Who do you think is the strongest and weakest potential Republican candidates?

[Jbrase]

Strongest- Pawlenty. Governed a Democratic-leaning state for two terms.
Weakest- Huckabee. Crazy, governed a state most people view negatively. Also, scary to the non-base.

In between:
Romney- Would be strongest, but people are bigots and may vote against him solely because he is a Mormon.
Palin- Like Huckabee, but with a little more stupid and a little less crazy. She only gets the edge because Alaska's image is a little better than Arkansas'. Also, she may not even run, and if she does, she'll mostly be doing it for the book deal.
Johnson- Nonfactor, since he's like Paul with even less name recognition.
Newt- Smartest of the bunch, but also thoroughly unlikeable.
Thune- From small state, so not well known. However, he did beat Tom Daschle. While this won't help him at all in the general, this possibly could give him a chance in the primaries.

Why is that people keep on forgeting that he came out of baisicly nowhere and won as a republican the gubernatorial race in a state 2-1 democratic, the proceedid to win re-election.

[Magic 8-Ball]

Strongest- Pawlenty. Governed a Democratic-leaning state for two terms.
Weakest- Huckabee. Crazy, governed a state most people view negatively. Also, scary to the non-base.

In between:
Romney- Would be strongest, but people are bigots and may vote against him solely because he is a Mormon.
Palin- Like Huckabee, but with a little more stupid and a little less crazy. She only gets the edge because Alaska's image is a little better than Arkansas'. Also, she may not even run, and if she does, she'll mostly be doing it for the book deal.
Johnson- Nonfactor, since he's like Paul with even less name recognition.
Newt- Smartest of the bunch, but also thoroughly unlikeable.
Thune- From small state, so not well known. However, he did beat Tom Daschle. While this won't help him at all in the general, this possibly could give him a chance in the primaries.

Why is that people keep on forgeting that he came out of baisicly nowhere and won as a republican the gubernatorial race in a state 2-1 democratic, the proceedid to win re-election.

He rode a wave in 1994 and gubernatorial elections generally aren't as ideological as, say, senatorial elections.  It's not uncommon for a Republican to get elected in a predominately Democratic state, and vice versa.  One Republican or another, for example, has been governor of Massachsetts for 17 of the last 30 years.  Look at Weld's reelection percentage.  Do you think that he would win the Republican nomination?

Winning the presidency - hell, even the nomination - is an entirely different animal.  Once his views on things like the legalization of marijuana becomes fodder - and you better believe that Romney, Pawlenty, and the like will carpet-bomb early states during the primary - what little support will have amongst the elderly who constitute the lion's share of your party's primary voters will drop like a stone.

We don't say Johnson's a non-factor to annoy you or because we're forgetful; we do so because he's a non-factor.

[Dr. Cynic]

Strongest: Pawlenty
Weakest: Palin

[evan bayh]

STRONGEST:palin and thune
WEAKEST:pawlenty,gingrich

[Senator Robert A. Taft]

As much as I like Gary Johnson, he stands little chance of winning the nomination.  A candidate that actually cares about personal freedoms has no chance in today's Republican Party.  It's sad, but true.

[Chris B]

Strongest: Pawlenty
Weakest: Palin

[Vosem]

Strongest: Mitt Romney
Weakest: Michele Bachmann

[milhouse24]

Strongest right now: Romney because no one else is out there raising money, followed by Palin
Weakest right now: Huckabee because he can't run while he is on tv

Strongest in the future: Thune, after he wins re-election, he will devote full-time to Iowa. 
Weakest in the future: Romney, voters will find someone they like better; Palin because she won't be able to raise money.

[Anthony]

Strongest candidates:
Huckabee (I know many people on this forum will disagree with this, but from what I've seen, he is leading in many polls for the primaries, and polls also show that he is the strongest candidate to go against Obama.)
Romney (has the potential to appeal to moderates and independents, unlike certain other Republican candidates.)
Pawlenty (same reasons as Romney.)
Barbour (is a very skilled politician, and has the potential to appeal to the GOP's southern base.)

Weakest:
Palin (polls show she is the weakest of the most likely presidential candidates to go against Obama. Not to mention that it is likely that she would once again have to deal with Saturday Night Live poking fun at her each week during the campaign.)
Santorum (another candidate who would likely be a weak candidate to go against Obama, and he also lost reelection to the Senate, which isn't a good thing to have while you're running for president.)
Bachmann (same reasons as Santorum, except the part about losing reelection.)

[ARescan]

Strongest: Pawlenty, followed by Thune
Weakest: Palin, followed by Romney and Johnson

[oakvale]

Strongest: Huckabee, if the polls are to be believed.

Weakest: Ron Paul, followed by Palin.

EDIT: Or Paul substitute Gary Johnson, if you prefer.

[tarheel-leftist85]

Palin and Huckabee - Stongest

Romney - Weakest

[Guderian]

In order of strength:

Daniels, Pawlenty, Thune, Romney, Huckabee, Palin, Barbour, Paul.

[milhouse24]

In order of strength:

Daniels, Pawlenty, Thune, Romney, Huckabee, Palin, Barbour, Paul.

I would have had Daniels as a potential front-runner, but I don't think he really wants to run.  I also think his ethnic background may hurt him, or voters may choose to ignore it.

