2nd Obama-Romney debate

That's a pocketbook issue for women and families all across the country.

I believe in self-reliance and individual initiative and risk takers being rewarded.

If somebody came to you, Governor, with a plan that said, here, I want to spend $7 or $8 trillion, and then we're going to pay for it, but we can't tell you until after the election how we're going to do it, you wouldn't take such a sketchy deal.

Part of it is seeing if we can get automatic weapons that kill folks in amazing numbers out of the hands of criminals and the mentally ill.

How about food stamps?

Which was a program under this administration, and how it worked exactly I think we don't know precisely, where thousands of automatic, and AK-47 type weapons were — were given to people that ultimately gave them to — to drug lords.

I want to close loopholes that allow companies to deduct expenses when they move to China; that allow them to profit offshore and not have to get taxed, so they have tax advantages offshore.

But your rate comes down and the burden also comes down on you for one more reason, and that is every middle-income taxpayer no longer will pay any tax on interest, dividends or capital gains.

She never got a college education, even though she was smart as a whip.

QUESTION: We were sitting around, talking about Libya, and we were reading and became aware of reports that the State Department refused extra security for our embassy in Benghazi, Libya, prior to the attacks that killed four Americans.

Health insurance premiums, up $2,500.

We have fewer people working today than we had when the president took office.

And without a college level job, that's just unacceptable.

QUESTION: Mr. Romney, what do you plan on doing with immigrants without their green cards that are currently living here as productive members of society?

We have to make sure that we make it easier for kids to afford college.

You can make a lot of money and pay lower tax rates than somebody who makes a lot less.

When he talks about getting tough on China, keep in mind that Governor Romney invested in companies that were pioneers of outsourcing to China, and is currently investing in countries — in companies that are building surveillance equipment for Chin

If the president were reelected, we'd go to almost $20 trillion of national debt.

You can ship jobs overseas and get tax breaks for it.

But what I've also said is, if we're serious about reducing the deficit, if this is genuinely a moral obligation to the next generation, then in addition to some tough spending cuts, we've also got to make sure that the wealthy do a little bit more

In my health care bill, I said insurance companies need to provide contraceptive coverage to everybody who is insured.

And the fact that you're going to college is great, but I want everybody to get a great education and we've worked hard to make sure that student loans are available for folks like you, but I also want to make sure that community colleges are offering slo

And in fact, employers are looking for skilled workers.

QUESTION: Governor Romney, you have stated that if you're elected president, you would plan to reduce the tax rates for all the tax brackets and that you would work with the Congress to eliminate some deductions in order to make up for the loss in

I can't find a job.

And I want to continue those tax cuts for middle-class families, and for small business.

ROMNEY: So how much did you cut (inaudible)?

We have increased oil production to the highest levels in 16 years.

I want to get us on track to a balanced budget, and I'm going to reduce the tax burden on middle income families.

If somebody came to you, Governor, with a plan that said, here, I want to spend $7 or $8 trillion, and then we're going to pay for it, but we can't tell you until maybe after the election how we're going to do it, you wouldn't take such a sketchy deal and

China has been a currency manipulator for years and years and years.

ROMNEY: It took them a long time to say this was a terrorist act by a terrorist group.

And this calls into question the president's whole policy in the Middle East.

OBAMA: I want to make sure our timekeepers are working here.

But we had been digging our way out of policies that were misplaced and focused on the top doing very well and middle class folks not doing well.

We haven't heard from the governor any specifics beyond Big Bird and eliminating funding for Planned Parenthood in terms of how he pays for that.

Any investments I have over the last eight years have been managed by a blind trust.

Those who've come here illegally take their place.

We will set aside that agreement just this once to welcome President Barack Obama and Governor Mitt Romney.

Using specific examples, can you take this opportunity to debunk that misperception and set us straight?

Number two, we do have to deal with our border so we put more border patrol on the — any time in history and the flow of undocumented works across the border is actually lower than it's been in 40 years.

And she worked her way up to become a vice president of a local bank, but she hit the glass ceiling.

