IPFW political science associate professor discusses intense presidential debate

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) - Presidential candidates GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney and President Barack Obama have now gone toe-to-toe in two debates.  The most recent, a town hall format, in which two two men answered questions from a group of undecided voters, and each other.

Dr. Michael Wolf, a political science associate professor at IPFW, said the debate will be the most intense of the three this election.

"A lot of times in debates, you have candidates try to run to the middle and not highlights differences they have between the two," Wolf said.  "Here, the questions brought out the differences in the two candidates.  There was a lot of clarity provided to voters last night."

It wasn't just there difference in policies that were noticed.  At times, each demanded the other to tell the truth.  To some, it appeared the two made verbal and non-verbal attacks.

"You've got millions of dollars being spent on this race.  There's a lot of efforts and time being put in for these candidates who have run for officer for years," Wolf said.  "It's not a surprise, when they're on the debate stand where they can walk around, they would have these kind of moments of non-verbal confrontation."

The attacks can rub voters in a variety of ways.

"Some people might be uncomfortable with the confrontation, and not like that," Wolf said.  "At the same time, we often say debates are kind of stale, or don't allow the candidates to challenge each other.  This one allowed that, and demonstrated some policy thins in that interaction."

Wolf added some people may even prefer the town hall debates because it allows the candidates to discuss the issues and defend themselves, rather than standing behind a podium and having a time limit to speak.

"This is a very close election, so they are keyed in and they are fired up," Wolf said.  "I think the questions really drew out some real divisions on a lot of different issues."

The two candidates have one more debate.  It will take place Monday, October 22, in Florida at Lynn University.

Click here to read more on the second debate.