The Candidates
The fourth installment in the Veep series:
If Mike Huckabee was selected as McCain’s VP, how content would you be on a scale from 1 to 10 (1=You’d stay home, 10=You’d canvas the country for McCain)?
If Jon Huntsman Jr. was selected as McCain’s VP, how content would you be on a scale from 1 to 10 (1=You’d stay home, 10=You’d canvas the country for McCain)?
If Tom Coburn was selected as McCain’s VP, how content would you be on a scale from 1 to 10 (1=You’d stay home, 10=You’d canvas the country for McCain)?
If Sarah Palin was selected as McCain’s VP, how content would you be on a scale from 1 to 10 (1=You’d stay home, 10=You’d canvas the country for McCain)?
Example (Mine):
Mike Huckabee: 2
Jon Huntsman Jr.: 5
Tom Coburn: 8
Sarah Palin: 7
Note: I realize that some of you may not be overly familiar with some of these candidates, but please try to provide a response for each, or I will not be able to compile the data. Lack of familiarity (which would likely lead to average numbers) is a response in of itself.
April 10th, 2008 at 9:14 am
Huck - 2
Huntsman - 6
Coburn - 7
Palin - 1,000,000 (for your purposes, count that as a 10)
April 10th, 2008 at 9:15 am
Huckabee: 9.5 (I have a hard time giving any body a perfect 10 and although I voted for him, I realize that he is not a perfect Conservative. Although, he is much more a Conservative than a Liberal. Yes, he is not as Conservative on economic issues as I would like, but he is certainly no Socialist. Anyone who thinks otherwise is neither familiar with the fair tax nor the structure of Arkansas politics. While I do admire Mr. Huckabee, I have to admit that he is not as good for our ticket as somebody like Mr. Pawlenly. However, contrary to what many in the chatting class think, he is actually not as controversial as many of the major candidates. On the one hand, I know people who have voted for him who are happy with other choices, on the other hand I know several Republicans, Independent and Democrats who like and respect him despite not voting for him in the primary. Yes, he is not popular in the west or with some portions of the base, but he is popular with other parts of the base. While he would lose some voters and gain us some others, he would at least not be a disaster in most swing state which could be the case with many other options. While I respect his character and Mr. Huckabee on the ticket would solidify my own support for the GOP, I have to admit that Mr. Pawlenty would be the best choice for the party electorally.)
Huntsman: 7-9 (I do not know much about him, but I like what I know, he may actually be not a bad candidate by helping in the Western half of the country without hurting us in the East.)
Coburn 8.5
Palin 7.5 - 8 (but it won’t happen)
April 10th, 2008 at 9:18 am
Huckabee: 1 (unimpressive on foreign policy, liberal on economic policy and immigration, heavy emphasis on social issues could alienate moderates)
Huntsman: 3 (don’t know much about him but no obvious problems)
Coburn: 4
Palin: 3 (potentially a great candidate for 2012 or 2016, but a governor with only 2 years in major office should not be considered experienced enough)
April 10th, 2008 at 9:19 am
Mike Huckabee: 1
Jon Huntsman Jr.: 6
Tom Coburn: 8
Sarah Palin: 6
On Palin, I feel the same as I would about Michael Steele or Bobby Jindal — not yet. Let them grow in their roles instead of us trying to push fresh faces of the conservative movement forward this quickly. We don’t want to be just like the Democrats who are pushing their fresh face onto us as their probable nominee. Huntsman I don’t know much about, but what I do…I like. Coburn’s awesome, and that’s all I have to say about that. Hucakbee would be a plague on McCain’s nomination and I don’t want that to happen. Huckabee’s not a bad guy, he’d just be terrible on the ticket and bring down McCain’s chances…by probably quite a bit. Also, his ignorance with regards to the LDS faith, his ridiculous tax hikes as Governor, his divisive nature, and his ineptitude at fundraising make him an incredibly poor choice.
