Grade the Republican candidates

So, I decided to rate the viable Republican candidates on specific issues that should be of primary concern if they were to be elected.  These viable candidates right now are Rudy Guliani, Mike Huckabee, John McCain, Mitt Romney, and Fred Thompson.  I base my conclusions on their rhetoric during the campaign, their records, and last night's debate.

Below the flip are my top ten issues in order, and how I rank these candidates from most dangerous, to least.  Feel free to comment and correct me on my conclusions.
Energy - Will candidates address climate change, oil dependence, fuel efficiency, and pollution?

Fred Thompson - He thinks the way to appeal to America is by showing up at events with his gas-guzzler.  This guy is out of touch.  F

Mitt Romney - It is hard to say where Romney stands.  He opposed the Cape Wind project and has been quiet on energy issues.  F

Mike Huckabee - Huckabee mentions energy issues, but doesn't seem to have the grasp that the others do.  He isn't failing at this point.  D-

Rudy Guliani - Guliani has begun to make Energy Independence a central focus of his campaign.  He still seems to be only talking at this point, but it is a start.   He gets a D at this point.

John McCain - McCain has had a strong position on energy and climate change, yet has not been a strong enough leader on renewables and energy efficiency.  Still, he gets a C-

Supreme Court - Will the candidates support extremists in the Supreme Court who will make purely partisan decisions?

Mike Huckabee - Huckabee is clearly looking to appoint someone from the religious right, and overturn Roe v. Wade.  That is only one of the reasons he will cause problems with the Supreme Court.  F

Rudy Guliani - Guliani is not on the extreme religious right, but he has corrupt friends, and if Bernard Kerik wasn't already indicted, he would probably nominate him if we wasn't selected as his Vice President first!  F

Fred Thompson - Thompson likely would cause problems with his picks, but he is likely less divisive than Huckabee or Guliani.  F

Mitt Romney - As a Moderate before he ran for President, and as a businessman, he may be less likely to focus on issues that involve the far right.  However, his recent politics make him dangerous on this issue.  F

John McCain - McCain is less likely to appoint extremists, but all of these candidates are troubling.   I give McCain a D-, but he is the only one that might pass.

Iraq War and Iran - are these candidates listening to the American people and the soldiers about our actions on these two countries, or are they listening to the neo-cons?

Rudy Guliani - Believe it or not, I think Guliani is worse than McCain on Iraq.  He has been ultra-hawkish on Iran.  He seems to be following the neo-con trend way after it's gone out of style. F

John McCain - McCain backed Bush on Iraq and the surge, and has been hawkish ever since.  He may have a superior policy on Iran over Guliani, but he remains problematic on this issue. F

Fred Thompson - Thompson hasn't been too hawkish on these issues, because he isn't passionate about anything.  Still, that's not a good thing.  F

Mitt Romney - He may bend to public will on this issue, but he has followed the right-wing talking points on the "surge" and remains dangerous on this issue.  F

Mike Huckabee - Huckabee seems to have stood most in contrast with Bush on Iraq, but still he hasn't clearly talked about the problems with the ongoing war effort.  He gets an F, but not as bad an F as the other candidates.

Terrorism - are the candidates rational on this issue, and do they reject arrogance, torture, and jingoism?

Rudy Guliani - Guliani is running on 9-11 and the politics of fear.  He is by far the worst on this issue, and is by far the most dangerous, if even a fraction of his rhetoric is sincere.  F

Fred Thompson - Thompson still lives in the Cold War era mindset.  He seems more clueless than Romney, and more myopic. F

Mitt Romney - Romney seems lost on this issue.  He still seems to view terrorism as solely a military issue.  Not a good thing.  F

Mike Huckabee - Huckabee seems to have a foreign policy knowledge problem, yet he also criticizes the stubborn, aggressive nature towards terrorism from the Bush Administration.  He's not good enough to pass, but he has a better sense than the first three.  F

John McCain - McCain says we shouldn't torture and we should close Gitmo, but stay in Iraq for as long as it takes?  At least McCain has a better grasp on terrorism than others. He gets a D-.

Education - Is the candidate anti-intellectual, anti-teacher, and anti-student.  Do they want to completely privatize?  Are they freaked out that we are losing out to China and India as they graduate many more engineers?

Fred Thompson...Thompson's positions on education is vague.  His voting record leaves much to be desired on education issues.  He has never been a leader on this issue.  F

Rudy Guliani - As Mayor of New York City, Rudy's record is unclear.  New York City has over 1 million students, and he had to work with Democrats and vibrant personalities.  
His focus on education today is mostly on the same issues being discussed by Bush in 2000.  Vouchers, School Choice, etc.  Rudy now sounds more conservative on this issue, and hasn't made it a big part of his platform.  D-

Mitt Romney - Romney claims to have a solid education ranking, but Massachusetts students have not performed at a level much higher than average for the U.S.  It is hard to say what he will do if elected.  However, he does have an education policy platform that isn't too off the mark that he deserves an F.  He gets a D-

Mike Huckabee - Under Huckabee, Arkansas' education rankings have not been among the worst in the nation, with scores just below average.  Based on state demographics, this isn't a bad record.  Still, his religious views should cause major wariness on this issue.  D-

John McCain - McCain has a mixed record on education, remaining moderate, but still voted against funding on some key education legislation.  D

Health Care - Self Explanatory

Fred Thompson - Thompson has indicated that he thinks the current system is just fine.  He certainly deserves an F.

Rudy Guliani - Guliani has released a plan with some tax credits and other increased benefits, but he also wants to loosen regulation on the insurance industry, which makes the insurance companies happy, but what about the rest of us?  F

Mike Huckabee - Huckabee is a model of getting in good shape and dieting.  This was supposed to be his pet issue.  So far, it hasn't been, but he still gets a D-.

