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Has Obama reenergized Democrats with debate performance?

Obama鈥檚 forceful performance Tuesday night is likely to quiet Democrats鈥� doubts and help energize them for the tough final weeks of the campaign. Snap surveys judged Obama the winner, but the big question is whether his slide in the polls will stop now.

Did President Obama energize Democrats with his performance at Tuesday night鈥檚 debate on Long Island in New York? After all, there鈥檚 been lots of bemoaning among his party faithful in recent days. Many of them judged Mr. Obama鈥檚 first debate performance in Denver a disaster. Some went so far as to wonder whether the president鈥檚 apparent lethargy in the Rocky Mountain smackdown two weeks ago meant he didn鈥檛 really want to be president anymore.

Well, they can come in off the ledge. Obama鈥檚 performance at Hofstra University should quiet Democrats鈥� doubts and help energize them for the tough final weeks of the campaign. Whether the president鈥檚 forceful, almost physical confrontations with GOP nominee Mitt Romney stop his slide in the polls remains to be seen. But snap surveys judged Obama the night鈥檚 winner (though not by the margin Mr. Romney enjoyed after the first debate). And partisans were thrilled by Obama鈥檚 attacks on his rival鈥檚 policies and defense of his own administration.

鈥淭o my mind, Obama dominated Romney tonight in every single way: in substance, manner, style, and personal appeal 聽... he behaved like a president,鈥� wrote influential Daily Beast .

OK 鈥� to be fair, Mr. Sullivan doesn鈥檛 label himself a Democrat. He further likened Obama鈥檚 Tuesday performance to that of 鈥渁 lethal, restrained predator,鈥� which is way over the top. But he鈥檚 been a strong Obama supporter since the 2008 primaries 鈥� and after the first debate he鈥檇 wondered aloud whether the president had lost the election at a stroke.

showed that a plurality of voters considered Obama the winner, though not by much. In a CBS News/Knowledge networks survey of self-described undecided voters, 37 percent of respondents said Obama came out on top, while 30 percent picked Romney, and 33 percent called it a tie. A CNN poll of registered voters went for Obama by a margin of 46 percent to 37 percent.

Again, there鈥檚 no indication yet that this will bend the course of the campaign, as Romney鈥檚 overwhelming victory in the first debate appears to have done. But it may rally Obama鈥檚 dispirited party and refocus the race on fundamental issues in its final days.

鈥淏arack Obama did well enough in the second debate that he can rest assured about one thing: if he loses his bid for a second term it won鈥檛 be because he is bad at debates,鈥� wrote Politico鈥檚 John F. Harris and Jonathan Martin at the top of .

As to substance, both Obama and Romney went back time and again to the basic argument for their campaigns. Obama framed the election as a choice between two very different ways forward, and charged his opponent as a flip-flopper on energy, women鈥檚 issues, immigration, and taxes. Romney gave as good as he got in his attempt to frame the election as a referendum on Obama鈥檚 job performance. The GOP nominee pounded relentlessly on the numbers behind the weak economy: 23 million Americans unemployed or looking for better jobs, unemployment hovering around 8 percent, and more Americans than ever on food stamps.

The most theatrical moment focused on Libya and the Obama administration鈥檚 shifting explanations as to what lay behind the attack that killed Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other Americans. Obama at one point said that he鈥檇 gone to the Rose Garden the day after the killings and described them as 鈥渢error.鈥� 聽Romney bore in, claiming that it wasn鈥檛 until two weeks later that Obama used that word to describe the tragedy in Benghazi. Then moderator Candy Crowley, who had a transcript of the event, stepped in and noted that Obama was right about his word choice.

鈥淐an you say that a little louder, Candy?鈥� said Obama. A burst of applause from the audience then obscured Ms. Crowley鈥檚 second point: Romney is right that the administration鈥檚 story about the attacks has shifted over time.

At another point, while the two men were arguing over who would be tougher on China, and whether Romney鈥檚 pension contains investments in Chinese companies, the ex-Massachusetts governor turned and told Obama he should check his own pension. Presumably, the Romney camp鈥檚 opposition researchers believe Obama鈥檚 investments have China connections as well.

But Romney never got that out, fully.

鈥淚 don鈥檛 look at my pension. It鈥檚 not as big as yours,鈥� replied Obama.

Republicans judged the debate not a game changer. That was the headline on Fred Barnes鈥檚 story in the conservative Weekly Standard, in any case.

鈥淭oo bad for President Obama that he saved his aggressive performance for his second debate with Mitt Romney. If he had done as well in the first debate, the presidential race might look different today,鈥� .

Over at the National Review, John O鈥橲ullivan held that, taken question by question, the debate was won by Romney. Romney gave a strong list of the president鈥檚 failures in response to a question from an African-American audience member as to why he should give Obama another chance, for one thing. He handled a question about equal pay for women in a deft manner, in Mr. O鈥橲ullivan鈥檚 view.

But Romney seemed taken aback by Obama鈥檚 Libya response and appeared to tire as the event progressed, according to the National Review writer.

鈥淲hatever the reason, they seemed more evenly matched by the end. And that impression retrospectively colored the judgments of critics on the entire evening,鈥� .