April 10th, 2008 at 9:20 am
Huckabee 0
Huntsman 1
Coburn 1
Palin 1
April 10th, 2008 at 9:21 am
Huck 2- More so than he would keep Mormons home out west than anything else
Coburn: 0 Death Pently for abortion doctors equals 70% of women voting for the dem
Palin 4: would be 8 in 2012
Huntsman 7: Would drive out mormon tunrout, Younger Governor whose State is in good state from an Ecomanic standpoint.
April 10th, 2008 at 9:22 am
grandma T, 1 means you stay home.
So what does 0 mean?
Are you going to shoot Huckabee if McCain picks him as VP?
April 10th, 2008 at 9:25 am
Mike Huckabee: 1
Jon Huntsman Jr.: 8
Tom Coburn: 6
Sarah Palin: 7
April 10th, 2008 at 9:25 am
Huck - 4 (not really a fan of him, but at least he is relatively conservative)
Coburn - 4 (dn’t know enough about him)
Huntsman - 4 (dn’t know enough about him)
Palin - 3 (too inexperienced)
April 10th, 2008 at 9:26 am
grandma T has given everyone but Romney a 1 thus far. Methinks she’s not a Republican.
April 10th, 2008 at 9:28 am
Huckabee: -666
Huntsman: 3
Coburn: 11
Palin: 9
April 10th, 2008 at 9:32 am
Huck - 2
Huntsman - 3
Coburn - 3
Palin - 6 - Though I agree with the sentiment of waiting for her to mature as politician before putting her in a national race
April 10th, 2008 at 9:32 am
Huckabee - 8
Huntsman - 4
Coburn - 7
Palin - 6
April 10th, 2008 at 9:35 am
Huckabee - 1
Huntsman - 3
Coburn - 3
Palin - 5
April 10th, 2008 at 9:37 am
Huckabee - 2
Huntsman - 5
Coburn - 6
Palin - 4
Of the major possibilities, I think Huckabee might be the worst possible choice from my viewpoint. Huntsman’s 5 is a placeholder until I know more about him. Coburn I would rate close to a 10 on economic issues and a 1 on social, so I settled in the middle. I’d be very conflicted if he were the nominee. Palin isn’t ready, let’s give her time to grow. And, no, that isn’t a joke about her pregnancy — entirely.
April 10th, 2008 at 9:41 am
I’d be conflicted about Coburn, too, BobH, because he is so wonderful on economics. However, he does little to aid the ticket. In fact, he actively hurts the ticket because Americans are sick of religious fanaticism. They think Bush is too religious. What will they think about Coburn!?
April 10th, 2008 at 9:41 am
Huckabee - 3
Hunstman - 4
Coburn - 6
Palin - 6
April 10th, 2008 at 9:41 am
I included Palin because it’s inconceivable to me that McCain wouldn’t have 3-4 women on the 20-person short list; he comes from the politically correct wing of the party. Inexperienced or no, Palin clearly has to be considered top 3 among female GOP’ers. I’ll probably include 2 more women in the final list.
April 10th, 2008 at 9:44 am
Mike Huckabee: 6
Jon Huntsman Jr.: 1
Tom Coburn: 3
Sarah Palin: 1
April 10th, 2008 at 9:44 am
I included Coburn because A.) I think there will be a few red meat base pleasers on the list; only Sanford and Cox really fit that bill of the folks I’ve polled thus far. B.) I think there will be a few Southerners on the list, and thus far I’ve only included Sanford, Huckabee, and Condi. C.) He’d reinforce McCain’s anti-pork crusade nicely.
April 10th, 2008 at 9:46 am
Mike Huckabee: 0.5 (Yes, a half-point….Giving Huckabee a ‘1′ means I’d stay home…If McCain were to put Huckabee on the ticket, I would sooner vote for Hillary if she were to win the Democratic nomination. Should Obama proceed to secure the nomination, I’d simply stay home.)
Jon Huntsman Jr.: 3
Tom Coburn: 4
Sarah Palin: 5
April 10th, 2008 at 9:54 am
McCain does not need a southern now thinks to Rev Wright.
