Election 2012: GOP Candidates, Really?!

Well, we're almost halfway through 2011 and the field of candidates for the 2012 presidential election is starting to shape up for the Republican party. So far, the Republican ticket is looking more like a joke than a list of serious contenders. Well, let's see how they are and I'll let you judge.

First we have our front runner Mitt Romney, former governor of Massachusetts. He could be a serious contender, if he actually held his ground and wasn't afraid of the backlash from the extremes of his base. He is having to back away from the healthcare reform he put into place and apologize to Rep. Paul Ryan for tearing into Ryan's plan to end Medicare as we know it. The man could be a interesting candidate if only he had a backbone.


Next is Tim Pawlenty, former governor of Minnesota. He is the most moderate of the candidates, and is also the most boring. He even admitted that when he said his campaign is all about the facts rather than the show, which isn't a bad thing, but it might only hurt him than help him. We'll have to see how he does.





The we have former Speaker of the House Next Gingrich. This man has been out of politics for so long that he is way of out touch and is so far right that he won't stand a chance. His record in Congress is spotty, especially after forcing the government shut down in '94. Plus, as a self proclaimed "family values" man, his two divorces might come as an issue.




Next up is Ron Paul, congressman from Texas. The perennial candidate for the Libertarian and Tea Party strains never seems to give up, but he does it more for the message he's sending rather than actually winning. I give Ron Paul a lot of credit, he's the true Tea Party person, not like the crazies who attach themselves to the movement because they think it's cool.




Then we have our out there candidates that nobody has heard of, like Herman Cain and Fred Karger, or people that just can't be taken seriously, like Jimmy McMillan, the perennial candidate from the Rent-is-Too-Damn-High party (pictured left.)






Lastly are those that have been getting the attention, but haven't said anything yet. The biggest attention getter was Donald Trump, who kept egging us on only to say he wouldn't run. Fast forward to now and he keeps saying that he might change his mind. This guy is a joke. Same goes for Sarah Palin, the half-term governor from Alaska who resigned because she couldn't the pressure. If she can't handle being governor of a small, in terms of population, state, then how can she handle being president. Michele Bachmann has been eluding to it also, which is scary because she doesn't even understand basic history, thinking that the battles Lexington and Concord that started the American Revolution happened in New Hampshire, rather than Massachusetts.