The Presidential Campaign & Mike Huckabee’s Essential Lightness of Being
What’s not to like about Mike Huckabee? Aside from some differences between he and I on a few issues, very little. Except that he is a lightweight, and two developments this week should end any talk that he is presidential timber, let alone should be considered the hottest candidate in the GOP pack.
First, the former Republican governor from Arkansas revealed, albeit unintentionally, that he was totally at sea on the major story of the moment — a National Intelligence Estimate that revealed Iran apparently had abandoned its nuclear weapons program in 2003 — and that when it comes to foreign policy he is a dunce.
Second, the former Republican governor from Arkansas revealed, again unintentionally, that his mishandling of the early release of a convicted rapist and murderer was a whole lot more problematic than it had first seemed — and that when it comes to acting appropriately under political pressure he is a dunce.
In terms of positioning himself as a viable candidate, it is difficult to know which is worse: Poor judgment in the rape case and no judgment in the case of Iran.
But since the Family Values Party seem to have lowered its moral and ethical standards in a desperate bid to hold on to power (Larry Craig stays, Rudy Giuliani is a frontrunner), I suppose the Iran gaffe is ultimately more damaging since national security is still a big deal for the GOP.
Huckabee is an open book in this area, and its pages are blank. (Then again, so it was with three other former governors — Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton.)
Huckabee recently complained to National Review magazine that he gets all wiggly over questions about that Iraq war thingie during debates:
“We still go back through it over and over and over again. I just never quite understood why we continued to plow the same ground.”
As Dick Polman notes, Huckabee sounds like an awful lot like a Democrat of yore.
It will be interesting to see if a guy who doesn’t believe in evolution can evolve himself.
In a campaign that moves at the speed of light, that may be a bridge too far for someone who has positioned himself as the anti-incumbent but isn’t giving much indication these days that he is capable of becoming one himself.
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12 Responses to “The Presidential Campaign & Mike Huckabee’s Essential Lightness of Being”
But since the Family Values Party seem to have lowered its moral and ethical standards in a desperate bid to hold on to power
Having fun gloating over the apparent demise of the ONE and ONLY party that keeps the other party in check Shaun??
Seriously the entire left is screaming for the right to meet them in the middle. Essentially saying “YOU do all the compromising” We are content with our “Animal House” philosophy. So when the GOP in an apparent attempt to take them up on their offer seems to do so by embracing a RINO…………..they are Now suddenly being greeted with a bad mouthing that they are compromising their values…….(WHICH THEY ARE.)
Yes Huckabee is a A far right conservative but that does not automatically make him the man for the job. The voters are not that stupid. Look at his numbers. Im convinced he is there for the 2012 election.
The GOP is in mass dissarray. Thank you Mr. President. Im sure Barry Goldwater and Ronald Reagan are rolling over in their graves.
Gawd help this country. There is not a single qualified candidate in the field to lead this country forward facing such earth shaking problems as global warming, the GWOT, Massive debt, Immigration problems of worldwide proportion.
The only hope is that this nation must come together in compromise to face these challenges. The only real compromising seems to be on social issues such as gay rights, abortion and gun control. These are frivilous issues in the face of world ending issues just around the corner.
This is the what the press, bloggers and the voters should be focusing on……not where someone stands on their Gay rights agenda. Because without a world there is not going to be much need for gay rights……….
Now is there???
Your anti-religious bigotry (against Huckabee and others that follow a superior moral code and are more mainstream, normal, and decent than hordes on the Left) has gone from predictable to tiresome, Shaun.
Just like Israel’s enemies, to whom Israel has engaged in nearly a one-way stream of concessions time after time.
Meanwhile, the attacks on non-liberals, especially white non-liberals, most especially religious white non-liberals here and elsewhere are worse than the typical behavior exhibited by — Jim Crow.
Neither Huckabee nor Romney are lightweights, nor do they merit the predictable scummy attacks on them. Both are proven governors (having much more credit they can claim as qualification to be President than the Left’s darling Obama has, among other things). Romney is a lightweight only insofar as he has weak conservative credentials, needed to appeal to non-liberal and especially conservative voters. Being from Massachusetts (with a sordid leftist reputation alien to this nation and to real Americans) is a black mark, as is his previously more liberal record. He can change his smile into a stern look and say, “I am a conservative” and we who know more just roll our eyes upward. (His religion is not bad or disturbing at all to those of us with intelligence, normality, and decency.)
