The Republican Candidates

I would have written this post last week, but Dr. Jerry Fawell died. This week, I want to look at the republican candidates for president. The Republicans have had two debates so far. The first debates was on CNBC, and it was a mess. The questions were horrible and the format stunk. The second debate was on Fox. This was a much better debate. The candidates were able to engage one another and duke it out.

I find it funny that the democrats will not debate on Fox. They cancelled their debate claiming that the cable news channel was too conservative. As of late, NBC news has been much further to the left than Fox is to the right. However, you did not see the Republicans backing down from NBC. To me, this tells me that one side is afraid of the other side, and one side isn't.

I will make my disclaimer right now. I am not doing any extra research on the candidates. Everything that I write is from my memory and nothing else. Thus, if I get a fact wrong, I am sorry. Also, I will not be writing about people who have not entered the race. Fred Thompson and Newt will probably jump in soon. (Boy, I hope so). However, they are not in yet, and I will not include them in this post. So here are the Republican candidates for President as of right now.

Rep. Ron Paul: The Republican party has several groups in it. One of those groups is the conservative libertarian. Ron Paul is a conservative libertarian. Ron Paul is a very smart thinker. However, he isn't a very good politician. Most thinkers are not good politicians. Ron Paul is going to be consistent in his thought process. Due to this, he will not be able to maneuver around difficult questions and situations. He is anti-war, and though that plays well in the media; it will not get you any where in the Republican primaries. If Ron Paul was for the war, we wouldn't even know his name. However, the media wants him there. He will get great interviews, and he will have plenty of air time.

Gov. Huckabee: Gov. Huckabee is from Arkansas. I am amazed that Arkansas has become a platform for Presidential politics. For now, there are two Presidential candidates who call Arkansas home, Mike Huckabee and Senator Clinton of New York. Gov. Huckabee probably added months to his campaign at the last debate. He performed very well. He had the line of the night. He said, "I believe in conversions on the road to Damascus, but I question conversions on the road to Des Moines." A brilliant line. He is an also ran candidate, but he could pick up steam.

Gov. Gilmore: Gov. Gilmore is from Virginia. He also did quite well in the last debate. He likes to call himself the true conservative. He called other candidates out. I think he is in fourth place right now. However, I don't think he has enough behind him to take another spot. The truth is, there is a better chance of someone taking his spot than he catching someone else.

Sen. Brownback: This Kansas Senator is running because he is a Conservative. However, he is completely unelectable. I think he could do better, if he would communicate better. What is nice about this Senator is that you know where he stands. However, it isn't because he communicates it well. His voting record is just that consistent. I like Sam as a person, however, we have a President right now that cannot communicate well. I am not ready for another.

Rep. Tancredo: I am not even certain how to spell his name. He is from Colorado. He was relatively unknown until a few years ago. He became an outspoken leader on boarder control. He believes that this one issue will keep him in the race for a while. He is wrong. He doesn't look presidential, he doesn't talk presidential, and he won't be a presidential candidate for very long.

Gov. Tommy Thompson: I love Gov. Thompson. However, he can't win. He did a great job in Wisconsin. He is truly a doer. He is the type of person everyone wants in politics. He has great conservative credentials. His biggest claim to fame is welfare reform. I think he is probably in fifth place, but I don't think he will get any better.

Rep. Hunter: Duncan Hunter has a great name, and has served in Congress for quite a while, but he isn't going to be President. He is a boarder hawk, and he hopes this issue will keep him in the running. He is from California, which would be a nice state to win. However, I don't think he could win the state. He will last as long as he has some money.

Gov. Romney: Mitt Romney is doing better than I ever thought he would do. He is the Governor of Massechusettes. He became popular by taking over the Salt Lake Olympics, and making it profitable. He once ran against Sen. Ted Kennedy and made Ted work hard to beat him. Mitt Romney comes from a political family. His Father was a Political leader in the state of Michigan. Mitt is in third place right now, but could easily jump into the lead. He is a Mormon, which means Evangelical Christians will be weary of him. He also has flip flopped on some issues over the last few years. Remember, he is a politician. Romney has looked very presidential in the two debates. He is a great communicator and could win the nomination. If Fred Thompson jumps in, Romney could be the Vice-President.

Rudy Guiliani: The former mayor of New York City is leading in all the polls right now. The problem he will have in the future is that he is a very liberal man. He is conservative on the war, and that is it. What may keep Rudy Guiliani in the race is the fear of Hillary Clinton. Republicans think that Rudy can be Hillary. However, I think when things begin to settle down, and a few candidates begin to rise to the top alone; Rudy will struggle. You cannot support Mario Cuomo and be the Republican nominee for President. Rudy will run on the terror issue, and he will lose on conservative principles. His best bet is to be the next Vice-President. He would be great in that role

Sen. John McCain: The straight talk express is out rolling again. Sen. McCain became popular with the media because he challenged President Bush on just about everything. However, Sen. McCain has alienated himself from the Republican base. He has also looked awful in both debates. He looks mechanical and old. Some Republicans believe it is his turn. However, I don't think the Republican base is willing to give people a turn on history. They did this with Sen. Dole, and I don't see them doing it again. I personally believe that John McCain put a death nail in his presidential coffin when he supported the new immigration bill. Tancredo and Hunter will now be able to eat him alive, while Romney and Guiliani sit back and watch with a smile.

So there you have it, the Republican candidates. It should be a great year and a half. I cannot wait until the next debate.