American Republican Presidential Nominees

Rudy Giuliani (Republican)

2008-01-02T23:38:00.000-08:00

Rudolph William Louis "Rudy" Giuliani (pronounced /ˈruːdi ˌdʒuːliːˈɑːni/[1]) (born May 28, 1944) is an American lawyer, businessman, and politician from the state of New York. Formerly Mayor of New York City, Giuliani is currently seeking the Republican nomination in the 2008 United States presidential election.

A Democrat and Independent in the 1970s, and a Republican from the 1980s to the present, Giuliani served in the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York, eventually becoming U.S. Attorney.

Giuliani later served two terms as Mayor of New York City (1994–2001). Giuliani gained international attention during and after the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center.[2] In 2001, Time magazine named him "Person of the Year"[3] and he received an honorary knighthood from Queen Elizabeth II in 2002.[4]

After leaving office as mayor, Giuliani founded Giuliani Partners, a security consulting business; acquired Giuliani Capital Advisors (later sold), an investment banking firm; and joined the Bracewell & Giuliani law firm, which changed its name when he became a partner. In February 2007 Giuliani filed a statement of candidacy for the Republican nomination for the 2008 presidential campaign.[5]

Rudy Giuliani (Republican) video

2008-01-02T23:37:00.000-08:00

Mike Huckabee (Republican)

2008-01-02T23:35:00.000-08:00

Michael Dale "Mike" Huckabee (born August 24, 1955) is the former governor of the U.S. state of Arkansas from 1996 to 2007.[2] He officially announced his candidacy for the 2008 United States presidential election on January 28, 2007.

Huckabee is the author of several books, an ordained Southern Baptist minister, a public speaker, and a musician, playing bass guitar in his rock-and-roll band Capitol Offense. He is well known for losing 110 pounds (50 kg) in a very short time and then advocating a healthy lifestyle.[3] He and his wife, Janet, have three grown children: David, John Mark, and Sarah.

Huckabee was born in Hope, Arkansas, to Mae Elder and Dorsey W. Huckabee. His father worked as a fireman and mechanic and his mother worked as a clerk in a gas company.[4] He has one sister who is a middle school teacher.[5] Huckabee's first job, at 14, was working at a radio station where he would read the news and weather.[6] He was elected Governor of Arkansas Boys State in 1972 and is a Hugh O'Brian Youth Leadership Alumnus. He was president of Hope High School in 1973.[7]

He married his wife Janet McCain on May 25, 1974.[5] He graduated magna cum laude from Ouachita Baptist University, completing his bachelor's degree in Religion in 2½ years before attending Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas where he dropped out after one year.[8][9] [10] He has two honorary doctoral degrees: a Doctor of Humane Letters, received from John Brown University in 1991, and a Doctor of Laws from Ouachita Baptist University in 1992.

Mike Huckabee (Republican) Video

2008-01-02T23:33:00.000-08:00

Duncan Hunter (Republican)

2008-01-02T23:31:00.000-08:00

Duncan Lee Hunter (born May 31, 1948) is an American politician who has been a Republican member of the House of Representatives since 1981 from California's 52nd congressional district in northern and eastern San Diego. It was previously numbered the 42nd District from 1981 to 1983 and then the 45th District from 1983 to 1993. Hunter was the chairman of the House Armed Services Committee during the 109th Congress. Hunter is currently seeking the Republican Party nomination for President of the United States.

Hunter was born in Riverside, California to Lola L. Young and Robert Olin Hunter.[2] He graduated from Rubidoux High School in Riverside in 1966.[3] He attended the University of Montana from 1966–1967,[4] and then briefly the University of California, Santa Barbara,[4] before enlisting in the United States Army in 1969.[5]

He served in South Vietnam from 1970 to 1971 during the Vietnam War[6] in the Army Rangers' 75th Ranger Regiment, attached to the 173rd Airborne Brigade.[7] He participated in 24 helicopter assaults[5] as well as in small-number, night-time reconnaissance patrols.[8] He held the rank of First Lieutenant,[6] and was awarded the Bronze Star Medal, [5] Air Medal,[6] and service ribbons such as the Vietnam Service Medal.[6] He has said, "I didn't do anything special in the U.S. Army, but I served with very special soldiers I will never forget."[6]

Utilizing the G.I. Bill in 1973, he enrolled at Thomas Jefferson School of Law (at the time known as the San Diego campus of the Western State University College of Law) and earned a Bachelor of Science in Law and Juris Doctor in 1976. Hunter worked farming and construction jobs to supplement his income while finishing his degree. After graduation, he opened a storefront legal office where he often provided free legal assistance to the area's Hispanic community. He was admitted to the State Bar of California on December 22, 1976,[9] but has held inactive status since January 1, 1983.[9][10]

Hunter married the former Lynne Layh in 1973. Hunter's son, Duncan Duane Hunter (born 1977), a First Lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps, was deployed to Iraq in 2003 and 2004. Hunter has another son, Samuel. His family attends First Baptist Church of Alpine, which is affiliated with the San Diego Southern Baptist Association. Hunter's Alpine, California home burned down during the October 2003 Cedar Fire. The loss topped $500,000, but insurance covered most of it.[11] Hunter was rather critical of then-Governor Gray Davis's response to the fire.

