This blog started as a way to inform myself and others about the candidates running for U.S. President next fall. I’d hoped to present clear, concise information about the candidates’ positions, while also reporting on current and relevant stories. Having spent the last several months working on this project, I had completed about half of the foundation I would have liked when I discovered that someone else had beaten me to the idea.

Sometimes it’s better to let other people do work for you (especially when they do it better). So rather than repeating for no reason, I’ll just say — go to Politifact.com and read up. They are doing basically what I wanted to do, even if their graphic design is a little* more terrible.

<—- “PF” stands for Politi Fact! Get it?

*Okay a lot more terrible, but the information is good.

As for this site, I don’t intend to abandon it. I am currently in the process of changing it. If it’s ever actually worth reading, I’ll make a small and unassuming announcement over on BR. Until then, don’t be like me (I’m feeling a strong wave of apathy at the moment towards ALL of the awful candidates). At first glance they all look the same, so you just have to keep glancing.

Keep glancing,

Jason

Bill Richardson’s profile coming soon.

SHORT BIO

Tom Tancredo has been a member of the U.S. House of Representatives since 1999. In 1976, while teaching high school history, he ran for and won a seat in the Colorado House of Representatives, serving two terms from 1977 to 1981. He then moved to a position in the Department of Education until 1993, when Tancredo became president of the Independence Institute, a conservative think tank. In 1998, he ran for and won a seat in the House, where he has served four terms (despite promising to serve no more than 3).

(Interesting note: Both sets of Tancredo’s parents immigrated from Italy.)

ISSUE SUMMARY

Tancredo is often described as the most classically conservative candidate in the race. His current stances include:

• Strongly opposes abortion and stem cell research
• Strongly opposes illegal immigration (his most important issue)
• Blames Bush administration and Congress for not being tougher on immigration
• Supports a Constitutional Amendment to ban same-sex marriage
• Supports a Constitutional Amendment to define marriage as between one man and one woman
• Supports requiring schools to allow prayer
• Supports a Constitutional Amendment to allow school prayer
• High rating from the Christian Coalition, the National Taxpayers’ Union, and the NRA
• Low rating from the League of Conservationist Voters
• Consistently voted to lower taxes, and to make Bush’s tax cuts permanent
• Believes Iraq invasion was correct, but that we should begin to pull out so that we can focus more broadly on radical Islam
• Supports the PATRIOT Act
• Supports FBI wiretapping and other controversial surveillance, in the interest of safety

EXPANDED ISSUES and STANCES

• Completely opposes all forms of abortion, stating that it “compromises the sanctity of life”.
• Opposes granting federal funds to any organization that promotes abortion.
• Agrees that Roe v. Wade should be repealed, adding that it would be “the greatest day in this country’s history”.
• Strongly opposes all illegal immigration (often referred to as Tancredo’s “single issue”).
• Opposes bilingual education and any form of bilingual accommodation.
• Speaks out against George W. Bush’s immigration policies, going so far as to accuse his administration and Congress as being responsible for any future terrorist attacks.
• Has referred to Miami, FL as a third world country.
• Awarded an “A” from the National Taxpayers Union for each year he’s served in Congress, for consistently voting against tax increases and for tax cuts.
• Believes the invasion of Iraq was the correct decision but that it is time to get out so that we can focus on radical Islam.
• Has been critical of the People’s Republic of China.
• Opposed to all stem cell research, as it is “morally reprehensible”.
• Voted “Yes” on all abortion regulation/restriction bills.
• Supports the PATRIOT Act.
• Voted to ban same-sex couple adoptions in DC.
• Voted to enact a Constitutional Amendment banning same-sex marriage.
• Voted to Constitutionally define marriage as between one man and one woman.
• Publicly stated that he does not believe in evolution.
• Voted to allow school prayer during the War on Terror.
• Supports requiring schools to allow prayer.
• Supports a Constitutional Amendment to allow school prayer.
• Received a 5% rating from the League of Conservationist Voters, indicating an anti-environment voting record.
• Received a 100% rating from the Christian Coalition, indicating a pro-family voting record.
• Voted to restrict US funding to the UN, to encourage reform.
• Received a 61% rating from CATO, indicating a mixed voting record on trade issues.
• Received a “B+” grade from the NRA, indicating a pro-gun rights voting record.
• Voted consistently to discourage medical malpractice lawsuits.
• Opposes McCain’s immigration plan, calling it soft on immigration and amnesty.
• Voted to make Bush’s tax cuts permanent.
• Supports phasing out the death tax.
• Voted to eliminate the marriage penalty.

Barack Obama’s profile coming soon.

SHORT BIO

Most recently, Romney served as the Governor of Massachusetts from 2003 to 2007. During his term, Governor Romney was successful in closing a nearly $3 billion budget gap inherited when he took office. Before his governorship, Romney was a Harvard-trained business executive known for his ability to help businesses grow and improve their operations. In 1999, after over 20 years of leading various private investment firms, Romney left behind his career as an entrepreneur to take over as President and CEO of the Salt Lake Organizing Committee, where he helped to turn around the 2002 Winter Olympic Games.

Romney is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, but has emphatically stated that he is not a spokesman for his church.

