Pollster John Zogby grades the president’s week and how its events affect his re-election chances.
Grade: C+
“This has been quite a week, hasn’t it? Turkey and Syria are skirmishing and the Turkish parliament has empowered its prime minister to take military action if necessary. Israel has shot down a drone. And President Obama had his clock cleaned in his first debate with Republican candidate Mitt Romney.
“I scored Mr. Romney the big winner while the debate was still going on as he dealt with key issues deftly and credibly. Mr. Obama went into the week with a solid lead in the polls, and early post-debate polling shows the race tightening again. But Friday’s unemployment rate ended the week on a high note for Mr. Obama. More jobs were created in July and August than initially reported, and the job growth for September was respectable. One more month on the same level will put the Obama administration on the plus side of job growth since taking office.
“But if anyone was waiting for Mr. Romney to implode, he didn’t. He clearly showed he’s got game. The president got saved by the employment bell, but the second debate is going to be watched very closely. Clenched fists this time around.”
Last week’s grade: C+
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