Duncan Hunter (Republican) video

2008-01-02T23:30:00.001-08:00

John McCain (Republican)

2008-01-02T23:26:00.000-08:00

John Sidney McCain III (born August 29, 1936) is the senior United States Senator from Arizona and a candidate for the Republican Party nomination in the 2008 presidential election.

Both McCain's grandfather and father were Admirals in the United States Navy. McCain also attended the United States Naval Academy and finished near the bottom of his graduating class in 1958. McCain became a naval aviator flying attack aircraft from carriers. Participating in the Vietnam War, he narrowly escaped death during the 1967 Forrestal fire. On his twenty-third bombing mission over North Vietnam later in 1967, he was shot down and badly injured. He became a prisoner of war. He endured five and a half years of captivity, including periods of torture, before he was released following the Paris Peace Accords in 1973.

Retiring from the Navy in 1981 and moving to Arizona, McCain soon entered politics. In 1982 he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from Arizona's 1st congressional district. After serving two terms there, he was elected to the U.S. Senate from Arizona in 1986. He was subsequently re-elected Senator in 1992, 1998, and 2004. While generally an adherent to American conservatism, McCain established a reputation as a political maverick for his willingness to defy Republican orthodoxy on several issues. Surviving the Keating Five scandal of the 1980s, he made campaign finance reform one of his signature concerns, which eventually led to the passing of the McCain-Feingold Act in 2002.

McCain was a candidate in the 2000 presidential election, but was defeated by George W. Bush for the Republican nomination after closely contested battles in several early primary states. In the 2008 presidential election, he was the front-runner as the cycle began, but suffered a near collapse of his campaign in mid-2007 due to financial issues and his support for comprehensive immigration reform. He is attempting a comeback as the 2008 primaries begin.

John McCain (Republican) video

2008-01-02T23:24:00.000-08:00

Ron Paul (Republican)

2008-01-02T23:22:00.000-08:00

Ronald Ernest "Ron" Paul (born August 20, 1935) is a Republican United States Congressman from Lake Jackson, Texas, a physician, and a 2008 U.S. presidential candidate.

Originally from Green Tree, Pennsylvania, he has represented Texas districts in the U.S. House of Representatives (1976–1977, 1979–1985, and 1997–present). Paul placed a distant third in the 1988 presidential election, running as the Libertarian nominee while remaining a registered Republican. After his 1961 graduation from Duke University School of Medicine and a residency in obstetrics and gynecology, he became a U.S. Air Force flight surgeon, serving outside the Vietnam War zone.

Paul has been described as conservative, Constitutionalist, and libertarian.[2] He advocates a non-interventionist foreign policy, having voted against actions such as the Iraq War Resolution, but in favor of force against terrorists in Afghanistan. He favors withdrawal from NATO and the United Nations. Having pledged never to raise taxes, he has long advocated ending the federal income tax and reducing government spending by abolishing most federal agencies; he favors hard money and opposes the Federal Reserve. He also opposes the Patriot Act, the federal War on Drugs, and gun control. Paul is strongly pro-life, advocates overturning Roe v. Wade, and affirms states' rights to determine the legality of abortion.[3]

Throughout his 2008 presidential campaign, Paul has been a leading candidate in Republican straw polls, though he has had substantially lower numbers in landline opinion polls. He has strong Internet support, leading in web searches and YouTube subscriptions. On December 16, 2007, Paul had the largest one-day fundraiser in U.S. political history, raising over $6 million in 24 hours through a grassroots effort, organized independently from the official campaign.

Ron Paul (Republican) video

2008-01-02T23:19:00.000-08:00

Mitt Romney (Republican)

2008-01-02T23:15:00.000-08:00

Willard Mitt Romney (born March 12, 1947) is an American businessman and politician from the state of Michigan and later Massachusetts. Formerly the 70th Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Romney is currently seeking the Republican nomination in the 2008 United States presidential election.[1]

Romney is a former CEO of Bain & Company, a management consulting firm, and the co-founder of Bain Capital, a private equity investment firm. After a life in business and as the CEO of the 2002 Winter Olympics, Romney was elected as Massachusetts Governor in 2002. Romney served one term and did not seek re-election in 2006; his term expired January 4, 2007.

