With the Iowa Caucuses slated for January 3, 2011, the Republican Presidential race is heating up. At the current time, two contenders have essentially separated themselves from the rest of the pack, Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich. Many previously formidable candidates like Michele Bachmann, Rick Perry, and Jon Huntsman have failed to gain traction in the race. Below is an analysis of the pros and cons for each candidate.
Mitt Romney:
On the positive side, Romney has experience creating wealth and investments. A graduate of both Harvard Law and Harvard Business School, he established the investment firm Bain Capital, now one of the most successful international firms. He further was the CEO of the 2002 Salt Lake Organizing Committee, helping transform them into successful Olympic Games (Mitt Romney Biography).
On the negative side, Romney is a waffle. Many argue that Romney fails to stand for anything. In 1994, while attempting to run for United States Senate in Massachusetts, Romney supported abortion to gain support in the liberal state. Now, when looking for conservative support, he claims to oppose abortion. Moreover, while Governor of Massachusetts; he supported legislation similar to the current Obama Healthcare plan, which he claims to now oppose as a candidate for the Presidency (Mitt Romney Biography).
Newt Gingrich:
On the plus side, Gingrich has a formidable educational background, having both a master’s and Ph.D. in European history from Tulane University. He also orchestrated welfare reform and a balanced budget in the 1990’s during the Clinton Administration. Since retiring from Congress, he demonstrated his ability to learn additional skills, he became a consultant and correspondent to Fox News and started American Solutions for Winning the Future, a public policy organization (NewtGingrich Biography).
On the negative, Gingrich is subject to numerous ethics scandals. In 1995, the House Ethics Committee questioned the $4.5 million advance rewarded to him to author a book. He additionally had ethics questions arise regarding a tax-exempt donation he had regarding a college course he had taught while serving in Congress. Most famous of all are Gingrich’s multiple infidelities. He cheated on his first wife with his second wife, and cheated on his second wife with his third wife while simultaneously leading the prosecution of Bill Clinton for his affair with Monica Lewinsky (Newt Gingrich Biography).
Rick Perry:
On the positive, a graduate of Texas A&M University, Governor Perry has a small town appeal and charm to him that has garnered him three consecutive terms of Governor of Texas. Further, as governor he developed a reputation as a job creator and social conservative, two aspects that appeal largely to the newly founded Tea Party aspect of the Republican Party (Rick Perry Biography).
On the negative, Perry has undergone much scrutiny throughout the campaign for his faux pas during debates. In one he could not remember the third Government agency he would eliminate if elected president. In another debate he was highly scrutinized for his support of cervical cancer vaccines for girls during their pre-teenage years. The issue was the most controversial because cervical cancer is tied to sexual intercourse (Rick Perry Biography).
I am confident that with this information, you can make much more informed decisions when voting in the forthcoming Republican Presidential Primaries.
References:
Mitt Romney Biography. http://www.biography.com/people/mitt-romney-241055.
Newt Gingrich Biography. http://www.biography.com/people/newt-gingrich-9311969.
Rick Perry Biography. http://www.biography.com/people/rick-perry-20663471