Intro. I watched the Republican Presidential Debate last night, as well as Trump’s Tucker Carlson Interview. In this article, I’ll share a summary of each of their views on key issues such as faith, sanctity of life, domestic & foreign policy, and even school choice. The tone of the debate was much more refreshing than years past debates – Perhaps it was because I was watching a debate between candidates that will soon have to throw their support to the Republican party nominee that moves forward, as opposed to a debate between Republicans versus Democrats. Thus far, a third party has failed to rise to the ranks of the highest level of political power. I liked the overall theme of moving forward, as expressed by more than one candidate.

A little OT history. I’ve been reading through the Bible’s Old Testament. Going back to Judges, Israel put themselves in the spot of demanding a King to be like the other nations. It wasn’t God’s original plan for them as He had established Moses, the Law, and Judges to govern the people and show them their propensity towards sin. However, God allowed Saul to be appointed; he was an evil King. Lately, my reading has been concentrated on Kings and Chronicles. What stands out to me the most is how nations rose or fell based on their leader’s belief in God and that leader’s inclination towards evil or righteousness. Although there were some Kings counted as righteous, most others increasingly did more and more evil, leading the people further astray. Whether it was through the worship of other Gods like Baal, child sacrifice to Molech, or a general weakening of the Levitical priesthood to the point where just anyone was placed into the office of priesthood under King Jeroboam (1 Kings 13:33), this cycle continued until the eventual fall of Israel altogether in 2 Kings 17, starting at verse 7. Eventually, Jesus came through the lineage of David, as the King of Kings. Ultimately, God is sovereign and regardless of who gets their consecutive 8 years in the oval office, or who gets re-elected for a second term, or who gets appointed and voted in as a fresh face, God is sovereign, and Jesus is the King.

Looking for Vintage Virtues. With that at the forefront, when I look for a candidate I can support, I primarily look to their faith first. It’s important to me that a candidate is a Christian, with a professing faith. One who believes Jesus is the only way by which we come to God. Their leadership has the potential to lead our nation with strength or to lead Americans further astray. I look for Vintage Virtues or traditional values in the one whom I trust to lead me and the nation I live in. One of the fruits of the Christian faith is the value that person places on human life. I want to know that at their core, that person values the sanctity of life and cannot, in good conscience, blanketly support abortion at the federal level. Other key issues for me are domestic and foreign policy and school choice. In this article, I’ve laid out those views as expressed by the candidates. It is not all-encompassing.

The Republican Candidates. Although some candidates performed strongly, others fell flat. Trump did not attend the debate, instead appearing in a one-on-one interview with Tucker Carlson on debate night. Yet, polls show Trump has a 44-point lead. While Trump remains a front-runner of the Republican party, not all Republicans are in favor of Trump due to his 2020 election loss and criminal indictments. Here are the stances I heard through the debate or researched online:

Ron DeSantis – Florida governor. Catholic. Pro-life, signed heartbeat bill, ban on abortion after 6 weeks. Domestically, he removed officials that were elected by George Soros, who were not prosecuting crime, and with reforms, crime is now at a 50-year low in Florida. He’s also vehemently opposed to deep state lockdowns. He wants to reserve foreign funding for protecting domestic borders. He stands for kids, is committed to moving schools in the direction of a focus on solid academics, ridded schools of critical race theory and gender ideology in their curriculum and wants to increase civics in classrooms and support of American values.

Chris Christie – Former New Jersey governor. Catholic. Believes abortion shouldn’t be a federal issue, believes states should decide. On foreign policy, Christie stated that he went to Ukraine and reported on severe crime in Russia and reeducation of Ukrainian children. He stated that the conduct of Trump was beneath the office of the US president, whether Trump was right or wrong.

Tim Scott – South Carolina Senator. Evangelical Christian. Quoted scripture in the debate. “100% pro-life.” He believes that we should model the behavior that we want others to follow. Domestically, he wants to focus on strengthening the American economy by bringing new jobs to America, protecting the environment, securing our borders – not the IRS, and encouragement that the American Dream is real as evidenced by his rise from an impoverished single household. He stated that he cut taxes by $4,000 on average but he did approve trillions during the Trump administration (due to Covid). He believes that the solution to guns and school shootings is to lock up criminals, including prosecuting Hunter Biden for gun permit falsification, as he believes the law should apply to all. He said we should also fight against the weaponization of our current Department of Justice against school board parents. He stated that Men should not participate in Women’s sports.

