ChristiansUnite Forums

Huckabee
in GOP top tier 
Former Arkansas governor surges
ahead of Romney in latest survey

Rasmussen Reports, a top political polling firm, is adding former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee to its daily tracking of top tier GOP presidential candidates following a surge that pushed him past former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.

Rasmussen – the nation's most accurate polling firm during the 2004 presidential election and the only one to project both Bush and Kerry vote totals to within half a percent of their actual outcomes – said today "for the first time ever," Huckabee moved into the top four.

"Rudy Giuliani remains precariously atop the pack with support from 20 percent of Likely Republican Primary Voters nationwide. Fred Thompson is close behind at 19 percent while John McCain enjoys a second straight day in third place with 14 percent of the vote," the report said.

"Huckabee continues to gain ground and is just two points behind McCain at 12 percent. This is the first time all year that Huckabee has surpassed Mitt Romney. The former Massachusetts governor slipped another point and he is now at just 11 percent nationally," Rasmussen said.

Because of the surge, "Rasmussen Reports will add his results to the daily tracking history table starting on Monday," the election analysts said.

In addition to the nationwide results, Rasmussen said, Huckabee, along with Romney and McCain, could derive good news from the state poll for New Hampshire, where Thompson was in decline.

"Currently, Giuliani and Thompson lead in national polls; Romney and Huckabee lead in Iowa; and Romney and Giuliani lead in New Hampshire. Thompson is seen as the most conservative candidate and Giuliani still holds a slight edge as the most electable. In both Iowa and New Hampshire, most voters say they could still change their mind before voting. The Republican race is wide open," the report said.

The company's results are from survey interviews conducted over the four previous days, and each update includes about 600-650 likely Republican primary voters. The margin of error for the polls is plus-or-minus 4 percent, while the confidence level is 95 percent.

Michael Barone, senior writer for U.S. News & World Report and co-author of "The Almanac of American Politics," noted that the Republican victory in 2004 and the Democrat victory in 2006 show one thing: "The best place to look for polls that are spot on is RasmussenReports.com."

"There is no question Rasmussen produces some of the most accurate and reliable polls in the country today," added University of Virginia Prof. Larry Sabato.

The Huckabee poll surge also was accompanied by a sudden increase in online donations through the candidate's website, a staffer confirmed to WND. All of that followed an endorsement by WND columnist Chuck Norris.

"Though Giuliani might be savvy enough to lead people, Fred Thompson wise enough to wade through the tides of politics, McCain tough enough to fight terrorism, and Romney business-minded enough to grow our economy, I believe the only one who has all of the characteristics to lead America forward into the future is ex-Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee," the "Walker, Texas Ranger" star wrote.

Alice Stewart, a spokeswoman for Huckabee, confirmed there was a significant surge in online donations after the Norris endorsement.

"I can't give you specific numbers," she told WND. "But the fundraiser hits have increased dramatically since Mr. Norris endorsed Gov. Huckabee." Those "fundraiser hits" are inquiries from individuals seeking to hold a fundraiser for the candidate, she said.

Huckabee previously had been among the "second tier" of GOP candidates behind leaders Giuliani, Thompson, McCain and Romney.

Last month, WND reported Huckabee took the top position in a straw poll conducted at the groundbreaking Values Voter Presidential Debate, where candidates were asked their positions on abortion, terrorism, free speech, free exercise of religion and other issues.

The three-hour debate was posted on the Internet by the American Family Association.

In addition to Huckabee, Sen. Sam Brownback of Kansas, former ambassador Alan Keyes, businessman John Cox and Reps. Ron Paul of Texas, Tom Tancredo of Colorado and Duncan Hunter of California were in attendance.

Missing were Giuliani, Thompson, Romney and McCain.

Janet Folger, president of the Faith2Action organization which worked on the debate, said Huckabee received 63 percent, more votes than all the other candidates combined. No-show candidates – the top four, according to national surveys – were included in the poll.

In an interview with WND, Huckabee said the fight with terror won't end in a draw, and the U.S. must continue its work.

"There's no peaceful co-existence, there's no accommodation, there's no naïve nonsense that if we leave them alone they leave us alone. This is a war someone will win and someone will lose," he told WND during the one-on-one discussion.

"Whoever perseveres and whoever has the strongest will, will in fact win and that's why we can't give up," he said.

Regarding another attack on America, he said, "There's almost an inevitability, not just a possibility. It will happen again. And it'll happen because we face an enemy that is not a nation-state that can be contained within borders and boundaries, because their war is not about borders and boundaries.

