National

Shake that Etch-A-Sketch. Remember all of Mitt Romney's tough talk on abortion during the Republican primary? No?  Then let's review:

ROMNEY: I appointed probably 50 or 60 judges--at the trial court level, mostly, the great majority. These were former prosecutors; 80% of them former prosecutors. We don't have a litmus test for appointing judges--asking them if they're pro-life or not pro-life. These were people going after crimes and the like. I am pro-life. And the Massachusetts Citizens for Life and several other family-oriented groups wrote a letter two weeks ago and said they'd watched my record, that I was an avidly pro-life governor. I am a pro-life governor; I am a pro-life individual. Is there any possibility that I've ever made a mistake in that regard, I didn't see something that I should have seen? Possibly. But you can count on me, as president, to pursue a policy that protects the life of unborn, whether here in this country or overseas. And I'll reverse the policies of this president. ROMNEY: People have had a chance to look at my record and look what I've said. I believe people understand that I'm firmly pro-life. I will support justices who believe in following the Constitution and not legislating from the bench. And I believe in the sanctity of life from the very beginning until the very end. Romney:  "I'm in favor of having the Supreme Court overturn Roe v Wade" Huckabee asked Romney, "Would you have supported the constitutional amendment that would have established the definition of life at conception?" Romney answered, "Absolutely."

Remember that Mitt Romney.  Well, forget about him. 

Ryan is going to reveal the budgetary and rhetorical genius that he has been hiding all of this time. Biden is going to make a stammering ass out of himself. Ryan is going to rip his shirt off in triumph and flex is P90-x abs in celebration. The Nation will swoon. Rasmussen will show a huge jump in Romney's polling numbers. Intrade investors will drop Obama like plutonium, and the GOP ticket will cruise to victory carrying 7 Senate seats along with them for good measure.

A lot of polling firms went quiet in the middle of the week in order to go into the field fresh on Thursday to gauge the debate impact. Romney has definitely gotten a bump, but what is encouraging is that it is not at the expense of Obama. Obama's numbers are holding, so Romney is just picking up undecideds. We should get a clearer picture of the battleground since Mitt Romney lied his way to a debate win last Wednesday. Indeed, I have a question for Republicans and conservatives. If you have to lie about your policies, plans and ideologies in order to win, what does that tell you? In some polls, notably the PPP poll out of Virginia last night, the Romney lies only served to make him more likable among Democrats and Independents, and they allowed Romney to win the debate. Interestingly though, while Virginia independents think Romney won the debate 71-17, it doesn't mean they are voting for him. They are splitting their vote at 46% a piece. And while more Democrats may find Romney likeable now than before, they are not voting for him.

Some interesting things in those snap polls (and if you want to talk about skewed polls, Republicans, did you know that the CNN poll did not poll anyone under the age of 50 or of color?). First, the CBS poll found that 69% thought President Obama cares about their needs and problems, which is up from 53% before the debate. Second, the favorable / unfavorable numbers of both candidates remained unchanged after the debate. Indeed, while Romney won, he was an absolute and complete asshole during it. How many times did he interrupt Jim Lehrer and the President? And his "I get to have the last word" reaked of privileged entitlement. Peter Hamby of CNN tweeted: "So if [Romney] didn't fix his favorables with this debate, it means his victory was worth ZERO." And now onto the state of the race where it really matters: