As the debt-ceiling vote approaches, and the political world waits to see if congressional Republicans plan to wreck the economy, potential Republican presidential candidates are taking the opportunity to weigh in. They have to appeal to the sensibilities of their partisan fellow travelers, of course. What advice do, for instance, Tim Pawlenty and Mitt Romney have for their cohorts in Congress? Do Pawlenty and Romney along with other Republican hopefuls intend to show their fitness for the presidency by supporting policies that would plunge the country into an economic crisis, or will they support raising the debt ceiling in the name of a smoothly functioning government? Through this continually updated chart, the Prospect will let you know where the GOP candidates stand and whether that stand changes. (Percentages show the candidates' favorability among Republican voters according to a recent New York Times/CBS News poll.)
Click on the image to see where the Republican contender stands on the debt ceiling.
Mike Huckabee
"One of the things that gives this a little bit of juice for the Republicans is that Senator Barack Obama in 2006 stood on the Senate floor with an impassioned speech, saying that we should not raise the debt limit, that it was the lack of leadership, and that George Bush was just completely derelict in duty by asking Congress to raise that debt limit.
"What the Republicans need to do is to not become the bad boys but to simply take the president at his word, and say, 'Mr. President, we certainly don't think you've made this radical a change in just a few years, so we're going to take you up on it. You were right then. Rarely, do we think you're right, but by golly, we think you're right this time. We're going to do what you suggested.'
"Make him say why that things are so different that his rhetoric then doesn't match what he now says would be this catastrophic moment today."
