Changing of the Political Landscape

There is really no wondering whom I had chosen as the candidate that I stood behind. I even posted a link to the Fred08 website on my homepage as soon as he announced his candidacy.

There were many reasons that I stood behind the Fred Thompson campaign. Fred has taken a strong stand on every plank in the Republican Platform. He is not afraid to say what is on his mind, even if it is not what others wanted to hear. He is down to earth.

Long before he made the announcement that he was throwing his hat in the ring, I told several people that Fred had the Ronald Reagan approach and ability to communicate. How funny it was to actually hear the media refer to some of the other candidates in both parties as being 'Reaganesque.'

So, now that Fred has withdrawn his candidacy, I have had to look long and hard at who I would support. John McCain was my senator for many years back in Arizona and I even supported him when he ran in 2000 against George Bush, but I really don't think that I can support him now. Looking back, I think the only reason that I did vote for him is because I was more familiar with him than I was Bush and I thought he was the better candidate. This time around, circumstances are different and I have done a lot of research into all of the candidates and where they stand. McCain just isn't conservative enough for me and he flips too easily (just look at his stand on illegal immigration). As sad as this sounds, I think that Governor Janet Napolitano is more conservative and more consistent that McCain.

So, that leaves me with Ron Paul, Mike Huckabee, Mitt Romney and Rudy Giuliani. As I see it, Rudy is a flippy as McCain and Ron Paul is almost in that same boat with the added benefit of just being way too odd.

Of the final two - Romney and Huckabee - I am still a little upset at the fact that it seems every time I heard Huckabee talk, it was to bash the other candidates in the field instead of putting his best foot forward. Yeah, Romney also did some bashing, but I really feel as if it was more in retaliation to Huckabee's antics than it was as a campaign ploy to garner votes from the others.

So, I will probably go with Mitt. Not that I like the guy nor that I think he is the best person for the job, but that he is the best choice I have of the candidates that are still in the race. That could change as the primaries continue and candidates make choices like Fred made today, but for now, I think I am pretty much in Mitt Romney's corner.

Image from FredThompson Flickr site