April 10th, 2008 at 9:54 am
Huckabee: 2
Huntsman: 5
Coburn: 4
Palin: 5
April 10th, 2008 at 9:55 am
Huckabee - 1
Huntsman - 7
Coburn - 7
Palin - 6
Huckabee has proven himself to be a religious bigot. His website was unbelievably devisive in this regard. He proved to be only for himself by staying in the race as long as he did, was charged with 12 ethics violations, and found guilty of 5 while Governor. He turned loser prisoners, even murderers, in return for political donations. His son brutally tortured a dog to death, and he helped cover this up and his son got off Scott free. He is nothing but a snake oil salesman, and shouldn’t be voted dog catcher, let alone a VP that could run for President.
April 10th, 2008 at 9:57 am
I’d vote Libertarian if Huckabee were to be the vice-presidential nominee.
April 10th, 2008 at 9:59 am
Huckabee 2
Huntsman 8
Coburn 5
Palin 5
April 10th, 2008 at 10:09 am
Huckabee 3
Huntsman 8
Coburn 5
Palin 7
April 10th, 2008 at 10:13 am
Huckabee - 3
Huntsman - 5
Coburn - 2
Palin - 9
April 10th, 2008 at 10:17 am
Huck 1 (absolutely turns my stomach)
Hunts 6
Coburn 8
Palin 6.5
April 10th, 2008 at 10:17 am
Just as a note, this is a really great series of posts- I love seeing the results!
Huckabee- 1
Huntsman- 4
Coburn- 7
Palin- 10
April 10th, 2008 at 10:18 am
and i have to admit that Palin gets an extra point or 2 for being very attractive.. is that wrong?
April 10th, 2008 at 10:21 am
Huckabee - 4
Huntsman - 5
Coburn - 5
Palin - 7
I’d actually give Huck a 6 if it weren’t so clear that he’s toxic to just about everyone here. Given the right message to sell as a veep pick, I still think Huck could actually sell it effectively to the “Jacksonian” part of the populace.
Politically I don’t agree with him much in terms of the policies he was pushing in the primary, but I also don’t believe the over-hyped oppo research dumped on him again and again — much of which seemed like old recycled grievances from former rivals in AR, Clintonites included. As for the others: If Huck brings too much extroverted religiosity into politics for my taste, then so, too, do many of his most dedicated denouncers.
April 10th, 2008 at 10:26 am
Bloomberg to endorse McCain!
far out!
http://www.ny1.com/ny1/content/index.jsp?stid=1&aid=80349
April 10th, 2008 at 10:27 am
INTRODUCE, not ENDORSE, sampo.
April 10th, 2008 at 10:28 am
oops, hooked on phonics
April 10th, 2008 at 10:33 am
Only two votes on here have surprised me: OHIO rating Huckabee at a 9.5
OHIO has proven to me to not be a bigot, and I didn’t believe he would tolerate having a candidate that was openly one.
The other was SAMPO rating Huckabee at 6, above the other three, but of course I’ve never been able to figure out where he stood on candidates, just surprised he had Huckabee that high.
Gary, a rating of -666 is pretty low for a scale of 1 to 10!!
April 10th, 2008 at 10:36 am
Add Rob Portman to one of these polls…
Palin- 5
Coburn- 4
Huntsman- 3
Huckabee- 2
April 10th, 2008 at 10:38 am
You probably should include Kay Bailey Hutchinson on one.
April 10th, 2008 at 10:38 am
Coburn - 6
Huntsman - 5
Palin - 5
Huck - 2
April 10th, 2008 at 10:41 am
Huckabee - 0
Coburn - 9
Huntsman - 9
Palin - 10 plus
April 10th, 2008 at 10:42 am
Huck 9
Huntsman 4
Coburn 9
Palin 6
April 10th, 2008 at 10:45 am
Mike Huckabee: 5
Jon Huntsman Jr.: 1
Tom Coburn: 1
Sarah Palin: 6
April 10th, 2008 at 10:48 am
Huck - 1
Huntsman - 7
Coburn - 4
Palin - 6
April 10th, 2008 at 10:49 am
There’s all sorts of fun people I’d love to see included in these polls in the future, including Fred Thompson, Newt Gingrich, Duncan Hunter, Michael Steele, Robert Ehrlich, Mike Pence, John Roberts, and/or Zell Miller (who’d be really fun to see on the campaign trail, regardless of how divisive he can be).
