With only two weeks to go until the Iowa Caucuses, which will officially open the U.S. Presidential primary season, the Liberty Sphere will issue our final ratings on ALL of the candidates, both Republican and Democrat.
Periodically as the candidates have participated in debates around the country, The Liberty Sphere has rated the candidates on the views expressed during the those debates using our exclusive 'Liberty Scale.'
The Scale is based upon eight key issues that we deem to be key to human liberty: low taxes, secure borders (and enforcement of immigration laws), gun rights, abortion, national defense, U.S. foreign policy, the war on terror, and healthcare (specifically keeping our healthcare system private and the best in the world).
We then rate the candidates on a scale of 1 to 10 based upon these 8 key issues that impact liberty, with 10 being the highest score.
As you will note below, GOP candidates came out very well comparatively speaking on human liberty issues. The Democrats did not fare so well.
No Democrat, for example, except for Billy Richardson has definitively voiced support for gun rights. But Billy has mammoth problems in just about every other area. His policy statements call for big government solutions for every problem, the price tag of which will run into the billions of dollars. Thus, his views in essence mirror those of European-styled Socialists such as Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, and John Edwards.
In addition, we have stated repeatedly that we do not feel that Richardson has the intellect or the ability to be President. The job is simply way over his head.
On the flip side, every single GOP candidate supports a strong defense, low taxes, private healthcare (although some would mandate insurance through private companies), and American capitalism. The rub comes in on the issues of gun rights, foreign policy, the war on terror, and illegal immigration.
All of the GOP candidates give assent to believing in gun rights, securing our borders, and a strong defense. The issue becomes who is most believable given their past record.
In addition, U.S. foreign policy and the War on Terror are key issues in a dangerous world in which the U.S. is in the unavoidable position of being the world's only superpower. Is this the time to retreat into a cocoon and usher in an era of isolationism when there are upwards of 80 million Jihadists around the world who want to kill us and the rest of the world?
Some of the readers of the Liberty Sphere clearly will not like our final analysis of the candidates. But we will be as honest and candid in our assessment and ratings as possible. But remember, this is merely 'as we see it.' Clearly there are other points of view, and we acknowledge those.
Thus, based upon a careful observation of the Republican and Democratic candidates, here is our final list of ratings as we stand on the brink of the primary season.
REPUBLICAN CANDIDATES
FRED THOMPSON is our choice as the best candidate for the office of President. He is an entirely consistent conservative and federalist, an advocate for gun rights, low taxes, private healthcare, a strong defense, a pragmatic U.S. foreign policy, the War on Terror, the sanctity of human life, and secure borders with policies that discourage illegal aliens from entering the country. He gets a perfect score of 10.
DUNCAN HUNTER is our second choice, but he has failed to get the traction and recognition it takes to win primaries, which is a shame. On the issues he is as reliably conservative as Fred Thompson, but we do not feel that he is a viable candidate, unfortunately. He also gets a perfect score of 10.
MIKE HUCKABEE has been a major disappointment as his views have come into focus only recently. While the candidate is strong on gun rights, abortion, foreign policy, the war on terror, national defense, and healthcare, he is highly suspect on taxes and illegal aliens. Because the issues of taxes and immigration are so important, his score on the Liberty Scale has suffered. He gets no higher than a 7.
RON PAUL is a mixed bag. While we fully embrace his views on gun rights, taxes, abortion, healthcare, national defense, and immigration, we find his views on U.S. foreign policy and the war on terror to be highly troublesome. For this reason we give Dr. Paul a final rating of 7.
JOHN MCCAIN has come on strong since he got his wrists slapped on the immigration debacle. He has also acknowledged that McCain-Feingold had some unintended consequences that were troublesome and needed to be corrected. On the issues of guns, abortion, taxes, healthcare, national defense, the war on terror, and foreign policy, the candidate is fairly strong. The fact that McCain is a genuine war hero takes him a long way in our book. Thus, his final rating is 7.
MITT ROMNEY is problematic because of the inconsistencies. How do we know for sure where he stands? Yet the candidate is no Socialist and supports American free enterprise and our capitalistic system. He gets a rating of 6.
RUDY GIULIANI was clearly the right man at the right time for NYC when the Twin Towers were attacked. No doubt he is a strong leader who can stand strong for America's interests around the world. We also know he is not a Socialist and expressed privately his grave concern over Hillary Clinton's socialistic policies. We give him a final rating of 6.
TOM TANCREDO, we hear, will announce today that he is dropping out of the race. He has been a great voice for immigration reform and stopping the flow of illegal aliens into the country. We saw his debate performances improve dramatically over the months, and we hate to see him go.
DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATES
Unfortunately no Democrat rates above a 4. Almost without fail, the stance of the Democratic candidates on the issues are the diametric opposite of all The Liberty Sphere finds to be imperative.
BILL RICHARDSON--4. His only redeeming quality is his stance on gun rights.
JOE BIDEN--4. A liberal, no doubt, but a pragmatic one. He knows plenty about foreign policy and would place America first in an international squabble. This is his only redeeming quality.
MIKE GRAVEL--3. I gave him a 10 for NOT showing up for one of the debates. Once again, he is a liberal, but a 1960s-styled liberal who has at least a little common sense.
CHRIS DODD--2. Socialist. He gets a 2 because he has more common sense and tons more experience than the four listed below.
HILLARY CLINTON--1. Socialist.
BARACK OBAMA--1. Socialist.
JOHN EDWARDS--1. Socialist.
DENNIS KUCINICH--0. Sorry, but we can find absolutely no rational reason to give him any points on any of our key issues.
Showing posts with label ratings of Republican candidates. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ratings of Republican candidates. Show all posts
Thursday, December 20, 2007
Tuesday, October 09, 2007
Comments on Oct. 9 GOP Debate in Dearborn
As expected, Fred Thompson loomed large in the GOP debate in Dearborn, Michigan Tuesday afternoon. After skipping out on all previous debates, given that he was not yet a candidate, the fact that Thompson has skyrocketed to a statistical tie with Rudy Giuliani meant that all eyes were on Fred.
Thompson even occupied the center stage in the debate, which inadvertently served to further highlight his looming stature, figuratively and literally.
