How Big Of A Factor Will The Baggage Of The Republican Presidential Candidates Become?

Nagging values, position, religion, family difficulty, divorce, adultery and other questions seem to hang around as major issues among many voters in the more socially conservative community that is known as the Republican Party voters. These voters are being asked to choose among a group of candidates with more personal baggage than ever for a group of Republican presidential candidates.

Among those voters who comprise the conservative voters of the religious right, the search for an acceptable candidate is especially difficult this year. Hard core political conservatives opposed to more liberalized immigration policies may begin to favor Congressman Duncan Hunter, however he is so far down in the polls that he cannot be considered a really viable candidate. It is among the top tier Republican candidates that the real question remains for many GOP voters.

Mitt Romney would seem to normally seem be the most likely to gain the votes of conservative voters. But his history of flip-flops on issues dealing with the gay community and other issues has alarmed many conservative voters. However, it is his Mormon faith that has become the biggest obstacle for Romney to overcome so far.

One possible conservative candidate not in the current running is Newt Gingrich, however a new interview with a religious right program revealed that he was having an affair at the very same time he he was critical of Bill Clinton's inappropriate relationship with Monica Lewinsky. Revelations of an affair while his current wife was dying from cancer in a hospital bed cannot endear Gingrich to many women or conservative voters and be a good issue with conservative voters. And Gingrich has a history of ethical problems that forced him to resign his seat from Congress as well, which isn't a good issue at all.

John McCain would seem to be a good candidate, but he has been remarried, and now has a reputation as a flip-flopper on issues, as well as a support for a policy on Iraq that is to the right of the Bush Administration's own policy. Even among Republican voters, there is a growing mood for the situation in Iraq to reach acceptable conclusions that leave the nation and region stable so that the Republican Party can go on to other issues.

Rudolph Giuliani is the most popular of the Republican candidates, and still the most likely of all to be elected. However, new revelations that his son, Andrew, strongly dislikes him, is very unsettling. His multiple marriages, as well positions that are seen as liberal for a Republican such as support for abortion, gun control and Gay rights, all are not helpful among many GOP voters, especially the more conservative ones.

Of all the Republican candidates, Giuliani is still the most likely to win the nomination and to be elected president. However, will all of his political baggage become a drag as the campaign wears on? This is a good question. But if Giuliani is matched up against Hillary Clinton for example, could this negate some of the ethics questions surrounding the Clintons a bit? Unlike any past year, Republican voters, then the general pool of voters will have more character questions to answer than most years for the major Republican candidates.