April 10th, 2008 at 10:52 am
Huckabee - 1
Huntsman, Jr - 6
Coburn - 6
Palin - 4
Palin is in the same boat as Jindal - she’ll be good to go for the Veep slot in 2012 should McCain lose in ‘08 or decide not to run for re-election. Coburn would be a strong pick for socons and fiscons, but his rhetoric probably doesn’t appeal to a lot of voters outside OK. Huntsman would be a stronger pick other than the low name recognition factor and the need for some sort of geographical balance.
April 10th, 2008 at 10:53 am
On Hannity & Colmes last night, Democratic pollster Doug Schoen was pushing for an Obama-Bloomberg ticket, in hopes of neutralizing the damage done by the anti-semitic Reverend Wright.
April 10th, 2008 at 10:57 am
I’m with grandma unless you can give someone negative numbers.
April 10th, 2008 at 11:08 am
At least this poll has been a myth buster. Several people on here who we know to be Mormon are giving Huntsman low marks!
Another myth buster: Huckabee is getting by far more low marks than Romney did, and very few high marks, with a very low average. So, for all you people who have screamed upon the housetops that ‘nobody’ like Romney, try looking at the Huckabee results!!
April 10th, 2008 at 11:27 am
I supported Huckabee in the primary but more out of disgust at the poor quality of candidates than because I thought he was great.
Now that we can choose from good VPs like Pawlenty or Carcieri or Powell or Palin, I see no need to even consider the sorry losers from the primary (Rudy, Mitt, Fred or Huck).
April 10th, 2008 at 11:28 am
Huckabee - 2
Huntsman - 4
Coburn - 4
Palin - 3
April 10th, 2008 at 11:31 am
Illinoisguy:
I can understand that people either do not like Mr. Huckabee or disagree with some of his policies. Even I disagree with some of his policies. However, I simply do not believe him to be a bigot, rather, I see him as a man of character. I realize you see it differently and I guess that is just the way it goes. As for nobody liking Mr. Huckabee, I realize that this is the case, but we on this web-site are not exactly a random sample of the whole country.
April 10th, 2008 at 11:33 am
I like Palin, but this may not be the right time. Still really like Rudi and Mitt, I would like a VP with executive experience to balance the legistive. Used to like Huckabee but did not like his pandering to the extreme religious nut cases like WOF guru Kenneth Copeland.
April 10th, 2008 at 11:36 am
oops, “legislative”– still doesn’t look right, where is a Webster when you need it?
April 10th, 2008 at 11:40 am
Huckabee - 6
Huntsman - 1
Coburn - 10
Palin - 4
April 10th, 2008 at 11:44 am
This whole exercise has been fun, and interesting, but it would take on a lot more meaning if the numbers meant the same thing to everyone. I fear that some votes are being case as the are in order to make sure that so and so’s mean is lower than some other so and so. We’ve learned a lot by this exercise thus far, but perhaps we should actually start over with numbers meaning specific things in terms of how much a candidate would help or hurt John McCain win or lose the Presidency.
For example: (and this isn’t what my numbers meant, because we didn’t have this standard to go by)
1 Would actively campaign and/or vote for Clinton or Obama.
2 Would actively campaign and/or vote for a third part candidate
3 Would stay home and not vote
4 Would vote reluctantly vote for McCain with the candidate as VP
5 Would willingly vote for McCain with the VP candidate
6 Would make telephone calls, and try to persuade neighbors and friends to vote for the ticket.
7 Would work harder doing what #6 did.
8 Would donate some money to the campaign, make lots of phone calls, and strongly promote the ticket
9 Would donate lots of money (enough to strain your budget). and generally work your tail off trying to get the ticket elected.
10 Would give all you could afford to give up to the maximum allowable by law, and devote a very great deal of your time enthusiastically promoting the ticket in whatever way was needed in your locality.