John McCain - McCain has released a plan without much imagination.  However, he seems to have a better feel for this issue than the rest.  He was the only one in the NH debate to rail against drug companies. D

Mitt Romney - Romney stands head and shoulders above every other Republican candidate because he actually worked to pass health care reform in Massachusetts.  However, he has backed away from it during his run for President, and stood up for drug companies and insurance companies.  He gets a D+.

Fiscal policy - Do the candidates have a wise view on spending and taxation?

Fred Thompson.  Thompson appears to be following the trickle-down economic theory of Ronald Reagan.  It didn't work in 1983 and it won't work today.  F

Rudy Guliani - Guliani remains a free market cheerleader, and he is not someone who seems like he will fight to stop corporate welfare. F

Mitt Romney - Romney is taking the conservative position on taxes, but he gets credit for being a Governor of a Blue State, where he has had to manage a budget and work with Democrats to do it.  It is hard to say how he will be on this issue if elected.  D-

Mike Huckabee - As a Republican Governor who actually had the courage to raise taxes in his state, he seems to be less of a nutcase on this issue.  He seems to recognize that government spending is out of control, but doesn't admit that most of that is military spending.  D-

John McCain - McCain has a mixed record on taxes and government spending.  He did stand against the Bush tax cuts, but has supported the corrupt military spending that has plagued the Iraq War with contractors and Halliburton.  He hasn't spoken out enough on these wastes.  He gets a D

Foreign relations with allies - Will the candidate continue the arrogant, we are the greatest nation, so screw you if you don't help us, attitude?

Rudy Guliani - Guliani stood with Bush over and over again as he enraged our allies.  You would think someone who managed a city where the United Nations resides, would understand the value of getting along with other countries.  F

Fred Thompson - Thomspson has no creativity on this issue.  He remains and old guard conservative with an anti-foreigner mindset.  F

Mike Huckabee - Huckabee has pointed out the arrogance of the Bush Administration on this issue, but his foreign policy experience and knowledge leaves much to be desired.  F

Mitt Romney - Romney has been jingoistic, and unwilling to criticize the Bush Administration on their "bunker mentality".  Yet as a businessman of his caliber, there is no doubt he understands the importance of allies.  His rhetoric, however, disqualifies him from passing.  F

John McCain - While McCain has a more rational view of the rest of the world, his continuation of the War in Iraq will make it hard for us to get along.  Still, he is the best of this bunch.  D

Immigration - Does the candidate have a rational viewpoint on immigration?

Fred Thompson - Thompson talks a big game, with "attrition" against illegal immigration, but doesn't seem to have a clear vision on this issue other than the party-line.

Rudy Guliani - Rudy has taken the right-wing positions on immigration.  He talks about deporting illegals who commit crimes, yet forgets that many who we deport come back anyway.  He talks about a fence and talks about expensive biometrics.  He just doesn't have courage to draw from his experience as Mayor.  F

Mitt Romney - Romney says he welcomes legal immigration, but has a hard-edged illegal immigration stance that includes punishing cities and towns that provide any sanctuary, even if that means improving the ability to track illegal immigration and control for some of its problems.  He seems out of touch.  F

Mike Huckabee - Huckabee seems to be adopting McCain's viewpoints on immigration, but without the record to show where he really stands.  Still, he gets points for avoiding the anti-immigrant rhetoric of the first three candidates.  C-

John McCain - McCain has among the best policies on immigration of all the candidates, Democrat or Republican.  He has tried to pass immigration reform, and gotten shafted by his own party.  However, I do not contend that his policy, in light of all other policies indirectly related, is a saving policy.  He gets a B-

Poverty and welfare - Are the candidates concerned with rising income inequality, and strife for the working class?  What about the poorest of the poor?

Fred Thompson - Thompson is not the worst on every issue, but most of them, because he remains an old-guard conservative unconcerned with issues that are not discussed on the golf course. F

Rudy Guliani - Guliani ran New York City, so there is no doubt he recognizes the problem of crime and poverty in the inner city.  However, he has abandoned this issue as a candidate, and has focused too much on the free market.  D-

Mitt Romney - As a super-wealthy corporate Republican, it is hard to say how or if he will address working class issues.  He is clearly out of touch with them.  His health care efforts show that he isn't completely blind.  D-

Mike Huckabee - Huckabee seems to be the only candidate addressing this issue, although he doesn't seem to have a direct plan.  He is certainly not as wealthy as the other candidates, so he is a little more in touch with this issue.  D

John McCain - McCain has a mixed record on these issues, but some of his votes and views show recognition of the problems facing the working class.  Still, he is no leader on this issue.  D+

Candidates Final Ranking

Fred Thomspon receives an F in all categories.  Does that make him most dangerous...not necessarily?  However, it shows how consistently he misses the mark on issues facing the U.S. today.

Rudy Guliani averages an F, and fails on most key issues because he has abandoned his moderate stances and adopted right-wing positions.  The moderate is gone.

Romney averages an F.  He has not seemed to retain any of his moderate positions that consider the nuance of the issues.  He has committed to rhetoric, and appears way off base on most of the issues.  Ultimately, he has zero political courage.

Huckabee fails to pass, but has done a better job of bringing his own viewpoints to the debate, rather than parroting the right wing.  However, it seems like he doesn't have the experience or political fortitude to avoid following the same course of failure on many of these issues.

John McCain gets a D overall if all categories are treated equally.  He is the only Republican candidate who passes.  That doesn't mean he would be a good President.  Hopefully, John McCain will win in New Hampshire and win enough states to be the Republican Nominee.  He does not match up well against Barack Obama, although he matches up better against Hillary.  Still, he is the least dangerous of all the Republican candidates.

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