Open thread: who's the scariest Republican candidate for President?

by: Jay Stevens

Mon Jun 18, 2007 at 15:25:12 PM MST

* Rudy Giuliani -- Matt Taibbi recently made the case that the former NYC mayor is actually "worse than Bush." Giuliani is autocratic, thin-skinned, and self-absorbed. He's inexperienced, ignorant about policy specifics, and his only selling point (performance on 9/11) doesn't stand up well to scrutiny. His campaign is built around demagoguery -- driven solely by fear.

* John McCain -- A shadow of his former self, the senator appears to be a man who'll do anything to win. McCain is combative and intolerant of dissent. He defends the indefensible and lashes out angrily at anyone who dares to disagree with him. He's become dishonest, condescending, and egotistical, while pandering shamelessly to some of the worst elements in Republican politics.

* Mitt Romney -- The man appears to have no real convictions at all. On most of the major political issues of the day, Romney believed the exact opposite fairly recently, and has struggled to explain his metamorphosis from moderate governor to far-right candidate.

* Fred Thompson -- The actor/lobbyist/senator doesn't seem to have any real rationale for seeking the presidency, other than the belief he might win. Thompson is at least as phony as Romney -- the red truck story should be humiliating to him -- and developed a Bush-like reputation for being lazy and incurious. He considers moving to northern Virginia "getting out of Washington" and his most valuable skill seems to be his ability to pretend to be someone else.

Actually I find Romney the least scary. His phoniness implies that he actually cares enough about what the public thinks about him to pretend to act a certain way. I suspect that would translate into a slavish devotion to the polls. Far from perfect, but beats the h*ll outta what we're stuck with now.

Personally, I pick Giuliani. That guy is nuts. You like the US Constitution? Don't vote for Giuliani.