Ok, for those of you who have not heard all of the noise or who cannot keep up with the changes, here is a quick summary of what's new:
*Rudy Giuliani's connections to Bernard Kerik and Charles Hill. Bernard Kerik has been indicted on federal charges and Charles Hill has some "questionable" positions on foreign policy issues. The Giuliani campaign is trying to minimalize these connections. These "connections" may be overrated, but since everyone keeps bringing up Giuliani's positions on abortion, gun control, and illegal immigration, this is another thing to pile on.
*Fred Thompson got an interesting endorsement. He has been endorsed by the National Right to Life organization for Fred's "100% Pro-Life voting record". Interesting, this is after Giuliani being backed by a "Christian Big Name" (Pat Robertson), Romney and Huckabee being endorsed by other "Christian Big Names" (Paul Weyrich and Donald Wildman, respectively), and John McCain's odd endorsement by Senator Sam Brownback.
*Mike Huckabee cannot avoid the accusations that he's not a real conservative, but we also see Huckabee is having trouble keeping his facts straight about his past positions on taxes. It is hard to tell if Huckabee is truly gaining ground on the leaders and is now getting shot down, or he has become "one of the big boys" and is taking his hits like the rest. In the meantime, Rolling Stone likes Huckabee.
*Mitt Romney has been strong lately, but he also cannot get around the Mormon label and the fact people see Mormonism as a "cult". This I find odd, since we have elected presidents who come from different religious backgrounds that some have considered "cults" (for example: John F. Kennedy - Roman Catholicism; Richard Nixon - Quakers). Also, Romney has been attacked for some of his illegal immigration positions. Over the last several months, Romney has shown that his beliefs and positions are more a product of "reconsideration" and an "evolution" of thought than they were "Flip Floping". Unlike John Kerry and John McCain, Romney has not played both sides of an issue and ignored past statements, Romney has explained where he was and how he got to where he is now. This shows he is more thoughtful then many other politicians.
*John McCain cant avoid keeping his foot out of his mouth. Also, he parades his mom onto national cable TV and she shoots him in the foot. Good times, especially when you reply to a obscure question by calling someone a "jerk"
Conclusion: Rudy Giuliani gets big boost, takes three steps forward, two steps back. Mitt Romney gains strength, cannot avoid bigotry. John McCain continually takes two steps forward, four steps back at every turn. Fred Thompson is assumed for dead, then resurrects himself and then does not seem to do much with his "new chance" in the race. Mike Huckabee is gaining ground in the polls, but getting killed online. Tom Tancredo is getting trashed for being honest and truthful. Ron Paul appears to have a great deal of support from people who are not registered to vote or do not vote (see his Myspace page). Oh, and Duncan Hunter has been almost never heard from.
Welcome to Campaign 2008, where voters will need to seperate the facts from opinion to get the truth.
1 comment:
You leave out Fred Thompson shooting himself in the foot on Meet the Press. He is known as a pro-lifer. He then attempts to straddle the fence and say that he is not in favor of a Human Life Amendment, which has been a plank in the Republican platform, since before Thompson was a Senator.
Thompson is dead in the water. The National Right to Life continues to lose credibility.
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