"Islamofascism is rooted in a theocratic Islamic jihadism that seeks to destroy and annihilate every last one of us. It wants to establish a complete Islamic theocracy across the world and for that to happen it means our culture has to be completely snuffed out," he said.

WOOOHOOOO...you go Mikey!!!!!!

YUP but it is............ W00 H00 way to go Mikey!! ;D ;D

Alright!  Some encouraging news!  :D

Huckabee, for Veep?     

Arkansas ex-Gov. Mike Huckabee is shaking up the Republican race.

Think of the primary process as a tennis tournament. On the center court, in the semi-final, Rudy Giuliani is defeating John McCain in straight sets. But on the right court, low-seeded Huckabee beat Kansas Sen. Sam Brownback in the quarter-finals for the designation of "Christian Coalition" challenger - and now will face off against ex-Sen. Fred Thompson and Massachusetts ex-Gov. Mitt Romney in the right-court semi-final. The winner will meet Rudy in the finals.

Huckabee's national poll numbers are rising. Scott Rasmussen has him at 10 percent nationally and in third place at 18 percent in Iowa, where he trails Thompson by 1 percent and Romney by 7 percent.

Thompson's campaign has been a disaster - from his comment that Osama bin Laden was entitled to due process to his refusal to sign a no-tax pledge. The average of the last five national polls (see realclearpolitics.com) shows him trailing Rudy, 28-18, and only barely ahead of Romney and McCain.

Thanks to heavy advertising, Romney leads in Iowa and New Hampshire - but his edge is dwindling, and he's never broken 16 percent in any national poll.

Why doesn't this charismatic, articulate candidate catch on? Part of it is blatant anti-Mormon bigotry. But part of it is his flip-flop-flip on abortion: As a candidate in liberal Massachusetts, he switched from pro-life to pro-choice; then, as he got ready for this race, he switched back to pro-life again.

Huckabee, who has risen rapidly without either money or organization, is the most interesting phenomenon in either party's race (and the only surprise). He finished second to Romney in the Ames, Iowa straw poll with 18 percent. That's significant because you had to pay $35 to vote. Romney wrote out checks for anyone and everyone, but Huckabee said, "I can't afford to buy you. I can't even afford to rent you" - and came in strong anyway.

More recently, he swept last weekend's Values Voters convention among those who appeared in person. (He lost by less than one point overall to Romney, whose tally included a mass of Internet votes.)

Why the Huckabee boomlet? A gripping, humorous, passionate orator, he brings a spiritual dimension to public-policy problems. His ideas are interesting. Want lower health-care costs? Tackle obesity and smoking. Education reform? Music and art education are just as important to our national creativity as science and math.

He has a good chance to be the front-ranking challenger to Giuliani in the national primary on Feb. 5. He might beat Rudy - or at least earn a VP designation, because Giuliani will be anxious to appeal to Christian-right voters.

While I don't have any ability to see into the future I don't see this happening. It is my hope and prayers that Mike Huckabee can also beat out Giuliani as well as the others candidates. He has made it thus far with very little money backing him. I seriously do believe that he couldn't have made it this far without God behind him.

Mike Huckabee on:


Faith and Politics


    * The First Amendment requires that expressions of faith be neither prohibited nor preferred.
    * My faith is my life - it defines me. I don't separate my faith from my personal and professional lives.
    * Real faith makes us more humble and mindful, not of the faults of others, but of our own. It makes us less judgmental, as we see others with the same frailties we have.
    * Faith gives us strength in the face of injustice and motivates us to do our best for "the least of us."
    * Our nation was birthed in a spirit of faith - not a prescriptive faith telling us how or whether to believe, but acknowledging a providence that pervades our world.

The First Amendment requires that expressions of faith be neither prohibited nor preferred. We should not banish religion from the public square, but should guarantee access to all voices and views. We should share and debate our faith, but never seek to impose it. When discussing faith and politics, we should honor the "candid" in candidate - I have much more respect for an honest atheist than a disingenuous believer.

My faith is my life - it defines me. My faith doesn't influence my decisions, it drives them. For example, when it comes to the environment, I believe in being a good steward of the earth. I don't separate my faith from my personal and professional lives.

Real faith makes us humble and mindful, not of the faults of others, but of our own. It makes us less judgmental, as we see others with the same frailties we have. Faith gives us strength in the face of injustice and motivates us to do our best for "the least of us."

Our nation was birthed in a spirit of faith - not a prescriptive one telling us whether to believe, but one acknowledging that a providence pervades our world.