Chris Matthews asked Thompson the first question of the debate. Thompson seemed to lose his train of thought at one moment during his answer. But after a rusty first shot out of the starting gate, the candidate proceeded to show that he can stand toe-to-toe with the big guys on the national stage.
Thompson's answers were down-to-earth, folksy, and exhibited his vast knowledge of legal and Constitutional issues after spending decades as an attorney.
While Thompson may not have lived up to the unrealistic expectations of those who expected him to be someone he is not, such as Ronald Reagan, the candidate nonetheless established himself as one who can hold his own with rivals who have been on the stage now for months.
Duncan Hunter also posted a strong performance, particularly on the issue of how the Chinese have taken advantage of U.S. trade policies to come back and hurt us.
The question was asked of all the candidates if they would go on record as supporting whoever wins the GOP nomination for President. Several candidates hedged, including Ron Paul, Tom Tancredo, and Sam Brownback.
Mr. Paul insisted that his litmus test was the War in Iraq and whether or not the GOP nominee promises to get us out. Clearly Mr. Paul knows that several top-tier GOP candidates, one of whom is likely to be the nominee, clearly do not share his views on Iraq. Does this mean that he will support Hillary? Or perhaps turn to a third Party?
If this is the intent of Mr. Paul, surely he knows that such a move will hand the election to Hillary. And if he follows through and does such a thing, he not only will lose all of my respect but be relegated to the ash-heap of political history along side of the likes of Ross Perot.
Perot's misguided and laughable campaign as a third Party candidate in 1992 is the single reason Bill Clinton was elected President. If Ron Paul does a similar thing, he will hand the election to yet another Clinton.
And this raises a serious political question. In terms of campaign strategy, when a candidate uses tactics that he/she knows at the start will help elect a sworn political opponent, does this not mean that the candidate in question in actuality supports the opponent who benefits from those tactics?
After all, every single Democratic candidate has pledged to 'get us out of Iraq.' Since this seems to be the Paul litmus test, I suppose he would rather support Hillary or Kucinich than a member of his own Party.
Not a single GOP candidate can be described as a European-styled Socialist. Yet most if not all of the Democratic candidates are exactly that.
But who cares? At least they will 'get us out of Iraq.'
Mike Huckabee, as always, posted a fine debate performance this evening. It is easy to see why many refer to his 'rising star' status within the Republican Party with his quick wit and thoughtful answers.
With regard to the rest of the field of candidates--McCain, Giuliani, Romney--all did well and provided thoughtful answers to a range of questions on Social Security, healthcare, open markets, taxes, and government spending.
Based upon the answers given in this afternoon's debate, The Liberty Sphere will rate each of the GOP candidates based upon our exclusive 'liberty scale' which focuses on these key issues: taxes, gun rights, abortion, immigration control, national defense, the War on Terror, and U.S. foreign policy.
Here are the ratings (10 is the highest score):
Fred Thompson--10
Mike Huckabee--10
Duncan Hunter--10
Tom Tancredo--8
Ron Paul--7
Sam Brownback--7
John McCain--7
Mitt Romney--6
Rudy Giuliani--6
McCain's movement from a 5 to a 7 is due to the candidate's movement on the issues. We believe, at least at this point, that he has heard the outcry from the citizens about illegal immigration. His willingness to be flexible is a big point in his favor.
Thompson even occupied the center stage in the debate, which inadvertently served to further highlight his looming stature, figuratively and literally.
Chris Matthews asked Thompson the first question of the debate. Thompson seemed to lose his train of thought at one moment during his answer. But after a rusty first shot out of the starting gate, the candidate proceeded to show that he can stand toe-to-toe with the big guys on the national stage.
Thompson's answers were down-to-earth, folksy, and exhibited his vast knowledge of legal and Constitutional issues after spending decades as an attorney.
While Thompson may not have lived up to the unrealistic expectations of those who expected him to be someone he is not, such as Ronald Reagan, the candidate nonetheless established himself as one who can hold his own with rivals who have been on the stage now for months.
Duncan Hunter also posted a strong performance, particularly on the issue of how the Chinese have taken advantage of U.S. trade policies to come back and hurt us.
The question was asked of all the candidates if they would go on record as supporting whoever wins the GOP nomination for President. Several candidates hedged, including Ron Paul, Tom Tancredo, and Sam Brownback.
Mr. Paul insisted that his litmus test was the War in Iraq and whether or not the GOP nominee promises to get us out. Clearly Mr. Paul knows that several top-tier GOP candidates, one of whom is likely to be the nominee, clearly do not share his views on Iraq. Does this mean that he will support Hillary? Or perhaps turn to a third Party?
If this is the intent of Mr. Paul, surely he knows that such a move will hand the election to Hillary. And if he follows through and does such a thing, he not only will lose all of my respect but be relegated to the ash-heap of political history along side of the likes of Ross Perot.
Perot's misguided and laughable campaign as a third Party candidate in 1992 is the single reason Bill Clinton was elected President. If Ron Paul does a similar thing, he will hand the election to yet another Clinton.
And this raises a serious political question. In terms of campaign strategy, when a candidate uses tactics that he/she knows at the start will help elect a sworn political opponent, does this not mean that the candidate in question in actuality supports the opponent who benefits from those tactics?
After all, every single Democratic candidate has pledged to 'get us out of Iraq.' Since this seems to be the Paul litmus test, I suppose he would rather support Hillary or Kucinich than a member of his own Party.
Not a single GOP candidate can be described as a European-styled Socialist. Yet most if not all of the Democratic candidates are exactly that.
But who cares? At least they will 'get us out of Iraq.'
Mike Huckabee, as always, posted a fine debate performance this evening. It is easy to see why many refer to his 'rising star' status within the Republican Party with his quick wit and thoughtful answers.
With regard to the rest of the field of candidates--McCain, Giuliani, Romney--all did well and provided thoughtful answers to a range of questions on Social Security, healthcare, open markets, taxes, and government spending.
Based upon the answers given in this afternoon's debate, The Liberty Sphere will rate each of the GOP candidates based upon our exclusive 'liberty scale' which focuses on these key issues: taxes, gun rights, abortion, immigration control, national defense, the War on Terror, and U.S. foreign policy.