[Tender Branson]

In order of strength:

Daniels, Pawlenty, Thune, Romney, Huckabee, Palin, Barbour, Paul.

I would have had Daniels as a potential front-runner, but I don't think he really wants to run.  I also think his ethnic background may hurt him, or voters may choose to ignore it.

Dude ... we have a black President named Barack Hussein Obama who was raised as a Muslim and has referred to his mother's atheism as "healthy skepticism".  Mitch Daniels is not going to be hurt by the fact that his grandparents were Syrian Christians.

[justW353]

Strongest:  Romney, Thune

Weakest:  Palin

[SvenssonRS]

Strongest: Huckabee(I honestly think he can overcome the whole clemency issue; it only backfired once), Daniels

Weakest: Palin, Barbour

[Anthony]

In order of strength:

Daniels, Pawlenty, Thune, Romney, Huckabee, Palin, Barbour, Paul.

I would have had Daniels as a potential front-runner, but I don't think he really wants to run.  I also think his ethnic background may hurt him, or voters may choose to ignore it.

Dude ... we have a black President named Barack Hussein Obama who was raised as a Muslim and has referred to his mother's atheism as "healthy skepticism".  Mitch Daniels is not going to be hurt by the fact that his grandparents were Syrian Christians.

Hold on a second. Last I checked, Obama was raised by his mother, and later after that, by his grandparents, all of whom were Christian, I believe. And even his father did not exactly practice Islam. Therefore, he was not raised as a Muslim. Obama himself explains it in this quote:

My father was from Kenya and a lot of people in his village were Muslim. He didn’t practice Islam. Truth is he wasn’t very religious. He met my mother. My mother was a Christian from Kansas, and they married and then divorced. I was raised by my mother. So, I’ve always been a Christian. The only connection I’ve had to Islam is that my grandfather on my father’s side came from that country. But I’ve never practiced Islam.

[milhouse24]

In order of strength:

Daniels, Pawlenty, Thune, Romney, Huckabee, Palin, Barbour, Paul.

I would have had Daniels as a potential front-runner, but I don't think he really wants to run.  I also think his ethnic background may hurt him, or voters may choose to ignore it.

Dude ... we have a black President named Barack Hussein Obama who was raised as a Muslim and has referred to his mother's atheism as "healthy skepticism".  Mitch Daniels is not going to be hurt by the fact that his grandparents were Syrian Christians.

That may well be, but we are talking about the Republican Primary, and most guys who are Southern Christians or War Heroes get preferential treatment.  Daniels is a mild-mannered mid-westerner, will he be able to fight back in the primaries?

[milhouse24]

In order of strength:

Daniels, Pawlenty, Thune, Romney, Huckabee, Palin, Barbour, Paul.

I would have had Daniels as a potential front-runner, but I don't think he really wants to run.  I also think his ethnic background may hurt him, or voters may choose to ignore it.

Dude ... we have a black President named Barack Hussein Obama who was raised as a Muslim and has referred to his mother's atheism as "healthy skepticism".  Mitch Daniels is not going to be hurt by the fact that his grandparents were Syrian Christians.

Hold on a second. Last I checked, Obama was raised by his mother, and later after that, by his grandparents, all of whom were Christian, I believe. And even his father did not exactly practice Islam. Therefore, he was not raised as a Muslim. Obama himself explains it in this quote:

My father was from Kenya and a lot of people in his village were Muslim. He didn’t practice Islam. Truth is he wasn’t very religious. He met my mother. My mother was a Christian from Kansas, and they married and then divorced. I was raised by my mother. So, I’ve always been a Christian. The only connection I’ve had to Islam is that my grandfather on my father’s side came from that country. But I’ve never practiced Islam.

Did Obama explore Islam during college?  I remember he said he used to fast on Sundays, which is a muslim tradition.  He said it cleansed his body and soul.  He has a resounding Muslim name, and I think he should explore his father's roots and culture.  He seems too intellectual to be religious, but I know he attends Church because he had a crazy pastor.

[Χahar]

Fasting on Sundays is not in any sense a Muslim tradition.

[Derek]

Well Ron Paul is the weakest candidate. The strongest is dependent upon the timing of the elections. I'd say Romney right now is the strongest.

[milhouse24]

Fasting on Sundays is not in any sense a Muslim tradition.

I'm not sure why he fasted, but I wouldn't begrudge him to explore his father's faith.  He was in college after all. 

[TheGlobalizer]

Of the people who are the "leading" candidates at this point, only Pawlenty seems electable.  I think we've been through the Romney bit and he soiled his resume; Palin is unelectable at this point, barring some major accomplishment; Huckabee has been largely coopted by the Tea Party / libertarian growth in influence.

I don't think anyone else has established themselves quite yet.

Personally, my early prediction for the GOP ticket in '12 is Pawlenty/Rubio.  It fits the geography, the tone of the rhetoric at the moment (more Rubio than Pawlenty), two swingable states, Hispanic vote, etc.  I could also see Cantor as a veep, but it's more of a longshot.  Hoping somehow Paul Ryan gets on the ticket, though.  I'd love to see Ryan/Rubio paired but it's way too early for that, 2016 or 2020 would make more sense for them together on a ticket.

[Anthony]

Did Obama explore Islam during college?  I remember he said he used to fast on Sundays, which is a muslim tradition.  He said it cleansed his body and soul. 

Umm...when did he say this.