POLITICS: Wild Cards

This week's politics will focus on the top Republican candidates. Who are they, and what exactly do they stand for?

It's a sad fact of politics that most voters go on "feel." They don't know what the issues are, or what their candidates stand for. On feel alone, McCain seems grandfatherly and concerned about darned near everything. Romney seems cold and just a tad untouchable. Huckabee seems like the guy you'd want to have a party with. Giuliani is the kind of politician that usually wins these elections: a take charge type of guy; however, his take charge attitude when he moved his mistress into the governor's mansion with the wife and kids still living there seems kind of cruel. And nobody seems to be able to get a real handle on Ron Paul, which is why he is somewhere at the bottom of the polls.

Nonetheless, this is what these guys actually stand for on the major voting issues:

ABORTION: For: Giuliani; Against: Huckabee, McCain and Romney (both support in cases of rape/incest), Paul opposes personally, but thinks states should decide unequivocally for themselves.

IRAQ (Timetable for pulling troops out): For: McCain, Paul; Against: Giuliani, Huckabee, Romney.

GUN CONTROL: Supports limits on types of guns and ownership: Giulani; Against most types of limits: McCain, Paul, Huckabee, Romney.

SAME-SEX MARRIAGE: All oppose. However, Giuliani supports legal domestic partnerships, and McCain and Paul believe that it should be a state issue, not federal. Romney has supported same-sex partnerships in the past.

HEALTH CARE: Romney is the only one who supports a federal system of universal health care. All others support state-run or market-based reforms for health care, except for Huckabee. Huckabee thinks the current system is irrevocably broken, but does not have any set opinions on either fixing it or offering new solutions.

SOCIAL SECURITY: All except Paul support voluntary diversion of funds into private accounts; Giuliani also thinks that a baseline distribution of funds should exist nationwide.

ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION: Huckabee, McCain, and Giuliani support path to legalization of some illegal immigrants with greater enforcement of existing laws (McCain also supports the building of a fence). Paul and Romney do not.


TAXES: Paul and Huckabee support the Fair Tax; Romney and Giuliani do not, for the most part. McCain says he opposes, but has expressed support for it in the past.

STEM CELL RESEARCH: Huckabee and Paul oppose unequivocally. Giuliani, Romney, and McCain support, but with some stipulations.

That's about a fast recap of the major issues. For more information on your candidates and what they really stand for, do the research. Find out exactly who it is you're voting for.

Don't get hooked on a feeling.