On July 28th, I posted a blog where I ranked the then 16 Republican candidates in descending order based on my own personal opinion (http://thekind-heartedsmartaleck.blogspot.com/2015/07/16-crazies-and-counting.html). Following two debates (well, four if you include the two junior varsity debates), I thought I'd re-rank the now 15 GOP candidates. Sadly, Jim Gilmore entered the race after I posted my blog 6.5 weeks ago, to give the party a total of 17 candidates at the time, and exited the race before posting this blog. So, hello and goodbye, Mr. Gilmore. Former Texas Governor Rick Perry also exited the race, placing on the smartest glasses he could find and uttering the most intelligent comment anyone's heard him say in several years: "I'm done."
Here were my rankings on July 28th:
16) Donald Trump
15) Ted Cruz
14) Rick Santorum
13) Scott Walker
12) Ben Carson
11) Rick Perry
10) Mike Huckabee
9) Bobby Jindal
8) Carly Fiorina
7) Lindsey Graham
6) George Pataki
5) Marco Rubio
4) Chris Christie
3) Jeb Bush
2) Rand Paul
1) John Kasich
Here now are my updated rankings:
15) Ted Cruz (no change): Anti-this and anti-that, seemingly anti-everything, unless it's with regard to fetuses being permitted to own and fire guns while speaking in tongues. Yes, that may become his new slogan.
14) Bobby Jindal (down 5 spots): The Louisiana governor came across like a Ted Cruz clone in the kiddie table debate yesterday. Cruz was the architect of the federal government shutdown the first go-round over Obamacare; Jindal suggests we have a second go of it, this time over Planned Parenthood. Yes, let's shut the government down over more people having access to health insurance and also over more low-income women having access to family planning providers!
13) Mike Huckabee (down 3 spots): He may think he's speaking on behalf of God, but I think that's just the schizophrenia talking; that or someone should provide him a dunce cap over Christmas.
12) Scott Walker (up 1 spot): If there was any candidate I didn't notice to be present at the debates, it was this guy, Scott Walker. Even bland is too exciting of a word to describe him. Seriously, he should change his last name to Sleepwalker.
11) Rick Santorum (up 3 spots): Santorum is a lighter version of Huckabee. Hey, at least he believes in a minimum wage increase, right? Right... It will be nice once the Huckabee/Santorum battle to become Kim Davis' 5th husband ends, though. Speaking of which, I smell a reality show in the near future...
10) Marco Rubio (down 5 spots): Rubio may be gaining more traction in conservative circles and could be the Democrats' most challenging opponent come November of next year, but the guy is definitely moving down on my list. Making a joke about the California drought by bringing his own water bottle and commenting on it? Denying statements he's made and positions he's taken which have been documented? Appearing to support the U.S. invading any and every country that contains at least a 51% population of people with tan or darker colored skin? As Sarah Palin once said, "Thanks, but no thanks..."
9) Donald Trump (up 7 spots): It's sad that Donald Trump is my biggest mover up the leaderboard because I can't stand the guy. To put it bluntly, he's a dick. However, I am in favor of his progressive tax reform and he does appear to be more moderate than most other candidates as far as women's issues go, even though he regularly comes across like a sexist. For as entertaining as he is at times, though, I sincerely hope he's not our next president. If so, expect many people to actually follow through with their we're-moving-to-Canada threats.
8) Carly Fiorina (no change): She's pretty quick on her feet, but hasn't said anything much of substance to this point. Sadly, that is enough to place her near the middle of my rankings.
7) Lindsey Graham (no change): Here's a guy who seems to think he needs to compensate for something by attempting to always act like the most macho man in the room, as he consistently says things like, "Let's bomb (fill-in-the-blank)!" and "Let's go to war with (fill-in-the-blank)!" He has come across as more moderate than most of the other candidates, however, when it comes to the Supreme Court's ruling on gay marriage, immigration reform, and Planned Parenthood (and not shutting the government down as a result of not defunding it). So, I can't stand his everyone-is-out-to-get-us-let's-bomb-them-before-they-bomb-us mentality, but he's tolerable otherwise. Yes, "tolerable otherwise" places him in the top half of my rankings.
6) Ben Carson (up 6 spots): It's not Ben Carson's policy ideas which helped him move up this board, because what are his policy ideas? I'm not sure he even knows. If he does, he's kept them secret to this point. No, it's not that; it's his demeanor. The man is cool, calm, collected, doesn't insult his Republican colleagues, and gives the impression that he's definitely not a politician. For all of the yelling, screaming, and insults being thrown seemingly every which direction by the other candidates, it's kind of refreshing to have that quiet, contemplative person in the room.
