The McCain camp released its four-night roster of convention speakers yesterday, further fueling speculation as to whom he will choose as his running mate. The question is: If their name is on the speaking roster, does that mean they’re out of the running for the veep slot on the GOP ticket? And if it does, whose name isn’t on the list and, therefore, is still in the running for the running mate job?
Here’s the list of announced speakers for each night of the convention:
Monday, Sept. 1
U.S. Sen. Joseph Lieberman (Conn.)
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (Calif.)
Vice President Richard B. Cheney
First Lady Laura Bush
President George W. BushTuesday, Sept. 2
Former New York City Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani
Former Gov. Mike Huckabee (Ark.)
Former Gov. Tom Ridge (Pa.)
Gov. Sarah Palin (Alaska)
Gov. Jon Huntsman (Utah)
Rosario Marin, California Secretary of the State
Former U.S. Sen. Fred Thompson (Tenn.)
Gov. Linda Lingle (Hawaii)
Former Lt. Gov. Michael Steele (Md.)Wednesday, Sept. 3
U.S. Sen. Norm Coleman (Minn.)
Meg Whitman, former President and CEO of eBay
Carly Fiorina, former Chairman and CEO of Hewlett-Packard Co.
Former Gov. Mitt Romney (Mass.)
Mrs. Cindy McCain
Gov. Bobby Jindal (La.)
Republican Party’s Vice Presidential NomineeThursday, Sept. 4
Gov. Tim Pawlenty (Minn.)
Gov. Charlie Crist (Fla.)
U.S. Sen. Sam Brownback (Kan.)
U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez (Fla.)
John McCain
Now go through the list again and notice the names which aren’t on it - including my personal favorite, South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford and McCain’s reported personal favorite, former Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge. Plus dark horse candidate Gov. Haley
Barbour of Mississippi.
And hey, hey, HEY! I don’t see Ron Paul’s name on the list. Could he? Would he?
Get real.
Posted on August 21st, 2008 by Chuck Muth
Filed under: National
Ridge is listed on Sept 2
Thankfully Ron Paul, Duncan Hunter, and Tom Tancredo are all absent from the four-night roster of convention speakers. McCain is going to have a difficult enough time rebuilding trust between Hispanics and the GOP as it is.
I was hoping Mark Sanford would be the presidential candidate. Too bad he decided to stay out of the race. The dynamic would have been very different. And of all the possible candidates, he would have been the only one who had governed as a Republican and held his ground, even against his own Republican legislature. I’ve yet to see anyone ever accuse him of being a flip flopper or an appeaser.
BIDEN’S UGLY RECORD IN BRIEF
http://www.ontheissues.org/senate/joe_biden.htm
* Supports partial-birth abortion ban, but not undoing Roe. (Apr 2007)
* Nominees should agree on constitutional right to privacy. (Apr 2007)
* Voted NO on defining unborn child as eligible for SCHIP. (Mar 2008)
* Voted NO on prohibiting minors crossing state lines for abortion. (Mar 2008)
* Voted YES on expanding research to more embryonic stem cell lines. (Apr 2007)
* Voted NO on notifying parents of minors who get out-of-state abortions. (Jul 2006)
* Voted NO on criminal penalty for harming unborn fetus during other crime. (Mar 2004)
* Voted NO on maintaining ban on Military Base Abortions. (Jun 2000)
* Voted YES on banning partial birth abortions. (Oct 1999)
* Voted NO on banning human cloning. (Feb 1998)
* Rated 0% by the NRLC, indicating a pro-abortion stance. (Dec 2006)
* Ensure access to and funding for contraception. (Feb 2007)
* Voted NO on $40B in reduced federal overall spending. (Dec 2005)
* Voted NO on prioritizing national debt reduction below tax cuts. (Apr 2000)
* Voted NO on constitutional ban of same-sex marriage. (Jun 2006)
* Voted YES on adding sexual orientation to definition of hate crimes. (Jun 2002)
* Voted YES on expanding hate crimes to include sexual orientation. (Jun 2000)
* Voted YES on setting aside 10% of highway funds for minorities & women. (Mar 1998)
* Voted NO on ending special funding for minority & women-owned business. (Oct 1997)
* Voted YES on prohibiting same-sex marriage. (Sep 1996)