If we had this kind of standardization for the numbers we submit, I think it would come a lot closer in determining what individual would help or hurt the McCain Presidency. The exercise we have gone through thus far has been fun and helpful in flushing out the need for a more standardized method of voting. For example, if a person gave a 1 to Huckabee, they may or may not have seen the instruction that a 1 meant that they would stay home. And if they did see it, that instruction was not there when some earlier candidates were getting 1’s given to them.
Thus, if we want this to be more scientifically reflected those on this site, standardization would be required. ANd this has absolutely nothing to do with who I favor or dislike. As I stated before, there is a tendency for some people to have been numerically voting relative to just those on the 4 member group, therefore merging of groups after the vote loses integrity.
April 10th, 2008 at 11:46 am
Mike Huckabee: 1, a complete waste of time (can’t raise money, can’t build an organization, doesn’t understand foreign policy, doesn’t have a clue about the economy), excellent at talking (but I could get that with Obama)
Jon Huntsman Jr.: 2 nearly as big a waste of time as Huckabee
Tom Coburn: 2
Sarah Palin: 3
April 10th, 2008 at 11:47 am
#49- Powell? He is singing Obama’s praises and may even endorse him. Are you kidding me? As for my thoughts on the candidates:
Huckabee- 3 (I think he’s happy where he’s at just selling books and charging for speaking engagements)
Palin- 4 (Doesn’t inspire much confidence as far as national issues are concerned)
Coburn- 7 (We can’t afford to lose his seat right now though)
Huntsman- 6 (Seems like a good compromise. not polarizing & a loyal suporter of McCain)
April 10th, 2008 at 11:54 am
Huckabee - 7
Huntsman - 6
Coburn - 6
Palin - 6
These would all be fairly conservative choices, with the exception of Huckabee who is a solid social conservative but not as solid economically and certainly no civil libertarian. None of these really pump me up, but they don’t repel me either. I have a bit of a grudge agaisnt Huntsman since he beat sitting Governor Olene Walker a few years ago. I really liked her. If McCain really wanted to slap Romney, this would be a perfect way to do it by picking a Mormon but not Romney. It would make it clear that McCain rejected Romney not because he’s a Mormon but because he doesn’t like him. Sarah Palin is probably out of the running now that she’s pregnant. Tom Coburn is very conservative, but he would be very risky. He is in-your-face about his views. If disaffected Clinton supporters are considering McCain, Tom Coburn would repel them more than just about anybody. That’s why I gave all 4 of these choices middling numbers.
April 10th, 2008 at 11:58 am
Huckabee: 10
Huntsman: 3
Coburn: 3
Palin: 3
April 10th, 2008 at 12:06 pm
Huck 4
Huntsman 7
Coburn 5
Palin 8
April 10th, 2008 at 12:29 pm
Another myth buster: Huckabee is getting by far more low marks than Romney did, and very few high marks, with a very low average. So, for all you people who have screamed upon the housetops that ‘nobody’ like Romney, try looking at the Huckabee results!!
Hatred for Huckabee is unconnected logically to hatred toward Romney.
April 10th, 2008 at 12:44 pm
Huck 7
Huntsman 6
Coburn 9
Palin 8
April 10th, 2008 at 12:55 pm
Mike Huckabee: 2
Jon Huntsman Jr.: 5
Tom Coburn: 7
Sarah Palin: 7
April 10th, 2008 at 1:53 pm
Huckabee: 3
Hunstman: 6
Coburn: 4
Palin: 6
April 10th, 2008 at 1:58 pm
Huckabee - 1
Huntsman - 1
Coburn - 2
Palin - 1
April 10th, 2008 at 2:14 pm
Huckabee 0 (he’s not worth an 1)
Huntsman 2
Coburn 4
Palin 6
April 10th, 2008 at 2:45 pm
Huckabee: 10
Huntsman: 2
Coburn: 2
Palin: 4
April 10th, 2008 at 3:31 pm
Mike Huckabee: 2
Jon Huntsman Jr.: 7
Tom Coburn: 5
Sarah Palin: 6
I learned yesterday that Huntsman speaks fluent chinese- that’s got to be worth something! Coburn would destroy McCain’s image with moderates.