QUESTION: Governor Romney, you have stated that if you're elected president, you would plan to reduce the tax rates for all the tax brackets and that you would work with the Congress to eliminate some deductions in order to make up for the loss in

And the fact that you're going to college is great, but I want everybody to get a great education and we've worked hard to make sure that student loans are available for folks like you, but I also want to make sure that community colleges are offer

And that's what I've done administratively.

When you come out in 2014, I presume I'm going to be president.

I want to do that in industries, not just in Detroit, but all across the country and that means we change our tax code so we're giving incentives to companies that are investing here in the United States and creating jobs here.

Along with what he also wants to do in terms of eliminating the estate tax, along what he wants to do in terms of corporates, changes in the tax code, it costs about $5 trillion.

People around the world with accredited degrees in science and math get a green card stapled to their diploma, come to the U.S. of A. We should make sure our legal system works.

That's what's been squeezing middle class families.

That's why I put out a five-point plan that gets America 12 million new jobs in four years and rising take-home pay.

But if you calculated that unemployment rate, taking back the people who dropped out of the workforce, it would be 10.7 percent.

Since both you and President Bush are Republicans, I fear a return to the policies of those years should you win this election.

The middle-class has been crushed over the last four years, and jobs have been too scarce.

Because I'm offsetting some of the reductions with holding down some of the deductions.

He didn't call for self-deportation.

There were many days that passed before we knew whether this was a spontaneous demonstration, or actually whether it was a terrorist attack.

You're going to lose some deductions, and you can't buy the sales pitch.

I want it to be streamlined.

So my belief is that, (A), we have to enforce the laws we've already got, make sure that we're keeping guns out of the hands of criminals, those who are mentally ill.

Concerning the — these various deductions, the mortgage deductions, the charitable deductions, the child tax credit and also the — oh, what's that other credit?

George Bush embraced comprehensive immigration reform.

When Governor Romney says that we should eliminate funding for Planned Parenthood, there are millions of women all across the country, who rely on Planned Parenthood for, not just contraceptive care, they rely on it for mammograms, for cervical can

Now when Governor Romney said we should let Detroit go bankrupt.

And let me tell you, you're absolutely right about part of that, which is I want to bring the rates down, I want to simplify the tax code, and I want to get middle- income taxpayers to have lower taxes.

You know, there are some things where Governor Romney is different from George Bush.

I said we'd refocus attention on those who actually attacked us on 9/11, and we have gone after Al Qaeda's leadership like never before and Osama bin Laden is dead.

And that's exactly the kind of top-down economics that is not going to work if we want a strong middle class and an economy that's striving for everybody.

CROWLEY: I want to move you both along to the next question, because it's in the same wheelhouse, so you will be able to respond.

QUESTION: This question actually comes from a brain trust of my friends at Global Telecom Supply (ph) in Minneola yesterday.

That's why I put out a five-point plan that gets America 12 million new jobs in four years and rising take-home pay.

I hope to get to as many questions as possible.

I want to do that in industries, not just in Detroit, but all across the country and that means we change our tax code so we're giving incentives to companies that are investing here in the United States and creating jobs here.

Number three, we've got to control our own energy.

We've got to reduce our deficit, but we've got to do it in a balanced way.

We did it by taking $60 billion that was going to banks and lenders as middlemen for the student loan program, and we said, let's just cut out the middleman.

And he said that the reason he changed his mind was, in part, because he was seeking the endorsement of the National Rifle Association.

Part of it is seeing if we can get an assault weapons ban reintroduced.

We're going to bring that pipeline in from Canada.

In some ways, he's gone to a more extreme place when it comes to social policy.

Your secretary of state, as I'm sure you know, has said that she takes full responsibility for the attack on the diplomatic mission in Benghazi.

I know what it takes to create good jobs again.

'Cause I'm going to bring rates down across the board for everybody, but I'm going to limit deductions and exemptions and credits, particularly for people at the high end, because I am not going to have people at the high end pay less than they're

Number one, I want to build manufacturing jobs in this country again.

But the policies he's put in place from Obamacare to Dodd-Frank to his tax policies to his regulatory policies, these policies combined have not let this economy take off and grow like it could have.