* Voted YES on prohibiting job discrimination by sexual orientation. (Sep 1996)
* Voted NO on Amendment to prohibit flag burning. (Dec 1995)
* Voted NO on banning affirmative action hiring with federal funds. (Jul 1995)
* Rated 78% by the HRC, indicating a pro-gay-rights stance. (Dec 2006)
* Rated 100% by the NAACP, indicating a pro-affirmative-action stance. (Dec 2006)
* Voted NO on limiting death penalty appeals. (Apr 1996)
* Voted NO on limiting product liability punitive damage awards. (Mar 1996)
* Voted NO on restricting class-action lawsuits. (Dec 1995)
* Voted NO on repealing federal speed limits. (Jun 1995)
* Voted NO on mandatory prison terms for crimes involving firearms. (May 1994)
* Voted NO on rejecting racial statistics in death penalty appeals. (May 1994)
* More funding and stricter sentencing for hate crimes. (Apr 2001)
* Voted NO on increasing penalties for drug offenses. (Nov 1999)
* Voted NO on school vouchers in DC. (Sep 1997)
* Voted YES on $75M for abstinence education. (Jul 1996)
* Voted NO on requiring schools to allow voluntary prayer. (Jul 1994)
* Voted YES on national education standards. (Feb 1994)
* Rated 91% by the NEA (Dec 2003)
* Voted YES on factoring global warming into federal project planning. (May 2007)
* Voted YES on disallowing an oil leasing program in Alaska’s ANWR. (Nov 2005)
* Voted YES on banning drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. (Mar 2005)
* Voted YES on removing consideration of drilling ANWR from budget bill. (Mar 2003)
* Voted NO on drilling ANWR on national security grounds. (Apr 2002)
* Voted NO on preserving budget for ANWR oil drilling. (Apr 2000)
* Voted YES on granting the District of Columbia a seat in Congress. (Sep 2007)
* Voted NO on requiring photo ID to vote in federal elections. (Jul 2007)
* Voted NO on allowing some lobbyist gifts to Congress. (Mar 2006)
* Voted NO on require photo ID (not just signature) for voter registration. (Feb 2002)
* Voted YES on banning campaign donations from unions & corporations. (Apr 2001)
* Voted YES on funding for National Endowment for the Arts. (Aug 1999)
* Voted YES on favoring 1997 McCain-Feingold overhaul of campaign finance. (Oct 1997)
* Voted YES on Approving the presidential line-item veto. (Mar 1996)
* Voted NO on banning more types of Congressional gifts. (Jul 1995)
* Voted NO on means-testing to determine Medicare Part D premium. (Mar 2008)
* Voted NO on allowing tribal Indians to opt out of federal healthcare. (Feb 2008)
* Voted NO on Medicare means-testing. (Jun 1997)
* Voted YES on blocking medical savings accounts. (Apr 1996)
* Rated 100% by APHA, indicating a pro-public health record. (Dec 2003)
* Voted YES on continuing federal funds for declared “sanctuary cities”. (Mar 2008)
* Voted YES on comprehensive immigration reform. (Jun 2007)
* Voted NO on declaring English as the official language of the US government. (Jun 2007)
* Voted YES on allowing illegal aliens to participate in Social Security. (May 2006)
* Voted NO on visas for skilled workers. (May 1998)
* Voted NO on limit welfare for immigrants. (Jun 1997)
* Rated 8% by USBC, indicating an open-border stance. (Dec 2006)
* Voted NO on terminating legal challenges to English-only job rules. (Mar 2008)
* Voted YES on restricting employer interference in union organizing. (Jun 2007)
* Voted YES on increasing minimum wage to $7.25. (Feb 2007)
* Rated 100% by the AFL-CIO, indicating a pro-union voting record. (Dec 2003)
* Voted NO on confirming Samuel Alito as Supreme Court Justice. (Jan 2006)
* Voted NO on confirming John Roberts for Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. (Sep 2005)
* Voted NO on Social Security Lockbox & limiting national debt. (Apr 1999)
* Voted NO on allowing personal retirement accounts. (Apr 1998)
* Voted NO on across-the-board spending cut. (Oct 1999)
* Voted NO on requiring super-majority for raising taxes. (Apr 1998)
* Rated 15% by NTU, indicating a “Big Spender” on tax votes. (Dec 2003)
* Rated 100% by the CTJ, indicating support of progressive (high) taxation. (Dec 2006)
Posted on August 23rd, 2008 by Doug Schexnayder, Ph.D.