April 10th, 2008 at 4:09 pm
huckabee - 0
huntsman - 6
coburn - 1
palin - 6
thanks for putting this together.
April 10th, 2008 at 4:19 pm
Huckabee 1
Huntsman 7
Coburn 4
Palin 7
Yes, I will stay home if Huckabee is put on the ticket. I like Palin, but agree that she should wait until she has more experience. Huntsman is solid though.
April 10th, 2008 at 4:30 pm
Huckabee: 10
In comparison to Huckabee, everyone else gets a zero.
Huntsman: 0
Coburn: 0
Palin: 0
April 10th, 2008 at 4:43 pm
Huntsman, Jr.: 8
Palin: 6
Coburn: 2
Huckabee: 1
Huckabee would have been a zero, except he favors the Fair Tax, and it’s a scale of 1 to 10.
April 10th, 2008 at 4:52 pm
Huckabee- 1
Huntsman- 5
Palin-2 I have a major problem with a mother with children (especially with a newborn) leaving her children so much. She should wait until they are older. I wouldn’t stay home, but I would have a major problem with it.
Coburn-5
April 10th, 2008 at 4:52 pm
I mean young children
April 10th, 2008 at 4:52 pm
Huckabee - 0
Huntsman - 6
Coburn - 4
Palin - 5
I will vote for a DemocRAT if Huckabigot is the VP choice. The man makes my skin crawl, and is such a phoney and has no character.
Palin is pregnant,and I recall hearing that from her own words on talk radio, she would be unlikely to accept the position.
April 10th, 2008 at 4:57 pm
Mike Huckabee: 4
Jon Huntsman Jr.: 1
Tom Coburn: 5
Sarah Palin: 3
April 10th, 2008 at 5:11 pm
Huckabee: 0
Jon Huntsman Jr.: 1 (I’d give his dad a 10)
Tom Coburn: Don’t know
Sarah Palin: Don’t know
April 10th, 2008 at 5:20 pm
I can’t understand how someone would just hate Mike Huckabee so much. I mean, I don’t like him. I wouldn’t vote for him. I think he’d make an abominable President/Vice President. But I just can’t understand why he’s so hated by so many people.
PS- According to Illinoisguy’s standards, how can any of you give anything less than a 5 to these people based on the VICE PRESIDENT? I think it was John Quincy Adams, who, when offered the Vice Presidency, said “I can’t. I don’t want to be buried until I’m dead.” The Vice-Presidency is a next-to-useless position and it would make so many of you vote for CLINTON and OBAMA. I don’t understand so, so many things…
And then I tried to fill it out by Illinoisguy’s standards, and it’s just hard. Because Tom Coburn is not getting anything over a 3.
Huckabee- 4 (the only demographics that he really hurts are young voters, social liberals, and R42008 readers, but I’m not too worried, since I’m positive he won’t be anywhere near the VP slot)
Huntsman- 7 (kinda like Sanford and Pawlenty, does little damage, good speaker, intelligent guy, just nothing too special)
Coburn- 3 (crazy, caveman coservative)
Sarah Palin- 10 (anybody who gives her anything below a 5 just doesn’t know her. She’s conservative, but has a history of fighting corruption- more so on the Republican side than the Democratic- and she’s got approval in the high 80s/low 90s. There’s pretty much NOBODY out there that doesn’t like her. At least, I haven’t met them.)
Behind Powell, Rice, and Lieberman (all total long shots that more than likely won’t be VP) Sarah Palin is my favorite hands down. She placates conservatives, liberals, and she still stands pretty far to the right of center. She’s not a party hack but she’s got a good conservative record all across the board. Experience hasn’t mattered in the past as much as people think it does. Even those “just a heartbeat away” ads against Dan Quayle weren’t successful. And he was retarded.