Here are the ratings (10 is the highest score):
Fred Thompson--10
Mike Huckabee--10
Duncan Hunter--10
Tom Tancredo--8
Ron Paul--7
Sam Brownback--7
John McCain--7
Mitt Romney--6
Rudy Giuliani--6
McCain's movement from a 5 to a 7 is due to the candidate's movement on the issues. We believe, at least at this point, that he has heard the outcry from the citizens about illegal immigration. His willingness to be flexible is a big point in his favor.
Thursday, September 06, 2007
Thompson Announces, Republicans Debate in N.H.
Former U.S. Senator and television star Fred Thompson, R-Tennessee, has formally announced his bid for the Republican Presidential nomination. Thompson began airing a television ad describing his campaign goals even as the rest of the Republican field of candidates debated in New Hampshire.
Demonstrating the power of the Thompson presence in the campaign, the very first question of the debate, posed by Fox News Washington Chief Britt Hume, centered on Thompson's contention that having armed students at Virginia Tech could have prevented the massacre unleashed by Cho Seung Hui.
The Second Amendment was a recurring theme during the debate, as the candidates made sure that listeners understood that they each support the individual citizen's right to bear arms.
However, the record shows a different story. When compared to the Democratic candidates, each of the Republican candidates come out smelling like a rose. But Giuliani, McCain, and Romney have less-than-stellar records on their support of Second Amendment rights.
The most exciting segment of the debate occurred when Ron Paul and Mike Huckabee sparred on the War in Iraq. Hume allowed the two great leeway in their exchange, given that it was one of the more spontaneous and interesting segments that has occurred in any of the debates in either Party.
Concerning Ron Paul, The Liberty Sphere continues to have great difficulty with the candidate's assertion that the 9/11 attack was due to the American troop presence on the Arabian peninsula--the reason given by Osama bin Laden and Al Qaeda. Mr. Paul makes the mistake of taking the words of Osama bin Laden at face value.
Why should we believe him? Bin Laden is one of the least trustworthy individuals on the planet.
The truth is we were attacked because radical Islamists, i.e., the Jihad, wishes to kill us all in the name of Allah and usher in Sharia Law under the Koran.
And this is why we have maintained all along that Ron Paul will not win the GOP nomination. This shortsighted point of view on what our nation faces in the Jihadists is enough to deny him the support of most Republican voters.
This is, no doubt, a shame, for Mr. Paul is otherwise an attractive candidate with many laudable ideas.
The clear winner in this debate, in our view, continues to be Duncan Hunter, R-California. He has the honor, the integrity, the grasp of the issues, and the ability to articulate his stance on the issues that place him at the head of the pack.
If there was a clear loser in the debate, it would have to be Senator Sam Brownback, R-Kansas, who seemed to lose his train of thought a couple of times. This was not a good night for the Senator, although his lackluster showing did nothing to effect his stance on the issues, which for the most part is strong.
The Liberty Sphere rates the candidates who participate in the debates based upon eight key issues impacting personal liberty--taxes, healthcare, gun rights, immigration policy, abortion, national defense, U.S. foreign policy, and the War on Terror.
Based upon these key issues, we rate the Republican candidates in Wednesday night's debate as follows, with 10 being the highest score:
Duncan Hunter--10
Mike Huckabee--9
Sam Brownback--8
Tom Tancredo--8
Ron Paul--7
Rudy Giuliani--6
Mitt Romney--6
John McCain--5
Demonstrating the power of the Thompson presence in the campaign, the very first question of the debate, posed by Fox News Washington Chief Britt Hume, centered on Thompson's contention that having armed students at Virginia Tech could have prevented the massacre unleashed by Cho Seung Hui.
The Second Amendment was a recurring theme during the debate, as the candidates made sure that listeners understood that they each support the individual citizen's right to bear arms.
However, the record shows a different story. When compared to the Democratic candidates, each of the Republican candidates come out smelling like a rose. But Giuliani, McCain, and Romney have less-than-stellar records on their support of Second Amendment rights.
The most exciting segment of the debate occurred when Ron Paul and Mike Huckabee sparred on the War in Iraq. Hume allowed the two great leeway in their exchange, given that it was one of the more spontaneous and interesting segments that has occurred in any of the debates in either Party.
Concerning Ron Paul, The Liberty Sphere continues to have great difficulty with the candidate's assertion that the 9/11 attack was due to the American troop presence on the Arabian peninsula--the reason given by Osama bin Laden and Al Qaeda. Mr. Paul makes the mistake of taking the words of Osama bin Laden at face value.
Why should we believe him? Bin Laden is one of the least trustworthy individuals on the planet.
The truth is we were attacked because radical Islamists, i.e., the Jihad, wishes to kill us all in the name of Allah and usher in Sharia Law under the Koran.
And this is why we have maintained all along that Ron Paul will not win the GOP nomination. This shortsighted point of view on what our nation faces in the Jihadists is enough to deny him the support of most Republican voters.
This is, no doubt, a shame, for Mr. Paul is otherwise an attractive candidate with many laudable ideas.
The clear winner in this debate, in our view, continues to be Duncan Hunter, R-California. He has the honor, the integrity, the grasp of the issues, and the ability to articulate his stance on the issues that place him at the head of the pack.
If there was a clear loser in the debate, it would have to be Senator Sam Brownback, R-Kansas, who seemed to lose his train of thought a couple of times. This was not a good night for the Senator, although his lackluster showing did nothing to effect his stance on the issues, which for the most part is strong.
The Liberty Sphere rates the candidates who participate in the debates based upon eight key issues impacting personal liberty--taxes, healthcare, gun rights, immigration policy, abortion, national defense, U.S. foreign policy, and the War on Terror.
Based upon these key issues, we rate the Republican candidates in Wednesday night's debate as follows, with 10 being the highest score:
Duncan Hunter--10
Mike Huckabee--9
Sam Brownback--8
Tom Tancredo--8
Ron Paul--7
Rudy Giuliani--6
Mitt Romney--6
John McCain--5
Monday, August 06, 2007
Republicans Square Off in Iowa
The Republicans had a debate early Sunday morning in Iowa. Unless you are a news junkie you probably didn't even know a debate was taking place.
