capital gains income... /snark

Libya: Perhaps one of the most galvanizing moments of the evening was when Romney was caught flat-footed trying to lie about President Obama's comments on Sept 12, the day after the attacks on the consulate in Libya. President Obama insisted he referred to that as a "terrorist attack" (which he did), and was going to let Romney hang himself with his own rope. Candy Crowley stepped in and confirmed that President Obama did indeed say what he claimed, effectively fact-checking Romney on the fly, and cutting his lie-based argument off at the knees (which naturally has right-wing heads exploding everywhere).

Jobs: Romney claimed that "Government doesn't create jobs", but also claimed that he'd create 12 million new ones if elected. Hmmm.... He also blamed China for all the jobs outsourcing.

Immigration: Romney claimed he only liked the e-check portion of the despised Arizona immigration law, but President Obama pointed out that the person who created that law is an advisor to the Romney campaign. This pushed Romney to wonder aloud why President Obama hasn't "filed legislation" to make changes to immigration law (twice), displaying his ignorance of how bills get filed in Congress.

Healthcare: The "ObamaCare/RomneyCare" discussion didn't really happen. What DID happen was a diversion into women's health issues. Romney made this statement:

Please note that he never uses the word "insurance".

We'll see over the next few days whether Romney's Godzilla-like performance will swing the polls in any meaningful way. President Obama is still ahead, though, and it seems likely this debate should stem any further losses.