Sanctity of Life

    * I support and have always supported passage of a constitutional amendment to protect the right to life. My convictions regarding the sanctity of life have always been clear and consistent, without equivocation or wavering. I believe that Roe v. Wade should be over-turned.
    * I applaud the Supreme Court's recent decision in Gonzales v. Cathcart forbidding the gruesome practice of partial birth abortion. While I am optimistic that we are turning the tide in favor of life, we still have many battles ahead of us to protect those who cannot protect themselves, and so it is vital that we elect a pro-life President.
    * I first became politically active because of abortion, when I helped pass Arkansas' Unborn Child Amendment, which requires the state to do whatever it legally can to protect life.
    * As Governor, I did all I could to protect life. The many pro-life laws I got through my Democrat legislature are the accomplishments that give me the most pride and personal satisfaction.
    * To me, life doesn't begin at conception and end at birth. Every child deserves a quality education, first-rate health care, decent housing in a safe neighborhood, and clean air and drinking water. Every child deserves the opportunity to discover and use his God-given gifts and talents.
    * I believe in using existing stem cell lines for research, but I do not believe in creating life for the sole purpose of destroying it.

I support and have always supported passage of a constitutional amendment to protect the right to life. As President, I will fight for passage of this amendment. My convictions regarding the sanctity of life have always been clear and consistent, without equivocation or wavering. I believe that Roe v. Wade should be over-turned.

I applaud the Supreme Court's recent decision in Gonzales v. Cathcart forbidding the gruesome practice of partial birth abortion. While I am optimistic that we are turning the tide in favor of life, we still have many battles ahead of us to protect those who cannot protect themselves, and so it is vital that we elect a pro-life President.

No candidate has a stronger record on the sanctity of life than I do. I have always been actively and aggressively pro-life. I first became politically active when I helped pass Arkansas' Unborn Child Amendment, which requires the state to do whatever it can to protect life.

As Governor, I used that Amendment to pass pro-life legislation. The many pro-life laws I got through my Democrat legislature are the accomplishments that give me the most pride and personal satisfaction. I banned partial birth abortion, I required parental notification, I required that a woman give informed consent before having an abortion, I required that a woman be told her baby will experience pain and be given the option of anesthesia for her baby, I allowed a woman to have her baby and leave the child safely at a hospital, and I made it a crime for an unborn child to be injured or murdered during an attack on his mother.

What I accomplished as Governor proves that there is a lot more that a pro-life President can do than wait for a Supreme Court vacancy, and I will do everything I can to promote a pro-life agenda and pass pro-life legislation. If I'm saddled with a Democrat Congress, I'll veto any pro-abortion legislation they pass. I will staff all relevant positions with pro-life appointees. I will use the bully pulpit to change hearts and minds. I have no desire to throw women in jail, I just want us to stop throwing babies in the garbage.

To me, life doesn't begin at conception and end at birth. Every child deserves a quality education, first-rate health care, decent housing in a safe neighborhood, and clean air and drinking water. Every child deserves the opportunity to discover and use his God-given gifts and talents.

With respect to stem cells, I support federal funding of research using existing stem cell lines. I do not believe in creating life for the sole purpose of destroying it. I'm encouraged by recent discoveries showing that stem cells from the umbilical cord offer great promise.

cont'd

Veterans' Bill Of Rights

I support the following VETERANS' BILL OF RIGHTS for issues that are not being adequately addressed:

The right to a mandatory rather than a discretionary mechanism for funding veterans' health care, to eliminate year-to-year uncertainty that the funds they need will be there for them

The right to obtain full and clear explanation of all benefits and comprehensive assistance in obtaining those benefits.

The right to have a claim processed within six months.

The right to the fullest possible accounting of the fate of POW/MIAs and the right to be designated as POW/MIA.

The right to access state-of-the-art treatment facilities for traumatic brain injuries.

The right of National Guard and Reserve personnel called to active service to receive the same benefits as active duty veterans.

The right of disabled veterans to receive both their military retirement and VA compensation.

The right of wounded Reserve troops to be treated like their active duty counterparts until their claims have been processed.

The right of wounded veterans and those who have served in combat theaters to a comprehensive GI bill that provides full tuition, books, fees, and living expenses at any institution to which the veteran is accepted.



