By Janet Folger

Hello, I'm Ronald Reagan. No, I'm Ronald Reagan. Me too! Me too! And so in the Reagan Library the Republican debates begin. Will the real Ronald Reagan please stand up?

Let's start by disqualifying the easy ones. Former Gov. James Gilmore, R-Va., admitted he's for legally aborting children up to 12 weeks in their development – a full month after the child has been sucking her thumb. He's for keeping 90 percent of the killing legal. If you can find someone to point him out, please ask him to sit down.

Then there is Former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani. He's for keeping 100 percent of the killing legal: second trimester, third, even during delivery – doesn't matter to Rudy. If it's killing children, he's for it. And up until last Thursday, he wanted every one of us to pay for it. But, all of a sudden, he's quoting the Hyde Amendment, which says the taxpayers shouldn't have to foot the bill. Kind of like two weeks ago when he was for legal partial-birth abortion, but then said he liked the Supreme Court ruling that upheld the ban on it. Even if this trend continued to Election Day 2012, he'd still be a pro-abortion liberal. It was Reagan who said, "We have the duty to protect the life of an unborn child."

Giuliani's not even close to Ronald Reagan, a pro-lifer who actually liked the Christians in the Republican Party. When Giuliani was asked if we belong in the party, he said that "large groups" were "always nice," and quickly moved on to something else. I think "individuals" are "always nice," but let me quickly move on to vote for someone else. Then he hid behind the courts saying they should have proceeded unchecked in starving Terri Schiavo to death. All this coming from a guy who couldn't think of a single weakness he had – maybe they should have asked his ex-wives. No, we're a "large group" who won't be voting for you Mr. Giuliani: please sit down.

And of course, there's Former Gov. Mitt Romney, whom the media clamored over, including Peggy Noonan, who called him "statuesque" with a "presidential voice." Lenin was "statuesque" too. Thankfully, that Communist statue came tumbling down. And forget the voice; take a look at the words. No, forget the words; take a look at his actions. Interesting that Romney, the most anti-Catholic candidate of all, got a question regarding Catholics and their freedom of conscience to withhold communion. Romney said Catholics should be able to "do whatever they want." Really?

Then why did Romney:

1. Force Catholic hospitals in Massachusetts to hand out the abortion drug "Plan B" or close their doors?
2. Ignore the Catholic Action League who lobbied for a conscience clause so Catholic civil service workers wouldn't be forced to perform same-sex "marriage" ceremonies? Romney's position: Perform homosexual "marriages" or you're fired.
3. Tell Boston's largest adoption agency, Catholic Charities, they had to place vulnerable orphan children in the homes of homosexual activists or go out of business? Rather than bow to the Romney-enforced homosexual agenda, Boston Catholic Charities closed their doors. Even Michael Dukakis said Romney was wrong to force Catholics to violate their beliefs.
4. Force Catholics (and other pro-life people) to fund abortions in his (post-conversion) health-care plan that he's so "very proud" of?

And what about Terri Schiavo, who Romney agreed should be starved to death? She was a Catholic, too. As Ronald Reagan said, "Facts are stubborn things." Sit down, Mr. Romney. I don't care whom you've paid to say nice things about you; you're disqualified.

Then there is Sen. John McCain, who used to be pro-life, but now wants to fund embryonic stem cell research – that is, creating new life for spare parts at taxpayer expense. When McCain was asked about evolution, he said:

"I believe in evolution. But, I also believe, when I hike the Grand Canyon and see it at sunset, that the hand of God is there also."

McCain didn't want to look so "foolish" as to suggest that God could have actually pulled off a creation such as the Grand Canyon, but wanted to throw Him a bone with His "hand" in the sunset. Mighty nice of him.

McCain then said, "in retrospect" the judicial activism that starved Terri Schiavo to death was something that should have gone unchecked. Translation: "A disabled woman was denied even a drop of water and I'm sorry I tried to do anything about it." If they treated prisoners of war as badly as they treated Schiavo, John McCain wouldn't be here. Sit down, Mr. McCain, without even bringing up your campaign-finance "reform" gag rule, you're disqualified.

That brings us to Former Gov. Tommy Thompson of Wisconsin who couldn't give "a yes or no answer" to funding embryonic stem cell research. Funny, he didn't have a problem speaking out in favor it when he was contradicting his boss, President George W. Bush, who remains against cannibalizing human beings for "research."

Then Thompson had a right answer for the loaded question about the freedom of conscience – at first. Asked if a private employer should be able to fire a homosexual because of their homosexual behavior, Thompson said yes; however, the next day on CNN, he retracted it:

Thompson: I made a mistake. I misinterpreted the question. I thought that I answered it yes when I should have answered it no. I didn't hear, I didn't hear the question properly and I apologize. It's not my position. There should be no discrimination in the workplace, and I have never believed that. And, in fact, Wisconsin has one of the first laws, which I supported.

So now Mr. Thompson wants churches, Christian day cares, the Boy Scouts and business owners who are morally opposed to homosexuality to be forced to keep homosexual activists (how else do we know they're homosexual?) on the payroll – even if it violates their conscience, purpose and children in their care. Wrong answer; sit down, Tommy.

The above five candidates represent the status quo. Reagan put it this way: "Status quo, you know, that is Latin for 'the mess we're in.'"

Of those declared, when it comes to the Reagan Republicans, only five candidates have a Republican leg to stand on:

Sen. Sam Brownback
Former Gov. Mike Huckabee
Rep. Duncan Hunter
Rep. Ron Paul
Rep. Tom Tancredo

Brownback and Tancredo responded against a "tamper-proof" national ID card, but it wasn't until Rep. Paul explained why that Romney and Giuliani backtracked away from it:

Paul: I am absolutely opposed to a national ID card. This is a total contradiction of what a free society is all about. The purpose of government is to protect the secrecy and the privacy of all individuals, not the secrecy of government. We don't need a national ID card.

Romney and Giuliani, upon hearing the rationale, decided the ID card should be for "aliens" and "foreigners" and not U.S. citizens. Before that, they would, apparently, be fine with government workers approaching law-abiding U.S. citizens demanding, (best if read in a German accent) "Let me see your papers." Of course, Tommy Thompson would just have all our information put in a microchip in our right hand or forehead.

Liberal moderator Chris Matthews, in a "surely no one actually believes the first verse of the Bible" tone, asked, "I'm curious. Is there anybody on the stage that does not believe in evolution?" While the news reported three, after a round of calls, the forth, Duncan Hunter (not Ron Paul), was among those who stood for Creation:

• Brownback
• Tancredo
• Huckabee
• Hunter

How about this? Let's have a debate with the men still standing. Let's do it on Fox, and let's substitute Chris Mathews with anybody else at all.

By Janet L. Folger Click here for bio and archived articles