Sen. Robert Dole: Mean. The Kansas Senator is already diving into trouble with the vice president calling him a liar in New Hampshire and viciously attacking him on the floor of the Senate last week. Now that Dole is going on the offensive, his malevolent approach may damage his image as powerfully as it did in his bid for the vice presidency on the Ford ticket in 1976. What a guy to negiotiate peace treaties-- watch out Gorbachev!
Dole is also very strong going into the South. With the benefits of his wife Elizabeth's North Carolinian background and his popularity among farmers, Dole has a basis for muscling voter support.
Rev. Marion (Pat) Robertson: Messiah. Although the "hand of God" did not pull enough levers in New Hampshire, Robertson has an incredibly strong organization in the South. He has converted -- and registered -- unprecedented numbers of new Republicans from the ranks of the Democratic party and nonvoters.
Unfortunately for Robertson, as the campaign wears on, he will have to seriously address the issues and at some point, the voters will no longer accept his inflamatory and disbased statements, like those made last week about Soviet missiles in Cuba. Eventually, spiritual power alone will not be satisfactory, and he will need some real political strength.
Rep. Jack Kemp: Multi-flex. The famous former Buffalo Bills quarterback sees himself as the only candidate flexible enough to unify the three feuding factions of the Republican Party: the Reaganites, the New Right, and the Robertson Evangelicals. Unfortunately, no one seems to appreciate his flexibility--including most voters in each faction.
Even his third place finish in Tuesday's primary was only a minor victory. The two fourth place finishers, and du Pont, were only three percentage points behind Kemp. Consequently, the New York Congressman's days are numbered; he has little momentum, less money, and no real prospect.
Pierre (Pete) du Pont Maniac. This guy is just wasting his time. The Republican Party has many stong candidates and he is not one of them. Need I say anymore?