| Candidate | John McCain | Barack Obama | Ralph Nader | Bob Barr | Chuck Baldwin | ||
| Party | Republican | Democrat | Independent | Libertarian | Constitution | ||
| Occupation | US Senator | US Senator | Advocate; Attorney | Attorney; President of consulting firm | Pastor | ||
| Family | Divorced first wife (mother of 3) after relationship with second wife; Father of 7 | Father of two | Not Married | Has divorced twice; Father of 4 | Homeschool father of 3 children | ||
| Religious affiliation | Attends Southern Baptist (not member) | United Church of Christ | Lebanese Maronite | Methodist | Independent Baptist | ||
| HUMAN LIFE Against all Abortions except to save Mother's Life | NO (Exceptions for rape and incest) | NO | NO | YES (But, according to his second wife, he let her have an abortion) | YES | ||
| PARTIAL BIRTH ABORTIONS Opposes Partial Birth Abortions | YES | NO | NO | YES | YES | NO | |
| Supports STEM CELL RESEARCH which destroys human life | YES | YES | YES | NO | NO | YES | |
| INCOME TAX Favors a socialist progressive income tax | MIXED | YES | YES | NO | NO | ||
| GOVERNMENT INVOLVEMENT IN FREE MARKET Supports the Economic Bailout | YES | YES | NO | NO | NO | ||
| AMNESTY In Favor of Granting Amnesty to Illegal Immigrants | YES | YES | NO | NO | NO | ||
| UNITED NATIONS Supports a One World Government | YES | YES | YES | NO | NO | ||
| RESTRICTION OF LIBERTY Supports restriction of the freedom of citizens if there might be a possible threat from others | YES | YES | NO | MIXED | NO | ||
| EMINENT DOMAIN The Taking of Private Property for Public use, or for the General Betterment of Society | For public use only | For public or private use; for the general betterment of society | For public use only | Never without overwhelming public interest, public use, and fair compensation | Never without overwhelming public interest, public use, and fair compensation | ||
| TRADITIONAL MARRIAGE in Federal Laws Supports Federal Defense of Marriage Act | YES (But voted against Constitutional Ban on same sex Marriage) | NO | NO | YES (Introduced Defense of Marriage Act; but opposed to constitutional ban) | YES | ||
| TRADITIONAL MARRIAGE IN STATES Supports State Marriage Amendment in CA and FL | YES | NO | NO | YES | YES | ||
| OPPOSES GAY PRIDE Refused to Support Gay Pride Celebrations | YES | NO | NO | NO | YES | ||
| AFFIRMATIVE ACTION Supports Favoring Women and Minority Groups | MIXED | YES | YES | NO | NO | ||
| GUN RIGHTS Opposes an Assault Weapons Ban | YES | NO | NO | YES | YES | ||
| HEALTH CARE Supports the government being in charge of health care | NO | YES (But Voluntary for Adults) | YES | NO | NO | ||
| OIL Supports Expanded Drilling for Oil | YES (But voted to ban drilling in ANWR) | NO | NO | YES | YES | ||
| ALTERNATE ENERGY Supports developing alternate fuels | YES | YES | YES | YES | YES | ||
| IRAQ WAR Supports Removal of Troops from Iraq | NO | YES | YES | YES | YES | ||
| CLONING Supports Human Cloning | NO | YES (Says he voted for it accidentally) | No Stated Position | NO | NO | ||
| OPPOSES JUDICIAL LAWMAKING Supports Originalist Supreme Court Justices | YES | NO | No Stated Position | NO (If it supports liberty) | YES | ||
| BUSINESS FREEDOM Opposes Laws Forcing Business to Favor Homosexuality | YES | NO | NO | YES | YES | ||
| PARENTAL RIGHTS IN EDUCATION Supports Parental Choice of Schools in Education | YES | NO (Parents should be involved though) | YES (As long as it is a public school) | YES | YES | ||
| "Always vote for principle, though you may vote alone, and you may cherish the sweetest reflection that your vote is never lost." -- John Quincy Adams | |||||||
| Sources: ontheissues.org, votesmart.org, candidates websites, news articles, etc | |||||||