My order of preference:
1. Sarah Palin - A great conservative, saavy politician, and an appeal to women’s votes.
2. Bobby Jindal - A great conservative, youthful, very smart, ethnic minority. A negative is that he is needed in Louisiana.
3. Kasich - Genuine conservative, young, personable and may help in Ohio, which is essential for a republican win.
4. Cantor - Like Kasich, but from VA. The pubs need VA less than OH.
5. Tim Pawlenty - Basically colorless, he neither adds nor detracts.
6. Mitt Romney - Good executive experience, successful businessman, has questionable conservative credentials. That, combined with some evangelicals who oppose him because of his Mormon religion, means he will cause McCain to lose votes.
7. Crist - Questionable conservative credentials, some executive experience, may cause some conservatives to not vote.
8. Tom Ridge - Pro-abort Politician, may help in PA, but will lose oodles of votes due to abortion view.
9. Joe Lieberman - Extremely liberal, except for the war on terror. May gain some independents and Democrats, but will lose so many conservatives that it won’t matter.
Thank you for sharing your preferences without smearing those you feel less enthusiastic toward. I think you make a clear case for each contender. Everyone has an up and down side and in an election all flaws will be revealed. I would rather make the opposition research do their own work against who ever McCain selects as his VP.