April 10th, 2008 at 5:54 pm
Huckabee: 1
Huntsman: 8
Coburn: 5
Palin: 7
None of the above would make good strategic sense. I understand these questions, however, to be about how each of us would feel about these people being the proverbial heartbeat (or one election cycle) away from the White House. Some commenters seem to focus only onn the strategic wisdom of these individuals as VP choices. I do not think that is what Matt is asking, except to the extent that your enthusiasm for the ticket is influenced by whether you think the VP choice helps or hurts.
Lieberman would help the resulting so-called Republican ticket. A lot, I suspect. I give him a 1. Huckabee would hurt. A lot. I give him a 1, also.
Huntsman would not help the ticket much, yet I give him an 8. Sanford, Cox, and Giuliani would, for different reasons all help (imho), and I gave them all 8 or better.
If McCain is going to take the plunge and risk picking a Mormon, I do not doubt that Romney would provide more help electorally. Despite that, I have a measurable preference for him to pick the less helpful Huntsman, because I think — and admittedly ther is only so much data one can go on — that his record indicates he would be better than Romney in high national office in terms of policy and vision.
April 10th, 2008 at 6:26 pm
Mike Huckabee: 10
Jon Huntsman Jr.: 5
Tom Coburn: 10!!!!
Sarah Palin: 8
That said, I personally know Sen. Tom Coburn, and he WILL NOT ACCEPT THE VICE PRESIDENCY!!!! BOLD, UNDERLINED, ITALICIZED, ALL-CAPS. N-O. Nope. Never. Zip, zero, nadda chance.
But… we can dream. On second thought, we’ll NEED Tom Coburn in the Senate, to hold McCain in check…
April 10th, 2008 at 8:16 pm
Robbie, you have to realize, people aren’t using those standards, not even me. It’s just a suggestion on how to standardize. I wouldn’t have given Huck a 1 on my own suggested standards, just as most wouldn’t have given Mitt a 1 on those same ones.
April 10th, 2008 at 8:16 pm
OK so I would vote for McCain with almost any VP, with a 2 because I can not vote for Obama or Hillary. Exceptions would be Huckabee, Lieberman or a DEM then I would write in my vote. The only one that would up my involvement is Romney. A vote is a vote, but no money or time invested.
April 10th, 2008 at 8:22 pm
Huck 6 — nice guy, but he’s Rudy 9iu11ani in reverse, basically telling half the party to go to H*ll. Also, the morman bashing is getting a little old.
Huntsman 4 — I think Utah is safely GOP.
Coburn 7 — good guy, but he should stay in the senate.
Palin 10 — People on this board (such as Linda) shouldn’t just dismiss Sarah because she has one on the way. I think it will be great to show that mothers can take care of their kids and have a career. I think Palin is used to campaigning with young kids (taking that from the palinvp blog). Also, I thought we were the Pro-Life party. Wouldn’t it be great if we can show that working mothers can do everything THEY want. As for her lack of experience, she’s done a lot more in Alaska than his holiness has done in the Senate. Her nomination would be a gamechanger for the party. We can reach out to women while keeping our conservative values. And think of it Palin/Jindal 2016!
April 10th, 2008 at 10:02 pm
Mike Huckabee: 10
Jon Huntsman Jr.: 3
Tom Coburn: 6
Sarah Palin: 3
April 10th, 2008 at 10:09 pm
Mike Huckabee: 3
Jon Huntsman Jr.: 6
Tom Coburn: 7
Sarah Palin: 5
With Sarah Palin as a running mate, that would make an “attractive” ticket.
April 10th, 2008 at 10:27 pm
For the record, Palin has NOT, let me repeat, NOT taken herself out of the running. In fact, she told the Anchorage Daily News flat out that a pregnant woman (let alone a new mother) should not be taken out of VP consideration. The meme that she has taken herself out of the running is based primarily off of one interview with a local tv station in which the ANCHOR (not the governor) says she seems not to be as interested (she said something about wanting to stay in Alaska and did not mention the VP slot). Here’s what she said two days later in the Anchorage Daily News:
“I’m very confident that a pregnant woman should not and doesn’t have to be prohibited from doing anything, including running for vice president.”