Mitt Romney is the son of former Michigan Governor and 1968 presidential candidate George W. Romney, and 1970 U.S. Senate candidate Lenore Romney. He was named "Willard" after hotel magnate J. Willard Marriott, his father's best friend.[3] Mitt, his middle name, comes from his father's cousin Milton, who played quarterback for the Chicago Bears from 1925 to 1929.[4] Mitt Romney has three older siblings: Lynn Romney Keenan, Jane Romney Robinson, and G. Scott Romney.[5] He has been involved in politics from an early age, having joined his father in pro-civil rights marches.[6]

Mitt Romney graduated from the Cranbrook School in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan in 1965.[7] After attending Stanford University for two quarters, Romney served in France for 30 months as a missionary for LDS Church.[8] In June 1968, Romney was involved in a serious car accident while driving fellow missionaries in southern France. Another vehicle hit Romney's car head on; the fault for the accident, which left one person dead, has been attributed to the driver of the other vehicle.[9]

After his mission service, Romney attended Brigham Young University, where he graduated as valedictorian, earning his Bachelor of Arts degree summa cum laude in 1971. In 1975, Romney graduated from a joint Juris Doctor/Master of Business Administration program coordinated between Harvard Law School and Harvard Business School. He graduated cum laude from the law school and was named a Baker Scholar for graduating in the top five percent of his business school class.

Mitt Romney (Republican) video

2008-01-02T23:13:00.000-08:00

Tom Tancredo

2008-01-02T23:09:00.000-08:00

Thomas Gerard Tancredo (born December 20, 1945) is an American politician, and member of the Republican Party. Tancredo has been a member of the United States House of Representatives since 1999, representing the 6th Congressional District of Colorado. Tancredo rose to national prominence for his strong stance against illegal immigration.[1] He was a declared candidate for the 2008 presidential race who was known for his hardline stance against both legal (in terms of rapid assimilation) and illegal immigration.[2]

Tancredo won re-election in 2006 against Democratic challenger Bill Winter by a 59%-40% margin. The district includes most of Denver's southern suburbs.

On October 28, 2007, Tancredo announced that he would not seek re-election to his Congressional seat.[3] Tancredo announced on his 62nd birthday December 20, 2007 that he was dropping out of the presidential race as well.

Tancredo was born in Denver, Colorado to Adeline Lombardi and Gerald Tancredo. Both sets of his grandparents immigrated from Italy.[5] He graduated from the University of Northern Colorado with a degree in political science. While in college, Tancredo was active with the College Republicans and a conservative, nonpartisan organization, Young Americans for Freedom (YAF). Tancredo was in favor of the Vietnam War and spoke in support of the conflict as a Republican student activist. He became eligible to serve in Vietnam after graduating from the University of Northern Colorado in June 1969. Tancredo has said he went for his physical, telling doctors he'd been treated for depression, and eventually got a "1-Y" deferment[6]. In 1976, while teaching history at Drake Junior High School in Denver, he ran for and won a seat in the Colorado House of Representatives. He served two terms (1977–1981) and was one of the leaders of a vocal group of conservative legislators opposing the policies of Colorado Governor Dick Lamm[7]. During the 1970s, Tancredo pioneered opposition to bilingual education, an issue that would remain a feature of his political orientation.

After Ronald Reagan became president in 1981, Tancredo was appointed by the President to be the regional representative in Denver for the Department of Education. He stayed on from 1981 until 1992, through the first Bush administration, and pared the office's staff from 225 to only 60 employees. In 1993, he became president of the Independence Institute, a conservative think tank based in Golden, Colorado, serving there until his election to Congress. He was also a leader in the Colorado term limits movement.

After Dan Schaefer decided not to run for a seventh full term in the 6th Congressional District in 1998, Tancredo narrowly won the five-way Republican primary and went on to victory in November. He is only the second person to represent the 6th District since its creation in 1983 (former astronaut Jack Swigert was elected as the district's first congressman in 1982, but died before taking office). Despite his promise to serve only three terms in Congress,[8][9][10] he later decided to run for a fourth term and won re-election.

A former Roman Catholic, Tancredo is now a member of the Evangelical Presbyterian Church.[11] Tancredo is married to Jackie Tancredo. They met at Drake Junior High School as teachers, and married in 1977.[12] They have two children and five grandchildren.

Tom Tancredo (Republican) video

2008-01-02T23:08:00.001-08:00

Fred Thompson (Republican)

2008-01-02T22:59:00.000-08:00

Fred Dalton Thompson (born Freddie Dalton Thompson[1][2] on August 19, 1942) is an American politician, lawyer, lobbyist and character actor. He represented Tennessee as a Republican in the U.S. Senate from 1994 through 2002 and is a candidate for the 2008 Republican nomination for President of the United States.

Thompson is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and a Visiting Fellow with the American Enterprise Institute, specializing in national security and intelligence.[3][4] He resides in McLean, Virginia, near Washington, D.C.[5]

As an actor, Thompson has performed in film and on television. He has frequently portrayed governmental figures.[6] In the final months of his U.S. Senate term in 2002, Thompson joined the cast of the long-running NBC television series Law & Order, playing New York City District Attorney Arthur Branch, until he asked to be released from his contract in May 2007. The network granted his request.[7]

Fred Thompson (Republican) video

2008-01-02T22:56:00.000-08:00