Yet Iowans get up early, and they packed the house to hear the nine Republican candidates spar on a variety of issues, one week prior to a major straw poll on Saturday, Aug. 13.
Significant in this debate was the fireworks that occurred between Senator Sam Brownback and Mitt Romney. Brownback took Romney to task for his about-face on abortion, not that it isn't admirable for Romney to change his mind but that dyed-in-the-wool pro-life candidates such as Brownback have reason to doubt Romney's sincerity.
Romney has taken an about-face on several issues since his days as a Liberal Republican Governor of the state of Massachusetts. The Liberty Sphere has often asked the question, who is the real Mitt Romney?
Nobody really knows except for the candidate himself.
Brownback's offensive played well in Iowa, where most Republican activists are pro-life. Attendees and observers however did not give the Kansas Senator top marks in the debate.
Most of those who responded to various polls believed that Ron Paul won the debate. Other top contenders were Sam Brownback, Mike Huckabee, Rudy Giuliani, and Mitt Romney.
John McCain registered a very poor showing in the polls following the debate, which only further solidifies the contention that his candidacy is pretty much washed up.
As always, Duncan Hunter showed great strength and grasp of the issues. From the beginning he has been our favorite candidate, and it is a shame that a highly respected Congressman of his stature has not been able to break out of single digits in the polls.
Tom Tancredo also registered a strong showing in the debate. His effectiveness in handling these forums has steadily improved over time.
That brings us to Tommy Thompson. Thompson has had a distinguished career in Republican Party politics and has definitely made his mark for conservative values. His debate performances are never lackluster, but we have come to expect a consistency about them that neither buries the candidate nor catapults him to the top.
As always, The Liberty Sphere provides ratings for the candidates based upon their views on the following key issues that are central to human liberty--national defense, taxes, abortion, gun rights, the War on Terror, healthcare, immigration, and U.S. foreign policy.
Based upon these key issues, The Liberty Sphere rates the Republican candidates as follows, after Sunday morning's debate (10 is the highest score):
Duncan Hunter--10
Mike Huckabee--10
Tom Tancredo--10
Sam Brownback--8
Ron Paul--7
Tommy Thompson--7
Rudy Giuliani--6
Mitt Romney--6
John McCain--5
Yet Iowans get up early, and they packed the house to hear the nine Republican candidates spar on a variety of issues, one week prior to a major straw poll on Saturday, Aug. 13.
Significant in this debate was the fireworks that occurred between Senator Sam Brownback and Mitt Romney. Brownback took Romney to task for his about-face on abortion, not that it isn't admirable for Romney to change his mind but that dyed-in-the-wool pro-life candidates such as Brownback have reason to doubt Romney's sincerity.
Romney has taken an about-face on several issues since his days as a Liberal Republican Governor of the state of Massachusetts. The Liberty Sphere has often asked the question, who is the real Mitt Romney?
Nobody really knows except for the candidate himself.
Brownback's offensive played well in Iowa, where most Republican activists are pro-life. Attendees and observers however did not give the Kansas Senator top marks in the debate.
Most of those who responded to various polls believed that Ron Paul won the debate. Other top contenders were Sam Brownback, Mike Huckabee, Rudy Giuliani, and Mitt Romney.
John McCain registered a very poor showing in the polls following the debate, which only further solidifies the contention that his candidacy is pretty much washed up.
As always, Duncan Hunter showed great strength and grasp of the issues. From the beginning he has been our favorite candidate, and it is a shame that a highly respected Congressman of his stature has not been able to break out of single digits in the polls.
Tom Tancredo also registered a strong showing in the debate. His effectiveness in handling these forums has steadily improved over time.
That brings us to Tommy Thompson. Thompson has had a distinguished career in Republican Party politics and has definitely made his mark for conservative values. His debate performances are never lackluster, but we have come to expect a consistency about them that neither buries the candidate nor catapults him to the top.
As always, The Liberty Sphere provides ratings for the candidates based upon their views on the following key issues that are central to human liberty--national defense, taxes, abortion, gun rights, the War on Terror, healthcare, immigration, and U.S. foreign policy.
Based upon these key issues, The Liberty Sphere rates the Republican candidates as follows, after Sunday morning's debate (10 is the highest score):
Duncan Hunter--10
Mike Huckabee--10
Tom Tancredo--10
Sam Brownback--8
Ron Paul--7
Tommy Thompson--7
Rudy Giuliani--6
Mitt Romney--6
John McCain--5
Tuesday, June 05, 2007
Ratings of Republican Candidates--3rd Debate, 6/5/07
Manchester, NH (TLS). The 3rd major Republican debate is history. Once again, CNN did an admirable job, with the exception of the 'stupid question' we have come to expect from the mainstream media.
The stupid question tonight was, 'If you are elected how will you use former President George W. Bush?'
Other than these types of stupid questions, Wolf Blitzer and the CNN team did a very good job at managing the debate.
All of the candidates were in top form this evening, and we saw no one who appeared to be having a bad night or struggling with answers.
GENERAL EVALUATION OF DEBATE SKILL/PRESENTATION
In terms of overall communication skill, several candidates competed for top honors, including Duncan Hunter, Rudy Giuliani, John McCain, Mike Huckabee, and Ron Paul. Each of these 5 candidates did an exceptional job at presenting their views.
Those who did very well but not quite up to the level of the aforementioned candidates were Tom Tancredo, Jim Gilmore, and Tommy Thompson. However, even these candidates presented themselves very well and showed very few weaknesses.
Perhaps one of the key moments during the debate came during the second half, when Duncan Hunter took on Rudy Giuliani, John McCain, and Mitt Romney for espousing views that are far outside the Republican mainstream. Hunter made a strong case for Reagan ideals being key to reaching out to moderate Republicans and Independents, rather than allowing conservative values to be usurped by the support of more gun control, socialized medicine, and other such dubious positions.