5) Chris Christie (down 1 spot): As far as demeanor goes, Chris Christie is like the antithesis of Ben Carson. However, that's the very reason some people like him, well, outside of New Jersey, where his approval rating is around 30%. Christie moved down one spot, because like John McCain and Mitt Romney before him, Christie has ventured to the right this primary season, so even if he comes back and wins the nomination, Independents and moderates alike are going to question just where he stands on several issues, and ask, "Are you the somewhat moderate pre-primary Chris Christie or are you the far-right primary Chris Christie?" Like both McCain and Romney, that doesn't seem to bode well for the New Jersey governor.
4) George Pataki (up 2 spots): It seems all but inevitable that he'll be the next candidate to drop out of the race, yet I have to say, I was fairly impressed by his performance at yesterday's junior varsity debate. Pataki may be conservative at heart, but the man won come election day in liberal New York for a reason - he's rather moderate on some issues. Even with regard to Kim Davis, Pataki said she should be fired. Yes, I know, a Republican candidate actually said that. He also went speechless when Rick Santorum compared Ms. Davis to Martin Luther King. Yes, that comparison would make most any rational thinking person go speechless...
3) Jeb Bush (no change): Jeb's! campaign has been anything but a smooth operation and his poll numbers are reflective of that. However, he still has the Bush name and has raised more money than any other candidate, so I'm hard-pressed to see him bowing out anytime soon. Based on money and trends, I expect Bush to be one of the final 2 or 3 candidates remaining for the party's nomination.
2) Rand Paul (no change): Speaking of a campaign which hasn't been run smoothly, there's this guy. Unless he's able to shift course on that front and in a hurry, I don't expect Rand to last too terribly long in the primaries. Regardless, I do hope more candidates take some of his ideas into consideration while continuing their campaigns, especially with regard to: prison reform, police reform, marijuana legalization, war, and spying.
1) John Kasich (no change): I don't think he fared quite as well in the 2nd debate as he did in the 1st one, but believe that was partially the moderators' fault. Kasich, along with a couple others, was kind of given the short end of the stick as far as air-time went, so when he was provided the chance to speak, he came across as rushing himself some and was forced to talk about himself, his background, and his record a bit too much for most listening ears. However, in my opinion, he still comes across as the Republican candidate most willing to put country over party, reach across the aisle to work with Democrats, compromise, and try to get things done to move this country forward.
My hopeful 2016 presidential election: Democrat Bernie Sanders vs. Republican John Kasich (same as before)
My predicted 2016 presidential election: Democrat Hillary Clinton vs. Republican Jeb Bush (same as before)
Here were my rankings on July 28th:
16) Donald Trump
15) Ted Cruz
14) Rick Santorum
13) Scott Walker
12) Ben Carson
11) Rick Perry
10) Mike Huckabee
9) Bobby Jindal
8) Carly Fiorina
7) Lindsey Graham
6) George Pataki
5) Marco Rubio
4) Chris Christie
3) Jeb Bush
2) Rand Paul
1) John Kasich
Here now are my updated rankings:
15) Ted Cruz (no change): Anti-this and anti-that, seemingly anti-everything, unless it's with regard to fetuses being permitted to own and fire guns while speaking in tongues. Yes, that may become his new slogan.
14) Bobby Jindal (down 5 spots): The Louisiana governor came across like a Ted Cruz clone in the kiddie table debate yesterday. Cruz was the architect of the federal government shutdown the first go-round over Obamacare; Jindal suggests we have a second go of it, this time over Planned Parenthood. Yes, let's shut the government down over more people having access to health insurance and also over more low-income women having access to family planning providers!
13) Mike Huckabee (down 3 spots): He may think he's speaking on behalf of God, but I think that's just the schizophrenia talking; that or someone should provide him a dunce cap over Christmas.
12) Scott Walker (up 1 spot): If there was any candidate I didn't notice to be present at the debates, it was this guy, Scott Walker. Even bland is too exciting of a word to describe him. Seriously, he should change his last name to Sleepwalker.
11) Rick Santorum (up 3 spots): Santorum is a lighter version of Huckabee. Hey, at least he believes in a minimum wage increase, right? Right... It will be nice once the Huckabee/Santorum battle to become Kim Davis' 5th husband ends, though. Speaking of which, I smell a reality show in the near future...