Education And The Arts

    * I believe that every child should have the opportunity for a quality education that teaches the fundamental skills needed to compete in a global economy.
    * Music and the arts are not extraneous, extra-curricular, or expendable - I believe they are essential. I want to provide every child these "Weapons of Mass Instruction."
    * Our future economy depends on a creative generation.
    * We need to judge the success of our schools by the results we obtain, not the revenue we spend.
    * Test scores rose dramatically when I was Governor of Arkansas because of my education reforms.
    * I have been a strong, consistent supporter of the rights of parents to home school their children, of creating more charter schools, and of public school choice.
    * We need a clear distinction between federal and state roles in education. While there is value in the "No Child Left Behind" law's effort to set high standards, states must be allowed to develop their own benchmarks.

I believe that every child should have the opportunity for a quality education that teaches the fundamental skills needed to compete in a global economy. As I traveled the country and the world over the last decade bringing jobs to Arkansas, the business leaders I met weren't worried about creating jobs, they were worried about finding skilled and professional workers to fill those jobs.

In addition, I want to provide our children what I call the "Weapons of Mass Instruction" - art and music - the secret, effective weapons that will help us to be competitive and creative. It is crucial that children flex both the left and right sides of the brain. We all know the cliché of thinking outside the box: I want our children to be so creative that they think outside the cardboard factory. Art and music are as important as math and science because the dreamers and visionaries among us take the rough straw of an idea and spin it into the gold of new businesses and jobs. It is as important to identify and encourage children with artistic talent as it is those with athletic ability. Our future economy depends on a creative generation.

Music has always been an important part of my life. I still play bass guitar in my band, Capitol Offense.

As Governor of Arkansas, I undertook several initiatives to encourage arts in education. I passed landmark legislation to provide music and art instruction by certified teachers for all Arkansas children in grades one through six, forty minutes a week. As Chairman of the Education and Arts Commission of the States, I created a two-year initiative called "The Arts - A Lifetime of Learning," which promotes the benefits of arts education to all fifty states.

Students with strong art and music programs have higher academic achievement overall, are far more likely to read for pleasure and participate in community service, and are less likely to engage in delinquent behavior. These programs have a powerful effect in leveling the academic playing field for students from lower socio-economic backgrounds. The study of music improves math scores, spatial reasoning and abstract thinking.

The success of our schools has to be judged by the results we obtain, not the revenues we spend. A focus on true quality rather than mere quantity requires us to set high standards for our students and teachers, measure their performance diligently, and hold educators and administrators accountable for the results in an atmosphere of transparency and efficiency.

As Governor of Arkansas, I created intensive reading and math programs that went back to basics. I started with elementary students and, as those children thrived, I expanded the program to middle and then high schools. Our test scores rose dramatically. I then created one of the most demanding high school curricula in the country, and the number of students taking advanced placement classes grew by leaps and bounds.

I opposed the teachers' union and got the Fair Dismissal Law passed, which allowed us to terminate poorly performing teachers. To attract top talent, I raised teachers' salaries from among the lowest in the nation to among the most competitive. I created systems to make our schools accountable to both parents and taxpayers by insisting on transparency in how money is spent, efficiency in putting money into classroom programs rather than administrative costs, and clear responsibility of all employees for the tasks assigned to them.

As Governor, I fought hard for more charter schools, with their strong parental involvement and their unique ability to serve as laboratories for education reform, and for the rights of parents to home school their children. I am a strong supporter of public school choice. I am proud that my three children attended public schools from K through twelve, as did my wife and I.

In addition to my gubernatorial experience, I have significant national experience in education policy. I was Chairman of the National Governors Association from 2005-2006 and also Chairman of the Education Committee of the States from 2004-2006, working with governors, legislators, and education chiefs from all fifty states to advance education policy and conduct research on effective trends in education.

We need to test teachers as well as students, replace teachers who aren't competent, and impose reasonable waiting periods for teachers to gain tenure. We should provide bonuses and forgive student loans for high-performing teachers to work in low-performing schools. Just as there are executives in the corporate world who specialize in turning around failing companies, we need teachers who are "turn-around specialists" for failing schools.

Typical employment procedures provide a disincentive for teachers and often discourage potentially good teachers from entering what I consider to be a noble profession.  Educators and teachers should be involved in the design of compensation initiatives that incetivize training and promote performance based on merit, so that our children can have the best education in the world.

As President, my education agenda will include working towards a clear distinction between the federal role in assisting and empowering states and in usurping the right of states to carry out the education programs for their students. While there is value in the "No Child Left Behind" law's effort to set high national standards, states must be allowed to develop their own benchmarks.