Giuliani's strongest area tonight was his ability to articulate the clear differences between Republicans and Democrats on national security and defense, and the War on Terror. He stated that, 'Not a single Democrat on this stage Sunday night would even utter the words "Islamic Terrorist." He also took direct aim at both Hillary Clinton and John Edwards, particularly Edwards' contention that the War on Terror is merely a bumper sticker slogan.
Thus, in terms of presentation, Duncan Hunter showed the strongest improvement. Rudy Giuliani continued to exhibit a clear penchant for leadership, credibility, and a natural ability to look 'Presidential.'
RATINGS OF CANDIDATES ON THE ISSUES IMPACTING LIBERTY
The Liberty Sphere uses our exclusive 'Liberty Scale' for rating candidates based upon the following key issues: national defense, taxes, abortion, gun rights, the War on Terror, healthcare, immigration, and U.S. foreign policy.
Based upon these 8 key issues that impact human liberty, The Liberty Sphere rates each of the Republican candidates in tonight's debate as follows (10 being the highest score):
Duncan Hunter--10
Mike Huckabee--10
Jim Gilmore--10
Tom Tancredo--8
Ron Paul--7
Rudy Giuliani--7
Tommy Thompson--7
John McCain--5
While John McCain can be given high marks for his stand on the War on Terror and its tributary in Iraq, The Liberty Sphere is still very concerned about his long-standing opposition to gun rights, immigration control and border security, and his assault on First Amendment/free speech through McCain-Feingold.
Frankly, however, we would have no problem supporting McCain if he is chosen to go up against ANY Democratic candidate in the general election. In this contest, even the very weakest Republican candidate is a vast improvement over the outright socialistic, pacifistic anti-freedom exhibited by each of the Democratic candidates.
McCain may well have succeeded in regaining his 'number three' position among the front-runners with tonight's strong performance. While Mike Huckabee came on very strong, we are concerned with the 'ministerial' moniker that is increasingly hanging around his neck.
The Liberty Sphere has no problem with ministers running for office, and we believe that Huckabee is a very good man and a strong candidate. Our concern is that the Baptist Minister tag will hurt him among certain portions of the electorate.
It will be interesting to see how the polling data falls out over the next few days with regard to McCain and Huckabee.
Look for Duncan Hunter to move upward in the polls.
The stupid question tonight was, 'If you are elected how will you use former President George W. Bush?'
Other than these types of stupid questions, Wolf Blitzer and the CNN team did a very good job at managing the debate.
All of the candidates were in top form this evening, and we saw no one who appeared to be having a bad night or struggling with answers.
GENERAL EVALUATION OF DEBATE SKILL/PRESENTATION
In terms of overall communication skill, several candidates competed for top honors, including Duncan Hunter, Rudy Giuliani, John McCain, Mike Huckabee, and Ron Paul. Each of these 5 candidates did an exceptional job at presenting their views.
Those who did very well but not quite up to the level of the aforementioned candidates were Tom Tancredo, Jim Gilmore, and Tommy Thompson. However, even these candidates presented themselves very well and showed very few weaknesses.
Perhaps one of the key moments during the debate came during the second half, when Duncan Hunter took on Rudy Giuliani, John McCain, and Mitt Romney for espousing views that are far outside the Republican mainstream. Hunter made a strong case for Reagan ideals being key to reaching out to moderate Republicans and Independents, rather than allowing conservative values to be usurped by the support of more gun control, socialized medicine, and other such dubious positions.
Giuliani's strongest area tonight was his ability to articulate the clear differences between Republicans and Democrats on national security and defense, and the War on Terror. He stated that, 'Not a single Democrat on this stage Sunday night would even utter the words "Islamic Terrorist." He also took direct aim at both Hillary Clinton and John Edwards, particularly Edwards' contention that the War on Terror is merely a bumper sticker slogan.
Thus, in terms of presentation, Duncan Hunter showed the strongest improvement. Rudy Giuliani continued to exhibit a clear penchant for leadership, credibility, and a natural ability to look 'Presidential.'
RATINGS OF CANDIDATES ON THE ISSUES IMPACTING LIBERTY
The Liberty Sphere uses our exclusive 'Liberty Scale' for rating candidates based upon the following key issues: national defense, taxes, abortion, gun rights, the War on Terror, healthcare, immigration, and U.S. foreign policy.
Based upon these 8 key issues that impact human liberty, The Liberty Sphere rates each of the Republican candidates in tonight's debate as follows (10 being the highest score):
Duncan Hunter--10
Mike Huckabee--10
Jim Gilmore--10
Tom Tancredo--8
Ron Paul--7
Rudy Giuliani--7
Tommy Thompson--7
John McCain--5
While John McCain can be given high marks for his stand on the War on Terror and its tributary in Iraq, The Liberty Sphere is still very concerned about his long-standing opposition to gun rights, immigration control and border security, and his assault on First Amendment/free speech through McCain-Feingold.
Frankly, however, we would have no problem supporting McCain if he is chosen to go up against ANY Democratic candidate in the general election. In this contest, even the very weakest Republican candidate is a vast improvement over the outright socialistic, pacifistic anti-freedom exhibited by each of the Democratic candidates.
McCain may well have succeeded in regaining his 'number three' position among the front-runners with tonight's strong performance. While Mike Huckabee came on very strong, we are concerned with the 'ministerial' moniker that is increasingly hanging around his neck.
The Liberty Sphere has no problem with ministers running for office, and we believe that Huckabee is a very good man and a strong candidate. Our concern is that the Baptist Minister tag will hurt him among certain portions of the electorate.
It will be interesting to see how the polling data falls out over the next few days with regard to McCain and Huckabee.
Look for Duncan Hunter to move upward in the polls.
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
Who Is Winning So Far Among the Republicans?
Columbia, SC (TLS). With two televised debates now under their belts, the Republican Presidential candidates have begun to carve out for themselves a certain niche in the minds of the voters. With some of these candidates, initial impressions have been made, for good or ill. Others have had opportunity to re-introduce themselves after years in the public spotlight.
The Liberty Sphere has been rating candidates, both Democrat and Republican, based upon our exclusive 'Liberty Scale.' This scale is based upon eight key issues that we view as being central to the preservation of liberty in our lifetime and beyond--taxes, gun rights, abortion, national defense, border security, immigration control, the War in Iraq, and the broader War on Terror.
