Adviser: Obama faced Romney clone

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WASHINGTON, Oct. 7 (UPI) -- President Obama's senior campaign adviser, Robert Gibbs, said Sunday "a clone that looked a lot like Mitt Romney" showed up for last week's presidential debate.

In an interview on ABC's "This Week with George Stephanopoulos," Gibbs described Romney's performance during the debate as "masterful," though "fundamentally dishonest."

"I think the president understood that he hadn't performed up to his own expectations pretty quickly ... after he got off the stage that night," Gibbs said. "I think what's interesting is ... who showed up on the Republican side ... a clone that looked a lot like Mitt Romney that had walked away from fundamentally every position that he'd taken."

Gibbs argued that even Romney's staff was "walking back his answers on healthcare and pre-existing conditions."

When asked if Obama has a different game plan for the next debate, Gibbs said the president is looking forward to it.

"I think now that Barack Obama has had the opportunity to meet both Mitt Romneys, I don't doubt that he'll make some adjustments," he said.