10) Marco Rubio (down 5 spots): Rubio may be gaining more traction in conservative circles and could be the Democrats' most challenging opponent come November of next year, but the guy is definitely moving down on my list. Making a joke about the California drought by bringing his own water bottle and commenting on it? Denying statements he's made and positions he's taken which have been documented? Appearing to support the U.S. invading any and every country that contains at least a 51% population of people with tan or darker colored skin? As Sarah Palin once said, "Thanks, but no thanks..."
9) Donald Trump (up 7 spots): It's sad that Donald Trump is my biggest mover up the leaderboard because I can't stand the guy. To put it bluntly, he's a dick. However, I am in favor of his progressive tax reform and he does appear to be more moderate than most other candidates as far as women's issues go, even though he regularly comes across like a sexist. For as entertaining as he is at times, though, I sincerely hope he's not our next president. If so, expect many people to actually follow through with their we're-moving-to-Canada threats.
8) Carly Fiorina (no change): She's pretty quick on her feet, but hasn't said anything much of substance to this point. Sadly, that is enough to place her near the middle of my rankings.
7) Lindsey Graham (no change): Here's a guy who seems to think he needs to compensate for something by attempting to always act like the most macho man in the room, as he consistently says things like, "Let's bomb (fill-in-the-blank)!" and "Let's go to war with (fill-in-the-blank)!" He has come across as more moderate than most of the other candidates, however, when it comes to the Supreme Court's ruling on gay marriage, immigration reform, and Planned Parenthood (and not shutting the government down as a result of not defunding it). So, I can't stand his everyone-is-out-to-get-us-let's-bomb-them-before-they-bomb-us mentality, but he's tolerable otherwise. Yes, "tolerable otherwise" places him in the top half of my rankings.
6) Ben Carson (up 6 spots): It's not Ben Carson's policy ideas which helped him move up this board, because what are his policy ideas? I'm not sure he even knows. If he does, he's kept them secret to this point. No, it's not that; it's his demeanor. The man is cool, calm, collected, doesn't insult his Republican colleagues, and gives the impression that he's definitely not a politician. For all of the yelling, screaming, and insults being thrown seemingly every which direction by the other candidates, it's kind of refreshing to have that quiet, contemplative person in the room.
5) Chris Christie (down 1 spot): As far as demeanor goes, Chris Christie is like the antithesis of Ben Carson. However, that's the very reason some people like him, well, outside of New Jersey, where his approval rating is around 30%. Christie moved down one spot, because like John McCain and Mitt Romney before him, Christie has ventured to the right this primary season, so even if he comes back and wins the nomination, Independents and moderates alike are going to question just where he stands on several issues, and ask, "Are you the somewhat moderate pre-primary Chris Christie or are you the far-right primary Chris Christie?" Like both McCain and Romney, that doesn't seem to bode well for the New Jersey governor.
4) George Pataki (up 2 spots): It seems all but inevitable that he'll be the next candidate to drop out of the race, yet I have to say, I was fairly impressed by his performance at yesterday's junior varsity debate. Pataki may be conservative at heart, but the man won come election day in liberal New York for a reason - he's rather moderate on some issues. Even with regard to Kim Davis, Pataki said she should be fired. Yes, I know, a Republican candidate actually said that. He also went speechless when Rick Santorum compared Ms. Davis to Martin Luther King. Yes, that comparison would make most any rational thinking person go speechless...
3) Jeb Bush (no change): Jeb's! campaign has been anything but a smooth operation and his poll numbers are reflective of that. However, he still has the Bush name and has raised more money than any other candidate, so I'm hard-pressed to see him bowing out anytime soon. Based on money and trends, I expect Bush to be one of the final 2 or 3 candidates remaining for the party's nomination.
2) Rand Paul (no change): Speaking of a campaign which hasn't been run smoothly, there's this guy. Unless he's able to shift course on that front and in a hurry, I don't expect Rand to last too terribly long in the primaries. Regardless, I do hope more candidates take some of his ideas into consideration while continuing their campaigns, especially with regard to: prison reform, police reform, marijuana legalization, war, and spying.
1) John Kasich (no change): I don't think he fared quite as well in the 2nd debate as he did in the 1st one, but believe that was partially the moderators' fault. Kasich, along with a couple others, was kind of given the short end of the stick as far as air-time went, so when he was provided the chance to speak, he came across as rushing himself some and was forced to talk about himself, his background, and his record a bit too much for most listening ears. However, in my opinion, he still comes across as the Republican candidate most willing to put country over party, reach across the aisle to work with Democrats, compromise, and try to get things done to move this country forward.
My hopeful 2016 presidential election: Democrat Bernie Sanders vs. Republican John Kasich (same as before)
My predicted 2016 presidential election: Democrat Hillary Clinton vs. Republican Jeb Bush (same as before)
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