Here’s the link: http://www.adn.com/front/story/339587.html
April 10th, 2008 at 11:34 pm
I wouldn’t worry about how different people are interpreting the 1 to 10 scale. It’s not a scientific poll anyway. I admit that I wouldn’t literally stay home and refuse to vote if a candidate I rated a “1″ was the VP nominee, but on my own scale from 1 to 10 there are some candidates where my level of enthusiasm would rate a 1.
April 11th, 2008 at 12:36 am
Huckabee 1
Hunstman 3
Coburn 2
Palin 7
I only give Huckabee a 1 to stay within the guidelines. I would give him a negative 5,000,000 if I could. If Huckabee gets the nomination, I will actively campaign against McCain. Huckabee represents EVERYTHING that I think is wrong with the Republican Party. EVERYTHING. In case I didn’t make that clear enough: HUCKABEE REPRESENTS *E*V*E*R*Y*T*H*I*N*G* I DISLIKE ABOUT REPUBLICAN POLITICS. He supports torture, his justification for the war is childish, he’s as socially conservative as humanly possible, he taints religion by mixing it with politics, his economic ideas are distinctly populist, as governor of Arkansas he was surrounded in ethical scandals, he’s bumptious. The *only* thing I like about Huckabee is his birthday, which we happen to share.
Palin is ready. She’s no less experienced than Obama, who may well be the actual President, not just VP.
April 11th, 2008 at 11:12 am
Huckabee - 1
Huntsman - 2
Coburn - 2
Palin - 5
April 11th, 2008 at 12:09 pm
IR-MN,
Women are absolutely capable of doing it all, but it is not best for the kids. You said, “Wouldn’t it be great if we can show that working mothers can do everything THEY want.”
That is the problem, many people are too selfish to give up everything THEY want for a little while. Kids grow up so quickly.
I know that there are women who don’t have a choice, of course. I really think Palin should wait until the kids are at least older. What’s the hurry.
April 11th, 2008 at 12:49 pm
Huckabee - 4
Huntsman - 9
Coburn - 2
Palin - 5
April 11th, 2008 at 1:05 pm
Linda, you make a good point. Current circumstances seem to indicate that it is not wise to have Mrs. Palin as the VP right now, but maybe future circumstances will change that.
April 11th, 2008 at 2:07 pm
After reading an article about American Airlines today and how much the airlines are suffering, I am seriously afraid that the republicans will have no chance if the economy totally tanks. I would rather save the best VP/president for later, but time will tell about what will happen economically in the next few months.
April 11th, 2008 at 2:09 pm
Ohio,
You probably know about how the economy affects people’s attitudes more than most, since you live in Ohio. My family already talks constantly about how Ohio’s problems are due to the current administration.
April 11th, 2008 at 2:27 pm
Yes, I do hear many of my fellow Ohioans complain about the economy and to be sure some are struggling. While I realize that my state might not have quite the standard of living as many other states, we are not are third world state. People forget that overall, it is a blessing to live in America and I believe it is also a blessing to live in Ohio, despite a few economic challenges. Since many people in Ohio forget about the positive things, it might be a challenge to win this swing state, but in the end I believe the GOP will pull through again even if it is too close for comfort.
April 11th, 2008 at 2:34 pm
You are right. Ohio is not that bad off, but they THINK they are, because they are constantly told that. I have read my dad’s union letters (GM) and they are nasty.
April 11th, 2008 at 3:33 pm
It’s interesting that you mention airlines. I fly a lot, and have done so for years, and I’ve always used how crowded the planes are and how full the airport parking lot is as indicators of the strength of the economy, because discretionary travel is one of the first things both consumers and businesses cut back on in a downturn.
The parking lots and planes are totally full (if I book at the last minute, even with preferred status on airlines, I might get a middle seat). If there’s a recession, it doesn’t show at the airport.
April 11th, 2008 at 4:38 pm
Huckabee: 0 (would probably vote Dem)
Huntsman: 5
Coburn: 6
Palin: 3