The former Governor sounded reasonable and pragmatic, and some pundits are now claiming that he changed his platform or that he is trying to dump GOP "extremist" ballast. He didn't and he doesn't have any. He described his center-right reforms truthfully. The Obama cheerleaders were shocked that Mr. Romney's remarks didn't repeat the Obama-created caricature that they've spent months broadcasting as if it were gospel.

The other illusion that exploded Wednesday is the one Mr. Obama tells about his own Presidency. He always mentions the recession he inherited and the many great feats he will perform in his second term. What he rarely mentions are the last four years.

Mr. Romney had the gall to shine a light on those years, talking in great detail about the dismal results of what he called "trickle-down government" in practice: the 23 million people who can't find work or have dropped out of the labor force, 43 straight months of unemployment above 8%. The most rapid increase in debt of any President ever. That this year the economy grew slower than last year, and 2011 grew slower than the one before.