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05 October 2007 @ 10:16 pm
Very little change at the extremes again. I find my opinion of all of these candidates declining as time goes on. It's disappointing I actually have to put someone in 5th, there's a pretty big drop off. I wish someone like Tom Coburn would run minus the social issues or Mike Bloomberg maybe.

*Previous rank in ( )

1(1). Barack Obama (D)
2(2). Joe Biden (D)
3(3). John McCain (R)
4(4). Ron Paul (R)
5(5). Chris Dodd (D)(tie)
5(6). Hillary Clinton (D)(tie)
5(8). John Edwards (D)(tie)
8(7). Fred Thompson (R)
9(11). Bill Richardson (D)
10(9). Dennis Kucinich (D)
11(14). Rudy Giuliani (R)(tie)
11(10). Mike Huckabee (R)(tie)
11(14). Mitt Romney (R)(tie) 
14(12). Duncan Hunter (R)
15(13). Mike Gravel (D)
16(16). Sam Brownback (R)
17(17). Tom Tancredo (R)
 
 
 
21 September 2007 @ 12:04 pm
Pretty much no change at the top or bottom, but some movement in the middle. With every passing week, these people find new ways to embarrass themselves. Again, only the top 4 are candidates I'd feel somewhat comfortable endorsing.

*Previous ranking in (  )

1(1). Barack Obama (D)
2(2). Joe Biden (D)
3(3). John McCain(R)
4(4). Ron Paul(R)
5(9). Chris Dodd (D)
6(5). Hillary Clinton (D)
7(11). Fred Thompson (R)
8(8). John Edwards (D)
9(6). Dennis Kucinich (D)
10(7). Mike Huckabee (R)
11(12). Bill Richardson (D)
12(10). Duncan Hunter (R)
13(13). Mike Gravel (D)
14(14). Mitt Romney (R) (tie)
14(15). Rudy Giuliani (R) (tie)
16(16). Sam Brownback (R)
17(17). Tom Tancredo (R)
 
 
02 September 2007 @ 12:25 pm
A month has passed and not much has changed. Here's an update on my Presidential endorsement "standings". I've decided to eliminate candidates who aren't actually in the race so Bloomberg, Gore, and Hagel are gone. At this point, the top 4 on the list are the only ones I'd feel comfortable voting for/endorsing.

*Last month's ranking in ( )

1(1). Barack Obama (D)
2(3). Joe Biden (D)
3(5). John McCain (R)
4(4). Ron Paul (R)
5(7). Hillary Clinton (D)
6(NR). Dennis Kucinich (D)
7(NR). Mike Huckabee (R)
8(10). John Edwards (D)
9(NR). Chris Dodd (D)
10(9). Duncan Hunter (R)
11(NR). Fred Thompson (R)
12(NR). Bill Richardson (D)
13(NR). Mike Gravel (D)
14(NR). Mitt Romney (R)
15(NR). Rudy Giuliani (R)
16(NR). Sam Brownback (R)
17(NR). Tom Tancredo (R)
 
 
20 August 2007 @ 11:10 am
Ron Paul pulled off 2 wins in straw polls in Alabama and New Hampshire this weekend. So far it's gotten no coverage. I don't know if that's surprising or not. Non-Iowa straw polls get no coverage, but the fact that an underdog like Ron Paul could be perceived as newsworthy.

Alabama:
Paul - 216 (81%)
Romney - 14
Hunter - 10
Thompson - 9
Giuliani - 7
Huckabee - 6
McCain - 2
Brownback - 2
Tancredo - 0

New Hampshire:
Paul - 208 (73%)
Romney - 26
Huckabee - 20
Tancredo - 8
McCain - 7
Cox - 5
Hunter - 5
Fred Thompson - 3
Giuliani - 3
Brownback - 1
 
 
16 August 2007 @ 10:36 pm
Illinois Straw Poll Results:
1. Mitt Romney – 40.35%
2. Fred Thompson – 19.96%
3. Ron Paul – 18.87%
4. Rudy Giuliani – 11.61%
5. John McCain – 4.12%
6. Mike Huckabee – 3.04%
7. Sam Brownback – 1.08%
8. Duncan Hunter - .65%
9. Tom Tancredo - .33%

Big showing for Ron Paul, it probably won't get any attention though.
 
