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Rating the GOP Candidates for Conservatives By Holly Bailey
Newsweek
Feb. 26, 2007 issue - When it comes to presidential politics, Richard Land has seen better days. As policy chairman of the Southern Baptist Convention, Land remembers back in 1999 when a Republican presidential hopeful named George W. Bush came calling for support. "He was one of us," Land recalls. Eight years later, things aren't so simple. With Bush sidelined and no heir apparent in sight, voters on the right are surveying the 2008 field with a certain level of despair. The three GOP front runners—Rudy Giuliani, John McCain and Mitt Romney—have all violated conservative principles. Other hopefuls, like Sam Brownback and Mike Huckabee, are beloved by the right but face doubts about their ability to beat a Democrat in the general election. Will social conservatives support the candidate they most agree with—or the one who can win? Land predicts electability, citing fear of a Hillary Clinton White House. "I wouldn't underestimate Clinton's ability to unite social conservatives around a candidate ... who they think can win," he says. Which one is most likely to strike just the right balance? A "values voter" tally, looking at what this bloc sees as the pros and cons of top GOP hopefuls:
THE RECONCILER: John McCain
PROS: After condemning Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson as "agents of intolerance" during his 2000 run, McCain has tried to make amends with the Christian right. He spoke at Falwell's Liberty University last year and has consulted with noted evangelicals, including megachurch Pastor John Hagee in Texas. (This week Falwell will host a "meet and greet" at the National Religious Broadcasters convention on McCain's behalf.) He's even hired a former Bush adviser, David Rexrode, to tout his conservative credentials, particularly his anti-abortion stance.
CONS: Evangelicals are suspicious. They question McCain's opposition to a federal amendment to ban same-sex marriage. (McCain opposes gay marriage, but says the issue should be regulated by the states.) They haven't forgiven him for blocking the "nuclear option" in the Senate that would have forced an up or down vote on President Bush's judicial nominees. Last month Focus on the Family founder James Dobson vowed he would not vote for McCain "under any circumstances."
THE MORMON: Mitt Romney
PROS: Romney is against abortion and opposes same-sex marriage, and he's been aggressive in courting the Christian right. He's consulted with Falwell and Franklin Graham and is scheduled to deliver the graduation address at Robertson's Regent University this spring.
CONS: Evangelicals are skeptical of Romney's Mormon faith, but it's his alleged flip-flops that could really hurt. In his 1994 Senate and 2002 gubernatorial bids, Romney supported abortion rights and gay rights, positions he reversed as he prepared for a White House run. Last week Sam Brownback's campaign questioned his credibility.
THE TRUE BELIEVERS: Sam Brownback and Mike Huckabee
PROS: No two candidates are more widely respected among social conservatives than Brownback and Huckabee. In the Senate, Brownback has been praised as one of the Christian right's most dependable allies. The Kansas senator championed legislation for a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage. He is staunchly against abortion and has said he would work to overturn Roe v. Wade if he wins the White House. Huckabee, meanwhile, is a Southern Baptist minister by training who signed legislation to tighten abortion laws and ban same-sex marriage when he was governor of Arkansas. Both men have strong ties to the leaders on the right and are campaigning to be the candidate of the GOP conservative base.
CONS: They are long-shot candidates in a year where the desire to win the White House could force evangelicals to support a nominee whose conservative credentials are less than impeccable.
THE DIVORCÉ: Rudy Giuliani
PROS: There aren't many. Social conservatives are impressed by Giuliani's handling of 9/11 and its aftermath. They like his support for President Bush's troop surge in Iraq. Many on the right even begrudgingly admit that Giuliani likely has what it takes to win against a Democrat such as Hillary Clinton. But those are about the only nice things they have to say about him. One bright spot: Giuliani will address business leaders at Regent University in April.
CONS: Giuliani supports both abortion rights and gay rights, two positions that are considered anathema to evangelicals. Ditto for his advocacy of tougher gun-control laws. Add to that whispers about Rudy's two failed marriages—including not-so-veiled criticism last week from Mitt Romney's wife, Ann—and it's an uphill climb for the former mayor. So far, his campaign has made little effort to change minds—seemingly putting its bets on moderate Republicans and independents to clinch the nomination. But will this maverick strategy win the primary?
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