Based upon the ratings of the Republican candidates on these issues during the two debates, we can now get a clearer picture as to who is ahead so far, and who is lagging behind.
We have added together each candidates' two scores from their two debates, and divided them by two, in order to get an average score. The following is the average score of each of the 10 Republican candidates, on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the highest score:
Duncan Hunter--10
Mike Huckabee--10
Jim Gilmore--8
Tom Tancredo--7.5
Sam Brownback--7
Rudy Giuliani--6.5
Mitt Romney--6.5
Tommy Thompson--6.5
Ron Paul--6.5
John McCain--5
You will note that only two candidates have a perfect score on the issues that are key to The Liberty Sphere--Duncan Hunter and Mike Huckabee. However, our concern at this point is money. Neither Hunter nor Huckabee have shown the ability, at least thus far, to raise the mega-bucks needed to mount a competitive campaign. It will be interesting to see if this changes after last night's debate.
If anyone stands to gain the most in terms of fundraising, it is definitely Rudy Giuliani with his powerful showing in the debate. We look for the candidate to overtake Romney as the Republican who raises the most funds, at least with the present field of candidates.
That looming unknown factor is still very much present, however--how soon will Fred Thompson and Newt Gingrich announce, and to what degree with this effect the Giuliani bandwagon.
The Liberty Sphere has been rating candidates, both Democrat and Republican, based upon our exclusive 'Liberty Scale.' This scale is based upon eight key issues that we view as being central to the preservation of liberty in our lifetime and beyond--taxes, gun rights, abortion, national defense, border security, immigration control, the War in Iraq, and the broader War on Terror.
Based upon the ratings of the Republican candidates on these issues during the two debates, we can now get a clearer picture as to who is ahead so far, and who is lagging behind.
We have added together each candidates' two scores from their two debates, and divided them by two, in order to get an average score. The following is the average score of each of the 10 Republican candidates, on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the highest score:
Duncan Hunter--10
Mike Huckabee--10
Jim Gilmore--8
Tom Tancredo--7.5
Sam Brownback--7
Rudy Giuliani--6.5
Mitt Romney--6.5
Tommy Thompson--6.5
Ron Paul--6.5
John McCain--5
You will note that only two candidates have a perfect score on the issues that are key to The Liberty Sphere--Duncan Hunter and Mike Huckabee. However, our concern at this point is money. Neither Hunter nor Huckabee have shown the ability, at least thus far, to raise the mega-bucks needed to mount a competitive campaign. It will be interesting to see if this changes after last night's debate.
If anyone stands to gain the most in terms of fundraising, it is definitely Rudy Giuliani with his powerful showing in the debate. We look for the candidate to overtake Romney as the Republican who raises the most funds, at least with the present field of candidates.
That looming unknown factor is still very much present, however--how soon will Fred Thompson and Newt Gingrich announce, and to what degree with this effect the Giuliani bandwagon.
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
The 2nd Debate--Ratings of the Republican Candidates
Columbia, SC (TLS). The Republican candidates squared off for their second debate here this evening at the University of South Carolina in Columbia, SC. The University, which boasts over 30,000 students here in a metropolitan area of roughly 400,000, became the focus of thousands of news personnel from around the country, some from as far away as Washington State, in order to see these candidates in action.
An estimated crowd of 10,000 gathered for this forum, which was hosted and aired by Fox News. News veteran Britt Hume, Washington bureau chief for Fox News, did his normally admirable job of moderating this debate.
The questions presented to the candidates were reasonable, thoughtful, thorough, sometimes confrontational, and substantive. In fact, Fox News, Britt Hume, and company, can take pride in the fact that tonight they displayed a brilliant presentation of professional journalism.
Tonight's format was decidedly different from what we have seen so far in these gatherings. Fox had stated prior to the debate to expect changes, and they delivered. There was room for interaction between candidates, with Giuliani going head-to-head with Ron Paul on the reasons we were attacked on 9/11. There was even an innovative part of the debate where Britt Hume presented a hypothetical scenario of a terrorist attack on America. The candidates then had to describe what they would do in light of the attack.
As always, The Liberty Sphere will begin by presenting our analysis of the effectiveness of the candidates' presentation, i.e., clarity and style of communication, connection with the audience, logical progression of rhetoric, and ability to answer the questions asked rather than running off on tangents.
In light of these qualities, The Liberty Sphere ranks the candidates as follows, in order of their overall effectiveness of presentation:
Rudy Giuliani, Mike Huckabee, Duncan Hunter (3-way tie)
John McCain, Tom Tancredo, Mitt Romney, Sam Brownback (4-way tie)
Tommy Thompson
Jim Gilmore
Ron Paul
The person showing the most improvement over the first debate was Tom Tancredo, who was engaging, articulate, and powerful. The biggest disappointment was Ron Paul, who implied that the reason we were attacked on 9/11 was directly due to our involvement in the Middle East for years. This played right into the hands of Rudy Giuliani, who was visibly outraged at such a suggestion, and displayed the indignation of one personally offended by the mere suggestion that America itself is responsible for the terrorist murders of our citizens.
When we are dealing with radical Islam, no amount of isolationalism would have prevented them from attempting to carry out the will of Allah in slaughtering the infidels. Ron Paul should know this.
In fact, the major gaffe of the evening was by Ron Paul on this issue, who may have just insured his demise as a viable candidate.
Second, The Liberty Sphere will rate the candidates based upon our eight-point 'Liberty Scale.' This is the heart of our ratings system, for the emphasis here is exclusively on the issues alone.
The eight issues we have chosen by which to rate the candidates on the issues are as follows: taxes, gun rights, national defense, abortion, the War on Terror, the War in Iraq, border security, and immigration control. These particular issues are at the heart of liberty, and they are consistent with The Liberty Sphere's mission statement.
