I've been thinking about this question, and I don't really know where to begin. I vote based on who I am and what I believe, and that's not an easy thing to sum up in a comment. I found a quiz on the issues, however, which illustrates some of my reasons:
92% Mike Gravel 91% Dennis Kucinich 79% John Edwards 75% Barack Obama 74% Chris Dodd 73% Joe Biden 71% Hillary Clinton 65% Bill Richardson 36% Rudy Giuliani 32% Ron Paul 27% John McCain 20% Mitt Romney 19% Mike Huckabee 19% Tom Tancredo 10% Fred Thompson
As you can see, Obama is actually not far enough left for my tastes, but as the most viable candidate whom I agree with (75% of the time), I see no other sensible option. I encourage you to take a look at the quiz if you're wondering what sort of issues it covers. But for the record, I loathe--almost without exception--the direction this country has taken over the past seven and a half years, and I see a McCain presidency as a continuation of the same. I used to have some respect for McCain, but over the last 4-6 years his "maverick" image has become tarnished, in my view, as he has rushed to placate the radical right. As you can see, I agree with him on about 20% of the issues as outlined by this quiz, so between him and Obama, again, there is only one sensible option for me.
no subject
92% Mike Gravel
91% Dennis Kucinich
79% John Edwards
75% Barack Obama
74% Chris Dodd
73% Joe Biden
71% Hillary Clinton
65% Bill Richardson
36% Rudy Giuliani
32% Ron Paul
27% John McCain
20% Mitt Romney
19% Mike Huckabee
19% Tom Tancredo
10% Fred Thompson
2008 Presidential Candidate Matching Quiz
As you can see, Obama is actually not far enough left for my tastes, but as the most viable candidate whom I agree with (75% of the time), I see no other sensible option. I encourage you to take a look at the quiz if you're wondering what sort of issues it covers. But for the record, I loathe--almost without exception--the direction this country has taken over the past seven and a half years, and I see a McCain presidency as a continuation of the same. I used to have some respect for McCain, but over the last 4-6 years his "maverick" image has become tarnished, in my view, as he has rushed to placate the radical right. As you can see, I agree with him on about 20% of the issues as outlined by this quiz, so between him and Obama, again, there is only one sensible option for me.