And what we've done when it comes to trade is not only sign three trade deals to open up new markets, but we've also set up a task force for trade that goes after anybody who is taking advantage of American workers or businesses and not creating a level <

And that's an example of the kind of advocacy that we need, because women are increasingly the breadwinners in the family.

QUESTION: Mr. Romney, what do you plan on doing with immigrants without their green cards that are currently living here as productive members of society?

OBAMA: And what I want to do, is build on the five million jobs that we've created over the last 30 months in the private sector alone.

Bill and that allowed him to go to college, that wasn't a handout.

I want to do that in industries, not just in Detroit, but all across the country and that means we change our tax code so we're giving incentives to companies that are investing here in the United States and creating jobs here.

I want to do that in industries, not just in Detroit, but all across the country and that means we change our tax code so we're giving incentives to companies that are investing here in the United States and creating jobs here.

And one of the things that makes us grow as an economy is when everybody participates and women are getting the same fair deal as men are.

And I think it's important to know that that was a process that was necessary to get those companies back on their feet, so they could start hiring more people.

But if you calculated that unemployment rate, taking back the people who dropped out of the workforce, it would be 10.7 percent.

He was on 60 Minutes just two weeks ago and he was asked: Is it fair for somebody like you, making $20 million a year, to pay a lower tax rate than a nurse or a bus driver, somebody making $50,000 year?

Now, Governor Romney will say he's got an all-of-the-above plan, but basically his plan is to let the oil companies write the energy policies.

QUESTION: Governor Romney, you have stated that if you're elected president, you would plan to reduce the tax rates for all the tax brackets and that you would work with the Congress to eliminate some deductions in order to make up for the loss in

Governor Romney not only opposed it, he suggested that in fact employers should be able to make the decision as to whether or not a woman gets contraception through her insurance coverage.

Now, not only oil and natural gas, which we've been investing in; but also, we've got to make sure we're building the energy source of the future, not just thinking about next year, but ten years from now, 20 years from now.

I said we're going to bet on American workers and the American auto industry and it's come surging back.

If somebody came to you, Governor, with a plan that said, here, I want to spend $7 or $8 trillion, and then we're going to pay for it, but we can't tell you until maybe after the election how we're going to do it, you wouldn't take such a sketchy deal and

Number one, beef up our security and procedures, not just in Libya, but at every embassy and consulate in the region.

Cracking down on China when they cheat.

What I was saying is, we're not going to round up 12 million people, undocumented illegals, and take them out of the nation.

We have a lot of folks who've been waiting all day to talk to you, so I want to get right to it.

I know what it takes to get this economy going.

We have seen increases in coal production and coal employment.

Number two, we do have to deal with our border so we put more border patrol on the — any time in history and the flow of undocumented works across the border is actually lower than it's been in 40 years.

When you've got thousands of people right now in Iowa, right now in Colorado, who are working, creating wind power with good-paying manufacturing jobs, and the Republican senator in that — in Iowa is all for it, providing tax breaks (ph) to help th

Regulations have quadrupled.

That means that in the middle of the next decade, any car you buy, you're going to end up going twice as far on a gallon of gas.

We've gone from $10 trillion of national debt, to $16 trillion of national debt.

ROMNEY: It took them a long time to say this was a terrorist act by a terrorist group.

And that means, yes, we still continue to open up new areas for drilling.

I mean we're just a few miles away from Ellis Island.

Number one, I want to build manufacturing jobs in this country again.

Fixing our training programs for our workers.

Do you agree with Secretary Chu that this is not the job of the Energy Department?

Along with what he also wants to do in terms of eliminating the estate tax, along what he wants to do in terms of corporates, changes in the tax code, it costs about $5 trillion.

Is it within the purview of the government to bring those prices down, or are we looking at the new normal?

QUESTION: We were sitting around, talking about Libya, and we were reading and became aware of reports that the State Department refused extra security for our embassy in Benghazi, Libya, prior to the attacks that killed four Americans.

And a lot of them, as you say, Candy, have been out of work for a long, long, long time.

But we've got to enforce the laws, which is what we are doing, and we've also got to make sure that in every walk of life we do not tolerate discrimination.

