GOP Front Runners Actually Look Reasonable Compared to Also Running: Thompson, Huckabee, Brownback, Romney, and Hunter

If you think McCain and Gulliani are scary, let a load of this from Iowa on 7/3/07.

Tommy Thompson addressing the Iowa Tax Association (or close) and the Christians Alliance bellowed with pride about his 1900 vetoes of spending increase bills in Wisconsin. Promising to reduce every Federal agency budget by 3% annually (except Defense and Homeland Security), he claimed this would balance the Federal budget. Not, of course, by the wildest stretch of the imagination. He pledged to keep the tax cut for the rich, and, (with an H.W. Bushian ring), never raise taxes. He railed against stem cell research using embryos, but claimed adult embryos are OK and “just as good." Biologists turned over in their labs.

Mike Huckabee, going Thompson one better, trumpeted the call to abolish the IRS. Calling for a complete overall of the tax system aka fair tax system. Claiming the tax system is largely responsible for global loss of U.S. jobs. He will use Willie Nelson to sing, “ding the tax.”
Like Thompson, he will veto any tax increase and freeze federal agency budgets at 95% of their current levels. At least he did not claim this would balance the Federal budget. He defined marriage as no gays, i.e. man and woman, and will pass a constitutional amendment pertaining thereto which he equated with sanity. He presented a copy cat espousal of pro-life claiming American is a pro-life nation. Pro Life Nation has quite a ring to it. Maybe an NFL franchise will pick up on that one. He claimed the constitution was meant to be amended accordingly, but the Bible was not. He compared terrorist child bombers to an abortion. He pledged no government would run the health care system and disparaged the air traffic controllers by comparing their competence to a government health care system.

Sam Brownback: tell me if you see anything new except a cultural warrior emerges
-Believes in farm values-faith, family, and hard work.
-No tax increase
-Spending reduction
-Laffer voodoo economics; pro growth by tax cuts
-Keep cuts for rich
-No gay marriage-constitutional amendment
-Strengthen marriage
-Build fence to stop immigrants
-No embryonic stem cell research
-Dump IRS; substitute a flat tax (no % mentioned)
-Energy independence in 15 yrs via ethanol and bio diesel
-Bring back nativity scene to schools, block Fed payment for suits
-He would pray on his knees in the White House
-Wants to get rid of separation of Church and State
Bottom line: Wants to reignite the culture war

Romney, positioning himself as Reagan II, believes '08 election is key.
Big problems:
-gov’t spending
-oil spending
-schools sliding
-immigration- saved by defeat of the Senate bill
-competition from Asia
-attack on civilization by Jihad bent on destroying the west

Federal government needs to act, but it is incapable so need new leadership. I’ve changed businesses. Elected Governor of MA that is Democrat dominated, but I balanced the budget.
Changes needed:

-Democrat approach:
.Use gov’t

-Republican approach:
.Liberals not ignorant, just what they know is wrong (a Reaganism).
.Gov’t not key to growth
.Lamdis book traces econ development and finds culture makes the difference
.American culture: hard work, opportunity, sacrifice, belief in god, family, value liberty, and conservative values served the country: strong military, economy, and families like Reagan credo.
-Clinton reduced military, need to rebuild and provide equipment. He failed to note that
GOP shortchanged the military in Iraq
-Ripped Hillary for suggesting corporations pay more taxes (she said “fair share”)
-Constitutional amendment against gay marriage.

This election:
-Democrats-sharp left turn, higher taxes, slower economic growth, like
EU in 1990’s while EU more conservative now.

My view
-strong military, economy, and families a la Reagan
-follow conservative judiciary like Bush, not judges “who make it up on the bench.”
-pledge not to increase taxes and keep Bush tax cuts, end the death tax and eliminate dividend, interest and capital gains tax.
-have to reform Medicare, Medicaid, and social security which will consume the Fed budget.
-won’t promise to dump IRS (fair tax), but will do former tax law changes.
-will support constitutional amendment vs. gay marriage. MA law won’t let Catholic Charities restrict adoption from same sex couples.
-On immigration favor building the fence, and no favoritism in path to citizenship for illegals
-will veto embryonic stem cell, but favors alternative approach, i.e. ultra nuclear transfer. (Another turn in the lab by biologists)

-American is the only nation that waged war without taking land. (Guess he forgot about all the wars before World War I).

Duncan Hunter was preempted by my throwing up, my usual reaction to his rhetoric.
Basically a me too to all except Romney, he pushed for the 854 mile fence along the southern US border and promised to take out Iran before they got nuclear weapons.
His answers to the tax, gay marriage and stem cells was the same as the others. For kickers, he would guarantee the right for everyone to have guns. Knowing he has one is more scary than the Iranian nuclear initiative. He is a broken record neocon boardering on the psychotic.

Prior to Hunter, a congressman I did not recognize gave an issueless rah rah speech about America then answered the tax, gay marriage and stem cells was the same as the others.

Have to admit they matched their pitch to this niche market, but probably not much different regardless of the market.