ISSUE SUMMARY

Romney is running as a conservative candidate, though some accuse him of trying to reinvent himself as such for his run at the Presidency. His current stances include:

• Unclear on abortion, currently pro-life
• Supports tough crime policies, with strong regulation
• Supports Bush education policies, mostly
• Moderately strong environmental record, supporting emissions standards
• Opposes same-sex marriage, unclear about civil unions
• Supports non-governmental universal health care without taxation
• Against tax increases, except for gas taxes and business taxes
• Supports extreme measures such as wiretapping and other controversial surveillance
• Strongly supports continued use of Guantanamo Bay facility
• Favors moderate, predictable change in minimum wage

EXPANDED ISSUES and STANCES

• Unclear on his stance on abortion. During his governor race (and a previous Senate race in which he narrowly lost to Ted Kennedy) Romney seemed to take a pro-choice stance, claiming that Roe v. Wade is the law and that we should support it, and that he sustained and supported that law and the right of a woman to make that choice. Currently he claims to be pro-life. He is accused of flip-flopping on this issue.
• Supports a highly-regulated version of capital punishment, used in extreme cases.
• Supports the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy of the U.S. military, because it is working for now.
• Supports Bush’s No Child Left Behind education policies
• Supports vouchers, against tenure for teachers
• Strong advocate of abstinence education
• Against prayer in public schools
• Supports a combination approach to energy that includes pursuing alternative sources and finding domestic sources of oil
• Supports tough emissions standards for power plants even at the cost of jobs, saying “I will not protect jobs that kill people.”
• Fairly strong advocate for high environmental standards and policies
• Unclear on his stance on homosexual rights. Currently he opposes both same-sex marriage and civil unions. In 2004, he testified to the Senate Judiciary Committee for a bill that supported civil unions, but has since said that he is “only supporting civil unions if gay marriage is the alternative”. He is accused of flip-flopping on this issue. (Read more.)
• Supports the right of individuals to keep and bear arms, though he also supports moderate gun control regulations, including the Brady Bill and an assault weapons ban.
• Favors requiring nearly all citizens to obtain health insurance coverage by establishing means-tested subsidies for people who can’t afford it. This, he claims, provides universal coverage without more government interference or taxation.
• Supports stem-cell research as ethical but opposes using federal funds to support it.
• Favors moderate, predictable changes in the minimum wage linked to other indicators of growth, rather than “big jumps from time to time.”
• Campaigns as being for tax relief and tax cuts, but his policies typically shift taxes onto fees, gas taxes, or business taxes in order to raise needed funds. (Read more.)
• Supports FBI wiretaps and other controversial surveillance techniques, in the interest of our safety.
• Supports Guantanamo Bay as keeping combatants “where they don’t get access to lawyers [that] they get when they’re on our soil.” (Source.)
• Opposed the recent immigration bill, insisting it was not tough enough on illegal immigrants already here.
• Would not take the option of using tactical nuclear weapons off of the table.
• Mostly in agreement with Bush’s Iraq war policies, though he has expressed that he would change course if the surge does not work.
• Believes that “having the president meet with the authoritarian tyrants of the world is remarkably poor judgment.” (Source.)

Dennis Kucinich’s profile coming soon.

Ron Paul’s profile coming soon.

Mike Gravel’s profile coming soon.

SHORT BIO

McCain followed in family footsteps by enrolling in the Naval Academy immediately after high school, leading to his deployment to Vietnam. In October of 1967 his plane was shot down and he was taken prisoner, where he was interrogated daily but did not give up any information. He was finally released in 1973, five and a half years later. After retiring from the Navy in 1981, McCain went to work for his second wife’s father at Anheuser-Busch in Phoenix.

In 1982, McCain decided to run for one of the Arizona House seats and won. Four years later, Barry Goldwater retired from his Senate seat and McCain was elected to replace him. In 2000, he was George W. Bush’s most formidable opponent in the Republican primaries, though his decision to speak out against conservative Christian leaders may have cost him the race. Since that time he has generally supported Bush’s administration, though many say he has been posturing himself as a moderate yet conservative candidate for his run in 2008.

ISSUE SUMMARY

Though McCain’s votes are typically some of the most conservative in the Senate, his reputation is often more of a “maverick” or wild card. His current stances include:

• Supports the war in Iraq, advocates more troops to guarantee victory
• Opposed to all torture
• Opposed to abortion (supports overturning Roe v. Wade)
• Moderately positive voting record on environmental issues
• Personally opposed to same-sex marriage but supports letting states decide
• Supports loose immigration policies, typically involving amnesty
• Worked towards reforming campaign finance policies
• Ranked 83% by the Christian Coalition, indicating a moderate conservative voting record

EXPANDED ISSUES and STANCES

• Supported the war in Iraq
• Spoke out against Bush’s war policies at times, advocating more troops and more funding
• Supports the State of Israel, often publicly
• Opposed to any use of torture for any reason
• Emphasizes reducing our deficit over cutting taxes (taxes help to reduce the deficit)
• Supports campaign finance reform (McCain-Feingold Act)
• Proactive in working to solve global warming problems
• Opposed to drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife refuge
• Opposed to government subsidizing ethanol (corn oil) production
• Advocate for turning the EPA into a cabinet department(s)
• Supports more nuclear energy
• Strongly supports being tougher in the “War on Drugs”
• Supports letting states choose whether or not to allow same-sex marriage
• Supported an Arizona ban on same-sex marriage
• Supports same-sex domestic partnerships
• Supports the use of school vouchers to allow kids to choose private schools regardless of cost
• Supports the teaching of intelligent design in public schools
• Opposes abortion and supports overturning Roe v. Wade
• Received an 83% positive rating from the Christian Coalition
• Supports most forms of gun control and regulation
• Often supports loose immigration policies, usually including amnesty — he proposed the most recent immigration bill together with Ted Kennedy

John Edwards’ profile coming soon.