Now, not only oil and natural gas, which we've been investing in; but also, we've got to make sure we're building the energy source of the future, not just thinking about next year, but ten years from now, 20 years from now.

CROWLEY: The Gallup organization chose 82 uncommitted voters from the New York area.

We've got to reduce our deficit, but we've got to do it in a balanced way.

QUESTION: Mr. President, Governor Romney, as a 20-year-old college student, all I hear from professors, neighbors and others is that when I graduate, I will have little chance to get employment.

And part of that is bringing in a pipeline of oil from Canada, taking advantage of the oil and coal we have here, drilling offshore in Alaska, drilling offshore in Virginia where the people want it.

Number one, I want to build manufacturing jobs in this country again.

Make sure that you are getting a good paying job, making sure that Medicare and Social Security...

And let me tell you, you're absolutely right about part of that, which is I want to bring the rates down, I want to simplify the tax code, and I want to get middle- income taxpayers to have lower taxes.

And that means, yes, we still continue to open up new areas for drilling.

And, you know, I was raised by a single mom who had to put herself through school while looking after two kids.

That's exactly the philosophy that we've seen in place for the last decade.

And important topic, and one which I learned a great deal about, particularly as I was serving as governor of my state, because I had the chance to pull together a cabinet and all the applicants seemed to be men.

And with respect to this pipeline that Governor Romney keeps on talking about, we've — we've built enough pipeline to wrap around the entire earth once.

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.

We're looking at a situation where 40 percent of the unemployed have been unemployed have been unemployed for six months or more.

George Bush didn't propose turning Medicare into a voucher.

But when we make this into a divisive political issue, and when we don't have bipartisan support — I can deliver, Governor, a whole bunch of Democrats to get comprehensive immigration reform done, and we can't...

Oil production is up, natural gas production is up, and, most importantly, we're also starting to build cars that are more efficient.

What has your administration done or planned to do to limit the availability of assault weapons?

When we talk about child care, and the credits that we're providing.

However, I do attribute much of America's economic and international problems to the failings and missteps of the Bush administration.

If the — the unemployment rate was 7.8 percent when he took office, it's 7.8 percent now.

We're looking at a situation where 40 percent of the unemployed have been unemployed have been unemployed for six months or more.

Health insurance premiums, up $2,500.

Governor Romney not only opposed it, he suggested that in fact employers should be able to make the decision as to whether or not a woman gets contraception through her insurance coverage.

The governor says that he is not going to allow the top 5 percent, believe is what he said, to have a tax cut, that it will all even out, that what he wants to do is give that tax cut to the middle class.

The ambassador of the United Nations went on the Sunday television shows and spoke about how — OBAMA: Candy, I'm — ROMNEY: — this was a spontaneous — CROWLEY: Mr. President, let me — OBAMA: I'm happy to have a longer conversation — CROWLEY: I know

If somehow when you get in there, there isn't enough tax revenue coming in.

QUESTION: In what new ways to you intend to rectify the inequalities in the workplace, specifically regarding females making only 72 percent of what their male counterparts earn?

That this was an act of terror and I also said that we're going to hunt down those who committed this crime.

Because China, Germany, they're making these investments.

In my health care bill, I said insurance companies need to provide contraceptive coverage to everybody who is insured.

We've got to reduce our deficit, but we've got to do it in a balanced way.

We are here for the second presidential debate, a town hall, sponsored by the Commission on Presidential Debates.

ROMNEY: I'd just note that I don't believe that bureaucrats in Washington should tell someone whether they can use contraceptives or not.

Now, not only oil and natural gas, which we've been investing in; but also, we've got to make sure we're building the energy source of the future, not just thinking about next year, but ten years from now, 20 years from now.

If you're getting interest from a bank, if you're getting a statement from a mutual fund or any other kind of investment you have, you don't have to worry about filing taxes on that, because there'll be no taxes for anybody making $200,000.00 per y

The president's policies have been exercised over the last four years and they haven't put Americans back to work.

But we've also got to continue to figure out how we have efficiency energy, because ultimately that's how we're going to reduce demand and that's what's going to keep gas prices lower.

But when he's asked, how are you going to do it, which deductions, which loopholes are you going to close?