From a friend's email...
Here’s my personal assessment of the candidates for President and VP. Obviously I’m very conservative, but I tried to remove politics from my assessment with the exception of three assumptions:
(1) that socialism and expanding government are bad things for the country;
(2) that a reduction in the size of government and the amount of money they take from our pockets is a good thing; and
(3) that America/>/> does in fact want an end to politics and lies as usual.
Note that I included the point that McCain is far more centrist than his opponents as being a good thing. I actually think it’s a bad thing—I’d rather see him far more conservative and move the country back to traditional family and social values instead of just watching the country slide further into far-left social liberalism. But I included it as a positive point because the ability to unify is seen by most people as a good thing.
Candidate | Pro | Con | Grade |
Obama | > He's black.
> Not a Washington/>/> long-timer.
> Dynamic personality. | > No executive experience.
> No foreign policy experience.
> Worse attendance record than almost any other senator.
> Uses race to avoid debate.
> Very poor speaker without teleprompter.
> Political positions are socialist/Marxist.
> Radical, racist, and terrorist associations.
> Changes positions constantly based on political expediency. | D- |
Biden | > Experienced in national politics.
> Foreign policy experience.
> Strong debating skills. | > Disgraced in 1988 as a result of proof of plagiarism.
> Long-time Washington/>/> insider.
> Received less than 1% of Democratic vote in Iowa/>/> caucuses in Jan 2008. | C |
Overall ticket | > First black presidential candidate.
> VP is very experienced. | > Obama's record and ideas and Biden's insider status completely negate any claims that Obama represents "change" from the usual business of expanding government and dirty politics.
> Not clear who would be running the Exec branch, Obama or Biden.
> Obamanomics are a clear move deep into socialism, requiring massive tax increases. | D |
McCain | > High character credibility.
> Experienced in national politics.
> Foreign policy experience.
> Far more centrist than opponents.
> Fiscal conservative. > Strong debating skills. | > Media and publicity whore.
> Too anxious to "reach across the aisle" rather than standing firm on conservative ideals.
> Has fought for bills supporting amnesty for illegals and restriction of free speech.
> Would be the oldest first-term President ever.
> Doesn't listen to his constituents--very stubborn.
> Poor attendance record in the Senate. > Long time Washington/>/> insider. | C |
Palin | > She's a woman.
> Not a Washington/>/> insider.
> Fiscal conservative.
> 2 years' executive experience.
> Record of being a successful reformer. | > No foreign policy experience.
> No experience in national politics. > Unknown to most Americans until last week. | B |
Overall ticket | > First woman VP.
> McCain is very experienced.
> Both have records of supporting fiscal reform, lower taxes, and smaller government. | > McCain's stubbornness will be a big problem when he backs legislation that is clearly bad for America/>/>.
> McCain's age suggests a risk that Palin might find herself President before she's gained enough experience. | C+ |
Jeff in Chandler
Palin is a very natural speaker. her debut in the RNC is very impressive and proved her an excellent speaker with or without teleprompter. McCain is not a great speaker in terms of eloquency, but he speaks issues very clearly and strongly, which has nothing to do with teleprompters.
Obama does stumble a lot in debates (without teleprompter). you are go back to some primary debate videos to find out