 
11 August 2007 @ 09:40 pm

Mitt Romney won with 31%, no surprise there. Maybe he should've done a little better given how much money and time he's spent in Iowa but it's hard to tell. Mike Huckabee lives up to my previously stated expectations and pulls a 2nd place, very good news for his campaign. Brownback finished 3rd which is bad news that he lost to Huckabee but it was pretty close so he could justify staying in the race. Tancredo finished 4th, not sure if that's good for him or not. He was certainly praying for a 2nd place finish but since he seems like more of a protest candidate anyway, I'm guessing he'll stick around. Ron Paul got a respectable 9% in 5th, especially considering he has barely campaigned in Iowa and spent very little money trying to buy votes today (aka no free BBQ or bus service). I'm confident he'll stick around through the early primaries even if he continues to do poorly in the polls since he has a low cost campaign. Tommy Thompson finished in 6th which, according to his own statements in the last few days, means he'll likely be dropping out. This is good news for those who can't stand watching his pitiful debate performances anymore. Duncan Hunter is also probably done after a finish near the bottom. Fred Thompson, Rudy Giuliani, and John McCain all did poorly but that's no surprise since they were not officially entered in the poll. The good news is that between 2 and 4 of these guys will likely be knocked out within the next week so future debates will give those remaining more time to speak.

 
 
08 August 2007 @ 11:40 am
It's disappointing that a small group of people in Iowa will have a large impact on the GOP field this weekend, but that's how it is. This weekend is the Ames Straw Poll where candidates attract voters with free buses to the event and catered barbeque, true indicators of a candidate's strength, and pray they'll get some votes out of it. Giuliani, McCain, and Thompson are not taking part in the festivities so Mitt Romney is considered the runaway favorite to win. If he doesn't win big, it'll probably be a substantial blow to his campaign.

The likely more important part of the results will be who finishes 2nd. Most pundits seem to think that the 2nd place finisher could elevate himself into the 1st tier while the also rans will either continue to wallow in the low single digits or drop out completely. This seems like a golden opportunity for Ron Paul. His poll numbers aren't very high and he won't be offering free buses or barbeque, but a 2nd place finish is not out of the realm of possibility. Considering that he is the only candidate that is against the war in Iraq and against interventionist foreign policy, one would think that he would have the full support of that wing of the Republican party, even if it's a small one. He did get a decent amount of applause at the Iowa debate on Sunday and considering that the straw poll doesn't count as a real primary, one would think that people would be open to "wasting" their vote on Paul this time around in hopes that he can pick up some momentum.

Two other individuals hoping to finish 2nd are Mike Huckabee and Sam Brownback. Huckabee is probably surprised he's not already in the 1st tier of candidates. He always shines at the debates and really hasn't been knocked by any of the other candidates for not being conservative enough. His only "flaw" was raising taxes in Arkansas which hasn't been given nearly enough coverage to kill his poll numbers. Maybe this weekend will be his breakout moment. Except for Law and Order fame, I haven't seen why people would view Fred Thompson over Mike Huckabee as their conservative knight in shining armor. Sam Brownback is perhaps too conservative for this election. In other elections, his intense pro-life crusade might work well, but polls seem to show that people care more about national security and experience. Brownback has painted himself into a corner by portraying himself as a one issue candidate. Despite that, he's still given a chance. Perhaps there are enough Iowa voters who still care more about abortion than terrorism.

Tommy Thompson has a face like a catcher's mitt and robotic style, but he still thinks he has a chance. I don't see why he should get any support but perhaps as the former governor of a neighboring state, there's more home field advantage than I perceive. The debates certainly haven't shown a man that looks presidential in any way. He's like the Bill Richardson of the Republicans, long track record without the substance that persuades people to vote for him.
 
 
 
 

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