Mitt Romney won the Republican presidential nomination as a “turnaround man,” whose capacity to reinvent companies, and the 2002 Olympics, could be transferred to the nation and its troubled economy.
But from the outset of his general election campaign-burdened with the lowest favorability rating of any major party candidate since 1984 - it was evident that his most challenging reinvention would have to be Mitt Romney.
And Tuesday night it failed. Willard Mitt Romney came up short, losing his second and likely last campaign for the presidency to President Barack Obama.
“Almost president” is a distinction sought by no politician.
![A man dressed as the character Cookie Monster watches TV screens in Times Square giving U.S presidential election results in New York November 6, 2012. [REUTERS/Carlo Allegri]
PHOTOS: Full Focus - Election Day 2012](http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_md3xoqsmwE1qmaoalo1_1280.jpg)
A man dressed as the character Cookie Monster watches TV screens in Times Square giving U.S presidential election results in New York November 6, 2012. [REUTERS/Carlo Allegri]
PHOTOS: Full Focus - Election Day 2012
President Barack Obama aggressively challenged Republican candidate Mitt Romney on jobs, energy and Libya in their second debate on Tuesday as the Democrat tried reclaim the momentum in a tight White House race.
Obama was much sharper and more energetic than in their first debate two weeks ago, when his listless performance was heavily criticized and gave Romney’s campaign a much-needed boost.
The incumbent fought back against Romney’s accusations that he had played down the attack by Islamist militants in Libya last month that killed four Americans, including the U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens.
“I’m the president and I’m always responsible,” Obama said.
The two men argued over whether the White House had described the Benghazi attack as terrorism or not, with Obama saying he had in fact called it an act of terror when he spoke in the Rose Garden the following day.
READ ON: Obama takes offensive against Romney in debate rematch
![LIVE COVERAGE: The second 2012 U.S. presidential debate
Photo: The stage is set for the second U.S. presidential campaign debate taking place in Hempstead, New York, October 16, 2012. U.S. president Barack Obama and Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney will meet in a town-hall format taking questions from a selected audience on Tuesday night. [REUTERS/Lucas Jackson]](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_mc0icy4xrG1qmaoalo1_1280.jpg)
LIVE COVERAGE: The second 2012 U.S. presidential debate
Photo: The stage is set for the second U.S. presidential campaign debate taking place in Hempstead, New York, October 16, 2012. U.S. president Barack Obama and Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney will meet in a town-hall format taking questions from a selected audience on Tuesday night. [REUTERS/Lucas Jackson]
GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney and vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan, like so many Republicans today, continually try to grab onto Ronald Reagan’s legacy and call it theirs. They might know my father’s politics — but they didn’t know the man.
REUTERS PHOTOS: U.S. candidate Mitt Romney’s English roots
ELECTION 2012: Fact checking the first Presidential debate
![Republican presidential candidate and former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney poses for a photograph with workers at a Chipotle Restaurant in Denver, Colorado October 2, 2012 ahead of his first debate with U.S. President Barack Obama. [REUTERS/Brian Snyder]
View more from the Reuters Elections portal on Reuters.com](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_mbbug4DyLy1qmaoalo1_1280.jpg)
Republican presidential candidate and former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney poses for a photograph with workers at a Chipotle Restaurant in Denver, Colorado October 2, 2012 ahead of his first debate with U.S. President Barack Obama. [REUTERS/Brian Snyder]
