While I prefer Thompson as Prez, I could really get along with almost any of the top GOP candidates in the job. Giuliani is a great manager, but I think Thompson’s “back in your face” style is better suited to the top post. So a Thompson/Giuliani or Giuliani/Thompson ticket would be a coin toss for me.

Romney is also a fine manager with good leadership skills, but he’s almost too nice/diplomatic for the job (face it, GWB’s aw-shucks, turn the other cheek personality hasn’t been the greatest for the GOP). This and his Olympic Games experience, does make him perfect for Sec of State though.

Hunter is virtually without skeletons in his closet, likely the reason for the media blackout on him, his conservative credentials are the purest of the bunch, and experience on the Armed Services Committee is valuable in today’s world. But without recognition outside of California and the military community, he doesn’t have much chance, so sign him on as Sec of Defense.

As for the RINOs in the bunch, McCain perennially and Huckabee newfound, they’d still be better than any combination of HildObama.

Hell, even Ron Paul could be thrown a bone and be put in charge of the OMB to bring some fiscal conservatism back to the GOP.

The leftist media like to point out that GOP voters are widely distributed across the field of candidates, implying that none of the candidates have sufficient following, I prefer to view it as none of them are disliked enough to narrow the field much further until the primary voting starts.

On the other side of the aisle, however, there are only two candidates that appear tolerable to the Dem voters, one a hawkish, admitted socialist, the other a complete rookie. When you bring in the irrelevant attributes (she’s a woman, he’s black) on top of the above factors, that likely loses a big part of the swing vote. At this point, the only viable Dem ticket is Hillary/Obama, and my bet is that more moderate/traditional Dems would rather stay home than hold their noses long enough to vote a HildObama ticket.

For Thompson to have any chance at all, he must exceed expections. He can’t come in 3rd 19 points behind the winner. That does crap for him.

A second place finish would help him immensely.

Is there a reason you didn’t read this in the article? Could it be that you failed to read the entire piece?

Sorry, I don’t draw pictures on this site.