Huckabee is proven and is consistent, true to his word, and despite the venom hurled at him by the hate-filled and the degenerate, if anything is less threatening to Democrats and liberals who are intelligent and informed (rare, we know), as he has been more willing to spend than others, comes across as somewhat liberal if you pay attention to what he has to say, is no threat to anyone but the most deranged anti-religious people, and is used to being in a state where he is forced to work with Democrats or die, effectively and politically.
More about Huckabee should be reviewed here, which avoids the scummy attacks on him and instead consists largely of his own words.
He would make a fine nominee for President if it weren’t for his religion as a source of bile from the Left (if nominated, the media and the bottom feeders on the Web would truly crucify him, pun intended), and if he were selected as VP to a more lightweight Giuliani or Romney (if Romney, expect a mountain of bigoted garbage piled atop those two poor people), there might be a chance for them to do acceptably well against Hillary Clinton and whatever puppet-order-taker, appearance-value-only person she selected as her VP. I’m no social conservative but will defend him and the rest of them as the superior people they are to the worst of those who wrongly attack such people, typically from substantially inferior moral and behavioral, and possibly mental, positions and situations.
He could also be okay as a VP choice. Note that he is a social conservative, not “far right”; the true far right has no serious presence and even less clout or influence in Washington or elsewhere — liberals need to put their delusions and distortions away and be thankful the far right isn’t in power. (Social conservatism does not make anybody “far right” any more than standard mainstream traditional American libertarianism and small-government activism does.) In fact Huckabee has a record that is accomodating to liberals and Democrats (he’s willing to spend money, for example).
Too bad — you were right about the lowering (actually, tossing aside) of standards, but wrong about the reason.
The obvious reason, obvious to those actually paying attention to what is happening, rather than substituting their wishes and other own thoughts, as some have confirmed by their own words, is a desire to defeat Hillary Clinton.
They know they’re not “in power” and in fact they’re slighted so much, including during these Bush years, that they complain about being taken for granted (assuming they’ll vote Republican and only tossing a scrap to them now and then and playing nice with them at election time, making pilgrimages to celebrities among them to get an effective “blessing”). They also know that they will not only have even less power than the little they have now if Hillary Clinton is elected, but probably they anticipate they’ll be subject to even more bigotry, hatred, slander, and other ill treatment than they’re subjected to already.
DLS:
I know that you are in full rant today and I hate to interrupt, but please note that I was rather complimentary of Huckabee in my intro to this post.
All in all, he seems like a decent chap — albeit in well over his head — and at no time did I state or intimate that his religion is an issue with me. It isn’t, although caving in to religious extremists is an issue and that is an unfortunate subtext of the Dumond affair.
I’m kind of sorry to find out what the brain under the likeable Hushabee personality is doing.
First, that little business about ID, or creationiism, sent up alarm flares. Grasping the difference between science and fiaith, even if accomodating both, is a must in a president. We;ve had some experience with a president who doesn’t get the difference already!
The rapist story could have been just bad judgement, but he ruined it whan he did the potlitical thing and blamed Democrats for his own decisions. Admitting an error rates a lot highter with me than passing the buck.
Not being aware of the most significant front page story of the day (the NIE report) is a problem of a whole new caliber. It’s like not being aware of what Katrinna was doing in NO for days on end, only much worse.
PS to Shaun:
I love the title to your post.
You and Joe have a real knack.
I’m kind of sorry to find out what the brain under the likeable Hushabee personality is doing.
Gosh Doma I wonder what would be your reaction if I said:
I’m kind of sorry to find out what the brain under the likeable Barrack Osama personality is doing.
You lefties scream about this behavior then do it yourself. I stand amazed at the double standards you guys float out there.
Don’t worry, Shaun, I have positive things to say, too, not just constructive cricticism (“ranting” in lefty-revised langage).
In many ways, yes. And,
I like what you imply about Democrats, Shaun.
Somebody-
“I’m kind of sorry to find out what the brain under the likeable Barrack Osama personality is doing.”
Although I have no idea yet who I will vote for,
if Obama said something alarming (to me) about science or anything else, I would react in the same way.
So far, Obama hasn’t alarmed me.
He seems to an intelligent and well informed guy!
What should I object to?
Transitive verb, Shaun. Heh, heh