For a full explanation on our rationale for rating the candidates on these eight issues, see our post on the first Democratic debate here:
http://thelibertysphere.blogspot.com/2007/04/ratings-of-democratic-presidential.html
Based upon The Liberty Sphere's analysis of each of the 10 Republican Presidential candidates and the extent to which they adhere to our eight key indicators of liberty, the candidates in tonight's debate are rated as follows on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the highest score:
Duncan Hunter--10
Mike Huckabee--10
Tom Tancredo--8
Jim Gilmore--7
Rudy Giuliani--7
Mitt Romney--6
Sam Brownback--6
Ron Paul--6
Tommy Thompson--6
John McCain--5
You will note several items of interest. Tom Tancredo significantly helped himself in tonight's debate. So did Rudy Giuliani. Ron Paul lost a great amount of ground due to his more complete explanation of his views on foreign policy and his apparent short-sighted take on the nature of radical Islam. We did not create Muslim terrorists. To merely imply such a thing either deliberately or inadvertently is to insure the end of one's candidacy, for all intents and purposes.
Our rationale on giving significantly higher marks to Rudy this evening revolves, in part, around his eloquent explanation of his views on abortion. Although we disagree on how to deal with a moral issue, we can respect his point of view because he is honest about it, and because he has obviously thought it through very thoroughly. In addition, we believe that his credentials as a player on the world stage against global terrorism were on full display this evening. And it doesn't hurt that he pledges to appoint only strict constructionists to the courts and that he believes in American capitalism and free enterprise as opposed to Hillary Clinton's socialism.
An estimated crowd of 10,000 gathered for this forum, which was hosted and aired by Fox News. News veteran Britt Hume, Washington bureau chief for Fox News, did his normally admirable job of moderating this debate.
The questions presented to the candidates were reasonable, thoughtful, thorough, sometimes confrontational, and substantive. In fact, Fox News, Britt Hume, and company, can take pride in the fact that tonight they displayed a brilliant presentation of professional journalism.
Tonight's format was decidedly different from what we have seen so far in these gatherings. Fox had stated prior to the debate to expect changes, and they delivered. There was room for interaction between candidates, with Giuliani going head-to-head with Ron Paul on the reasons we were attacked on 9/11. There was even an innovative part of the debate where Britt Hume presented a hypothetical scenario of a terrorist attack on America. The candidates then had to describe what they would do in light of the attack.
As always, The Liberty Sphere will begin by presenting our analysis of the effectiveness of the candidates' presentation, i.e., clarity and style of communication, connection with the audience, logical progression of rhetoric, and ability to answer the questions asked rather than running off on tangents.
In light of these qualities, The Liberty Sphere ranks the candidates as follows, in order of their overall effectiveness of presentation:
Rudy Giuliani, Mike Huckabee, Duncan Hunter (3-way tie)
John McCain, Tom Tancredo, Mitt Romney, Sam Brownback (4-way tie)
Tommy Thompson
Jim Gilmore
Ron Paul
The person showing the most improvement over the first debate was Tom Tancredo, who was engaging, articulate, and powerful. The biggest disappointment was Ron Paul, who implied that the reason we were attacked on 9/11 was directly due to our involvement in the Middle East for years. This played right into the hands of Rudy Giuliani, who was visibly outraged at such a suggestion, and displayed the indignation of one personally offended by the mere suggestion that America itself is responsible for the terrorist murders of our citizens.
When we are dealing with radical Islam, no amount of isolationalism would have prevented them from attempting to carry out the will of Allah in slaughtering the infidels. Ron Paul should know this.
In fact, the major gaffe of the evening was by Ron Paul on this issue, who may have just insured his demise as a viable candidate.
Second, The Liberty Sphere will rate the candidates based upon our eight-point 'Liberty Scale.' This is the heart of our ratings system, for the emphasis here is exclusively on the issues alone.
The eight issues we have chosen by which to rate the candidates on the issues are as follows: taxes, gun rights, national defense, abortion, the War on Terror, the War in Iraq, border security, and immigration control. These particular issues are at the heart of liberty, and they are consistent with The Liberty Sphere's mission statement.
For a full explanation on our rationale for rating the candidates on these eight issues, see our post on the first Democratic debate here:
http://thelibertysphere.blogspot.com/2007/04/ratings-of-democratic-presidential.html
Based upon The Liberty Sphere's analysis of each of the 10 Republican Presidential candidates and the extent to which they adhere to our eight key indicators of liberty, the candidates in tonight's debate are rated as follows on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the highest score:
Duncan Hunter--10
Mike Huckabee--10
Tom Tancredo--8
Jim Gilmore--7
Rudy Giuliani--7
Mitt Romney--6
Sam Brownback--6
Ron Paul--6
Tommy Thompson--6
John McCain--5
You will note several items of interest. Tom Tancredo significantly helped himself in tonight's debate. So did Rudy Giuliani. Ron Paul lost a great amount of ground due to his more complete explanation of his views on foreign policy and his apparent short-sighted take on the nature of radical Islam. We did not create Muslim terrorists. To merely imply such a thing either deliberately or inadvertently is to insure the end of one's candidacy, for all intents and purposes.
Our rationale on giving significantly higher marks to Rudy this evening revolves, in part, around his eloquent explanation of his views on abortion. Although we disagree on how to deal with a moral issue, we can respect his point of view because he is honest about it, and because he has obviously thought it through very thoroughly. In addition, we believe that his credentials as a player on the world stage against global terrorism were on full display this evening. And it doesn't hurt that he pledges to appoint only strict constructionists to the courts and that he believes in American capitalism and free enterprise as opposed to Hillary Clinton's socialism.
Thursday, May 03, 2007
Ratings of Republican Presidential Candidates
Washington, DC (TLS). The Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in California provided the backdrop for this first forum of the Republican Presidential candidates.
As we did with the Democrats, The Liberty Sphere will rate each of the Republican candidates based upon their performance in tonight's debate, as well as their views.
With regard to strength of communication skills, clarity of presentation, answering the questions posed, and ability to connect at an emotional level with voters, the candidates are listed below in order of their overall effectiveness in tonight's forum:
Governor Mitt Romney
Rep. Duncan Hunter and Governor Mike Huckabee (tie)
Governor Jim Gilmore
Senator Sam Brownback
Senator John McCain
Mayor Rudy Giuliani
Rep. Ron Paul
Governor Tommy Thompson
Rep. Tom Tancredo
The surprises of the evening are that Mitt Romney and Jim Gilmore did so incredibly well, and Tom Tancredo did so poorly. We regret the latter, for Rep. Tancredo is a good communicator with ideas that need a hearing in this country. For some reason or another, he was off his game tonight.
