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Discuss “Thistles and thorns”

To sort out the policy differences between the main candidates in the presidential primaries, we present here a list of the most outstanding characteristics of Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, John McCain, and Mitt Romney. Thistles go to stances on issues that will have a positive effect on the nation if that candidate is elected; thorns go to those with negative effects.

Hillary Clinton

A thistle to Clinton for recognizing the increasing expenses of American doctors and pharmaceutical companies — and proposing universal government-subsidized health care.

A thorn to Clinton for a hazy stance on Iran. In 2006, she wanted all options on the table; now she wants to rule out nukes in favor of diplomacy, but still accuses the Revolutionary Guard...

Comments

Comment 1. Justin
Feb 04, 2008 at 02:48 PM

So basically this is like "a thistle to all liberal views and a thorn to all conservative ones... and also a thorn to people who spend money on campaigning." (This going on the assumption that partisan views on bureaucracy have effectively switched.) Do you know where the candidates would be if they hadn't spent all that money on campaigning? They wouldn't be on your list.

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