Posted by
The INFORMER (Cokie907@yahoo.com) on Monday, January 07, 2008 10:32:31 AM
Some thoughts about the Fox News debate last night for the Republican candidates:
1) Huckabee is a man haunted by his record. He is more like Bill Clinton than any of us would like and can dodge a question in just as slippery a manner. Must be something in the Arkansas water. He also let his emotions get the best of him a couple of times and appeared quite aggravated with Romney at one point. The way this guy resorts to economic populism, he sounds like John Edwards minus the southern drawl!
2) Romney had one heck of a performance in my view. The guy deals very well with conflict resolution and carries himself in a manner that is very presidential. He has a commanding knowledge of the issues, can articulate them quite capably and exudes a type of "gravitas" that is indeed impressive. The question with Romney is will he govern as the new conservative candidate or the old moderate politician.
3) Fred Thompson is a courageous leader who is willing to take on the tough issues facing our country. You can spew the media talking points that he looks old and tired but the fact remains, time and time again it is Fred Thompson who is bringing up the BIG ISSUES that are of catastrophic consequence. Last debate, he brought up the subject of the National Education Association's onslought with our public schools. This debate he made clear that the social security entitlement system is going broke and a fix must be undertaken by a courageous leader who can talk directly to the American people.
4) McCain is strong on defense and that's about it. While I respect him deeply for his military service and commend him strongly for his support of the "surge" in Iraq, I don't trust him to stick to conservative principles while serving as our president. I think he would be a wonderful appointment as Secretary of Defense in the new administration if we win.
5) Giuliani is a strong, effective leader who would certainly place America on the right track and keep it safe, of this I have no doubts whatsoever. My worries would be in the public policy regard as he would not be nearly as traditional as I would like.
The good news is that each of our candidates have strengths we can be proud of as Republicans and that makes deciding amongst them all the more difficult. Nonetheless, we must split hairs with each candidate and determine which one best embodies conservative, traditionalist principles in EVERY FACET of their persona, plain and simple. Remember that the presidency isn't just about protecting America from foreign threats or passing legislation, budgets, etc. The president sets policy for the entire nation to follow and he/she leads by example. For this reason, my current order of preference is: Thompson, Romney, Giuliani and McCain. I've got no use for Huckabee, he should run as a Democrat!