Of the three front runners so far, Mitt Romney gained the most from this encounter, allowing a large portion of the population to see how well he handles himself under pressure. If there were to be a declared winner on the basis of communication, presentation, and debate presence, it would be Romney, hands down.
Now for the issues of substance. The Liberty Sphere rates all candidates based upon our mission statement, which is to advocate for human liberty all over the world, and to support those candidates, Parties, and organizations that do the most to propagate human freedom.
We base this 'liberty rating' on eight (8) key issues that are central to liberty: national defense, taxes, healthcare, gun rights, abortion, the war on terror, U.S. foreign policy, and immigration control.
For a complete description and rationale for our view that these issues are key, click here to go to our ratings of the Democratic candidates in their first debate:
http://thelibertysphere.blogspot.com/2007/04/ratings-of-democratic-presidential.html
Based upon our analysis of the views of each of the Republican candidates on these 8 key critical issues, The Liberty Sphere rates tonight's candidates on a scale of 1 to 10 (10 being the highest score):
Rep. Duncan Hunter--10
Governor Mike Huckabee--10
Governor Jim Gilmore--9
Senator Sam Brownback--8
Governor Mitt Romney--7
Governor Tommy Thompson--7
Rep. Tom Tancredo--7
Rep. Ron Paul--7
Mayor Rudy Giuliani--6
Senator John McCain--5
Based upon The Liberty Sphere's total leading indicators, combining effectiveness of presentation with strength of views with regard to liberty, who benefited the most from tonight's forum?
Four candidates stand out as doing a stellar job at presenting their case for why they should be President, and probably helped themselves tremendously by appearing in tonight's debate. They are Mitt Romney, Duncan Hunter, Mike Huckabee, and Jim Gilmore.
A LIBERTY SPHERE INSIDER'S TIP: The man to watch is former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, who has been gaining supporters everywhere he goes. He was terribly underrated going into the campaign, and not only has he far surpassed everyone's expectations but he has proved that he is a major player--a political heavyweight who can stand his ground with the most seasoned veterans.
By the way, Huckabee surprisingly came out as the winner of the first Republican straw poll in South Carolina, the Spartanburg County Republican Party Straw Poll, which not only shows Huckabee's ability to sway voters to his side but which also showed the strength of another dark horse--Duncan Hunter, who came in third.
A FINAL NOTE: A huge absentee who was yet very much present tonight was former Senator Fred Thompson. He is emerging as a star waiting in the wings whose entry into the race could change the entire complexion of the Republican race for the nomination.
As we did with the Democrats, The Liberty Sphere will rate each of the Republican candidates based upon their performance in tonight's debate, as well as their views.
With regard to strength of communication skills, clarity of presentation, answering the questions posed, and ability to connect at an emotional level with voters, the candidates are listed below in order of their overall effectiveness in tonight's forum:
Governor Mitt Romney
Rep. Duncan Hunter and Governor Mike Huckabee (tie)
Governor Jim Gilmore
Senator Sam Brownback
Senator John McCain
Mayor Rudy Giuliani
Rep. Ron Paul
Governor Tommy Thompson
Rep. Tom Tancredo
The surprises of the evening are that Mitt Romney and Jim Gilmore did so incredibly well, and Tom Tancredo did so poorly. We regret the latter, for Rep. Tancredo is a good communicator with ideas that need a hearing in this country. For some reason or another, he was off his game tonight.
Of the three front runners so far, Mitt Romney gained the most from this encounter, allowing a large portion of the population to see how well he handles himself under pressure. If there were to be a declared winner on the basis of communication, presentation, and debate presence, it would be Romney, hands down.
Now for the issues of substance. The Liberty Sphere rates all candidates based upon our mission statement, which is to advocate for human liberty all over the world, and to support those candidates, Parties, and organizations that do the most to propagate human freedom.
We base this 'liberty rating' on eight (8) key issues that are central to liberty: national defense, taxes, healthcare, gun rights, abortion, the war on terror, U.S. foreign policy, and immigration control.
For a complete description and rationale for our view that these issues are key, click here to go to our ratings of the Democratic candidates in their first debate:
http://thelibertysphere.blogspot.com/2007/04/ratings-of-democratic-presidential.html
Based upon our analysis of the views of each of the Republican candidates on these 8 key critical issues, The Liberty Sphere rates tonight's candidates on a scale of 1 to 10 (10 being the highest score):
Rep. Duncan Hunter--10
Governor Mike Huckabee--10
Governor Jim Gilmore--9
Senator Sam Brownback--8
Governor Mitt Romney--7
Governor Tommy Thompson--7
Rep. Tom Tancredo--7
Rep. Ron Paul--7
Mayor Rudy Giuliani--6
Senator John McCain--5
Based upon The Liberty Sphere's total leading indicators, combining effectiveness of presentation with strength of views with regard to liberty, who benefited the most from tonight's forum?
Four candidates stand out as doing a stellar job at presenting their case for why they should be President, and probably helped themselves tremendously by appearing in tonight's debate. They are Mitt Romney, Duncan Hunter, Mike Huckabee, and Jim Gilmore.
A LIBERTY SPHERE INSIDER'S TIP: The man to watch is former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, who has been gaining supporters everywhere he goes. He was terribly underrated going into the campaign, and not only has he far surpassed everyone's expectations but he has proved that he is a major player--a political heavyweight who can stand his ground with the most seasoned veterans.
By the way, Huckabee surprisingly came out as the winner of the first Republican straw poll in South Carolina, the Spartanburg County Republican Party Straw Poll, which not only shows Huckabee's ability to sway voters to his side but which also showed the strength of another dark horse--Duncan Hunter, who came in third.
A FINAL NOTE: A huge absentee who was yet very much present tonight was former Senator Fred Thompson. He is emerging as a star waiting in the wings whose entry into the race could change the entire complexion of the Republican race for the nomination.
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