Vivek Ramaswamy – Entrepreneur. Hindu faith. Opposes a national abortion ban but supports 6-week state bans. Domestically, he thinks we need more cops on the streets to combat violence and that we need to reopen mental health institutions with a faith-based approach, not just pharmaceuticals. He stated that he’s looking for a “revolution” and that we are “living in a dark moment.” On foreign policy, he said that Russia is not a communist nation because the USSR fell in 1996, and that he doesn’t want another no-win war with Russia and the Ukraine situation. He called the other candidates super PAC puppets and stated that climate change is a hoax. He is pro-school choice and believes that every student should be able to pass a citizenship test. He supports the nuclear family and believes that the federal government supports single women, incentivizing them to not have a man in the home. He believes we need smaller government and wants to eliminate many federal agencies. He stated that Trump was the best President and that there shouldn’t be the use of police force to indict Trump. He stated that he’s the only candidate that will pardon Trump.

Nikki Haley – Former U.N. ambassador. Raised Sikh Hindu converted to the Methodist Christian faith of her husband. Supports the ban on late-term abortions after 15 weeks and further elaborates that women should not be arrested for abortions. Supports the expansion of birth control access and pro-adoption policies. She wants to offer solutions to welfare states because subsidies are “not working”. On foreign policy, she’s strong due to her experience – wants to take on energy producers on climate change like China. Supports more funding for Ukraine, trying to prevent war, called Putin a murderer, accused Vivek of defunding military efforts saying he has no foreign policy experience. Supports more funding for school choice and transparency in schools. Thinks we should bring back vocational training. No boys in girl’s locker rooms! She believes that Mike Pence did the right thing with Trump regarding testifying.

Mike Pence – Former vice president, under the Trump administration. Evangelical Christian. Pro-life, staunch abortion opponent. Appointed 3 conservative Supreme Court Justices. He believes we must defend the Constitution of the United States, even when that meant he had to testify in Trump indictments but stated that he would give fair consideration to pardon Trump. Domestically, he didn’t elaborate much on the issues with drugs and homelessness, except to suggest cutting taxes. On foreign policy, he believes that we must take a stand against authoritarian leaders and lead by peace through strength.

Doug Burgum – North Dakota governor. No religious beliefs listed. Opposes a national abortion ban but signed a near-total ban at the state level in North Dakota. On domestic and foreign policy, he communicated that we can’t just talk about the economy in a silo because it’s all tied together. He stated that we’re subsidizing China because China doesn’t have enough of its own resources. Also stated that we need to lead with peace through strength and deterrence with weapons. Domestically, we don’t have enough border patrol; yet Biden wants to hire more IRS agents, an issue he doesn’t agree with. He wants to “bring back small-town values” and fight domestic drug issues. He wants to get rid of the Department of Education and overhaul school systems. On Trump, he thinks Mike Pence “did the right thing” but thinks we should focus on the future, not Trump.

Asa Hutchinson – Former Arkansas governor. Baptist Christian. Pro-life at the national level, signed 30 pieces of pro-life legislation in Arkansas. Supports a 15-week ban with exceptions. He’s fiscally conservative. He created a 2-billion-dollar surplus and reduced the size of government in Arkansas. Domestically, he said we need to offer addiction counseling for the drug crisis and confront and stop smash-and-grab criminals. He also addressed issues with Trump’s criminal ties, saying that Donald Trump is morally disqualified because the insurrection was consistent with a violation of RNC rules.

Republicans have long held common values, steeped in tradition. Faith, freedom, family, and patriotism are among the top values. We believe in upholding the Constitution of the United States of America and defense against all threats foreign and domestic. However, not all Republicans align on all issues. Therefore, it’s important to research and evaluate each candidate’s specific stance on different issues to make an informed judgment. What are your thoughts on the candidates, do their values align with your own? Let’s have a conversation.