Republican blues

Just back from voting.

Here is a comparison Huckabee and Ron Paul. These were my top two candidates. Some will jump to the practical question: "Paul doesn't have a chance!" Well, neither does Huck, anymore, really. What we are doing now is telling the Republicans at the convention who we Republican voters are, beyond "McCain can beat Hillary/Obama."

So here are quotes of positions from their webpages. See if you can tell by the end how I voted...


On Education:

Huckabee:
"I believe that every child should have the opportunity for a quality education that teaches the fundamental skills needed to compete in a global economy."

Paul:
"The federal government does not own our children. Yet we act as it if does by letting it decide when, how, and what our children will learn. We have turned their futures over to lobbyists and bureaucrats."



On health care:

Paul: "The federal government decided long ago that it knew how to manage your health care better than you and replaced personal responsibility and accountability with a system that puts corporate interests first."

Huckabee: "The health care system in this country is irrevocably broken, in part because it is only a "health care" system, not a "health" system. We don't need universal health care mandated by federal edict or funded through ever-higher taxes. We do need to get serious about preventive health care instead of chasing more and more dollars to treat chronic disease, which currently gobbles up 80% of our health care costs, and yet is often avoidable. The result is that we'll be able to deliver better care where and when it's needed."



On terrorism/Iraq:

Paul: "The war in Iraq was sold to us with false information. The area is more dangerous now than when we entered it. We destroyed a regime hated by our direct enemies, the jihadists, and created thousands of new recruits for them.... The United States invaded Iraq under false pretenses without a constitutionally-required declaration of war. Our Founders understood that how we go to war is as important as when we go to war, which is why they vested the power to declare war in the Legislative Branch."

Huck: "Iraq is a battle in our generational, ideological war on terror. General Petraeus and our troops are giving their all to provide a window of opportunity for the Iraq government to succeed, while the Democrats are running for the exit doors.... I believe that we are currently engaged in a world war. Radical Islamic fascists have declared war on our country and our way of life. They have sworn to annihilate each of us who believe in a free society, all in the name of a perversion of religion and an impersonal god. We go to great extremes to save lives, they go to great extremes to take them. This war is not a conventional war, and these terrorists are not a conventional enemy. I will fight the war on terror with the intensity and single-mindedness that it deserves."



On spending priorities:

Huck: "If we are going to spend $150 billion, I'd like to suggest that maybe we add two lanes of highway from Bangor all the way to Miami on I-95. A third of the United States population lives within 100 miles of that. This nation's infrastructure is falling apart. And if we built those lanes of highways -- with American labor, American steel, American concrete - I believe it would do more to stimulate the economy."

Paul: "too many politicians and lobbyists are spending America into ruin. We are nine trillion dollars in debt as a nation. Our mounting government debt endangers the financial future of our children and grandchildren. If we don’t cut spending now, higher taxes and economic disaster will be in their future — and yours.... We need a new method to prioritize our spending. It’s called the Constitution of the United States."


On Social Security:

Paul: "Our nation’s promise to its seniors, once considered a sacred trust, has become little more than a tool for politicians to scare retirees while robbing them of their promised benefits. Today, the Social Security system is broke and broken."

Huck: couldn't find anything



On marriage:

Huck: "I support and have always supported passage of a federal constitutional amendment that defines marriage as a union between one man and one woman. As President, I will fight for passage of this amendment. My personal belief is that marriage is between one man and one woman, for life."

Paul: Couldn't find anything



On the environment:

Huck: "My faith is my life - it defines me. My faith doesn't influence my decisions, it drives them. For example, when it comes to the environment, I believe in being a good steward of the earth."

Paul: "The key to sound environmental policy is respect for private property rights. The strict enforcement of property rights corrects environmental wrongs while increasing the cost of polluting."


On energy:

Huck: "The first thing I will do as President is send Congress my comprehensive plan for energy independence. We will achieve energy independence by the end of my second term."

Paul: "As president, I will work to restore a free-market in energy. In particular, I will work with Congress to repeal federal regulations and taxes that impede the development of new energy sources."



That's enough. Got it figured out? No? Well, then I ain't saying, either...