After a one day delay, the Republican National Convention primetime speakers will finally take the stage. Here are the faces you will see tonight:
John Boehner
You know him because: He's the speaker of the House.
He doesn't want you to remember: While the House members were deliberating tax subsidies in 1995, Boehner distributed campaign checks from tobacco industry lobbyists to several representatives on the House floor—violating House rules.
Why Republicans love him: He refused to compromise with President Barack Obama and Democrats and raise taxes during the debt ceiling crisis in the summer of 2011, eventually calling off a "grand bargain" with Obama that would have ended the impasse.
Democrats don't like him because: He led the Republicans in capturing the majority in the House.
Reince Priebus
You know him because: He's chairman of the Republican National Committee.
He doesn't want you to remember: In 2010 when Priebus was chairman of the Wisconsin Republican Party, he referred to the "execution" of Obama three separate times during a conference call with reporters. Afterwards he clarified the slips and said he had meant "Osama" [bin Laden] instead of "Obama."
Why Republicans love him: As head of the RNC, Priebus has cut the party's debt in half and has been a champion fundraiser.
Democrats don't like him because: Priebus most recently irked Democrats by saying Obama "has blood on [his] hands" when it comes to destroying Medicare and that Republicans are not to blame for the entitlement program's uncertain future.
[See a Slideshow of The 11 Most Memorable Political Convention Speeches.]
Mia Love
You know her because: Love is the mayor of a small town in Utah and is running for a seat in the U.S. House. If elected, she would be the first of a black Republican woman in the House.
Why Republicans love her: African-American females are an almost non-existent Republican voting bloc and her election would continue the GOP's effort to diversify their representation and party base. She is also a Mormon and could help bring in good publicity for Romney's religion.
Why Democrats don't like her: She opposes government entitlement programs and has pledged that upon joining the Congressional Black Caucus she would take it apart "from the inside out."
Janine Turner
You know her because: Turner is an actress who has appeared in several television shows including Northern Exposure, Strong Medicine, and Friday Night Lights.
Why Republicans love her: She's a die-hard Sarah Palin fan.
Why Democrats don't like her: She speaks out against what she claims is the "liberal bias" in the media.
Rick Santorum
You know him because: A former U.S. senator from Pennsylvania and 2012 presidential candidate, Santorum won the Iowa caucuses and several other primaries before dropping out of the race in April.
He doesn't want you to remember: While campaigning in March, Santorum said, "I don't care what the unemployment rate is going to be," in his defense of the importance of healthcare as a campaign issue.
Why Republicans love him: Santorum is an outspoken promoter of "traditional" family values and doesn't support same-sex marriage or abortion. He also doesn't believe in the separation of church and state.
Why Democrats don't like him: Santorum strongly opposes gay marriage and compared homosexual acts to both bestiality and pedophilia.
[See a collection of political cartoons on the 2012 campaign.]
Cathy McMorris Rodgers
You know her because: A representative from Washington, she was selected by Romney as his House liaison. She also holds clout as the vice-chair of the House Republican Conference and the highest ranking Republican woman in the House.
Why Republicans love her: She has become a leading voice regarding women and the Republican Party, and highlights the fact that Republicans won the women's vote in 2010.
Democrats don't like her because: She dismisses the "war on women" as a "myth" and claims Democrats invented it to distract voters from the real issues in the campaign.
Reader Comments (