As President, I will use my broad and deep expertise in education policy to lift up our children and America's economic future.

cont'd

Health Care

    * The health care system in this country is irrevocably broken, in part because it is only a "health care" system, not a "health" system.
    * We don't need universal health care mandated by federal edict.
    * We do need to get serious about preventive health care.
    * I advocate policies that will encourage the private sector to seek innovative ways to bring down costs.
    * I value the states' role as laboratories for new market-based approaches.
    * When I'm President, Americans will have more control of their health care options, not less.
    * As President, I will work with the private sector, Congress, health care providers, and other concerned parties to lead a complete overhaul of our health care system.
    * Our health care system is making our businesses non-competitive in the global economy. It is time to recognize that jobs don't need health care, people do, and move from employer-based to consumer-based health care.

The health care system in this country is irrevocably broken, in part because it is only a "health care" system, not a "health" system. We don't need universal health care mandated by federal edict or funded through ever-higher taxes. We do need to get serious about preventive health care instead of chasing more and more dollars to treat chronic disease, which currently gobbles up 80% of our health care costs, and yet is often avoidable. The result is that we'll be able to deliver better care where and when it's needed.

I advocate policies that will encourage the private sector to seek innovative ways to bring down costs and improve the free market for health care services. We have to change a system that happily pays $30,000 for a diabetic to have his foot amputated, but won't pay for the shoes that would save his foot.

We can make health care more affordable by reforming medical liability; adopting electronic record keeping; making health insurance more portable from one job to another; expanding health savings accounts to everyone, not just those with high deductibles; and making health insurance tax deductible for individuals and families as it now is for businesses. Low income families would get tax credits instead of deductions. We don't need all the government controls that would inevitably come with universal health care. When I'm President, Americans will have more control of their health care options, not less.

I also value the states' role as laboratories for new market-based approaches, and I will encourage those efforts. As President I will work with the private sector, Congress, health care providers, and other concerned parties to lead a complete overhaul of our health care system, not more of the same, paid for by Uncle Sam at the expense of hard-working families.

Health care spending is now about $2 trillion a year, which is close to $7,000 for each one of us. It consumes about 17% of our gross domestic product, easily surpassing the few European nations where spending is close to 10% and far higher than any other country in the world. If we reduced our out-of-control health care costs from 17% to 11%, we'd save $700 billion a year, which is about twice our annual national deficit.

Our health care system is making our businesses non-competitive in the global economy. General Motors spends more on health care than it does on steel, $1,500 per car. Starbucks spends more on health care than it does on coffee beans. We have an employer-based system from the 1940's, a system devised not because it was the best way to provide health care, but as a way around World War II wage-and-price controls. Costs have skyrocketed because the party paying for the health care - the employer - and the party using the health care - the employee - are not the same. It is human nature to consume more of something that is essentially free.

Workers complain that their wages are stagnant, but businesses reply that their total compensation costs are rising significantly because they are paying so much more for health care. Health care costs are adversely affecting your paycheck, even if you're healthy. Some Americans are afraid to change jobs or start their own businesses because they're afraid of losing their health insurance. It is time to recognize that jobs don't need health insurance, people do, and to ease the burden on our businesses. Our employer-based system has outlived its usefulness, but the answer is a consumer-based system, not socialized medicine.



Taxes/Economy

    * I support the FairTax.
    * As Governor of Arkansas, I cut taxes and fees almost 100 times, saving the taxpayers almost $380 million. I left a surplus of nearly $850 million, which I urged should go back to the people.
    * Our massive deficit is not due to Americans' being under-taxed, but to the government's over-spending.
    * To control spending, I believe the President should have the line-item veto.
    * I believe in free trade, but it has to be fair trade.
    * Globalization, done right, done fairly, can be the equivalent of a big pay raise by allowing us to buy things more cheaply.

I'd like you to join me at the best "Going Out of Business" sale I can imagine - one held by the Internal Revenue Service. Am I running for president to shut down the federal government? Not exactly. But I am running to completely eliminate all federal income and payroll taxes. And do I mean all - personal federal, corporate federal, gift, estate, capital gains, alternative minimum, Social Security, Medicare, self-employment. All our hours filling out forms, all our payments for help with those forms, all our shopping bags filled with disorganized receipts, all our headaches and heartburn from tax stress will vanish. Instead we will have the FairTax, a simple tax based on wealth. When the FairTax becomes law, it will be like waving a magic wand releasing us from pain and unfairness.

The FairTax will replace the Internal Revenue Code with a consumption tax, like the taxes on retail sales forty-five states and the District of Columbia have now. All of us will get a monthly rebate that will reimburse us for taxes on purchases up to the poverty line, so that we're not taxed on necessities. That means people below the poverty line won't be taxed at all. We'll be taxed on what we decide to buy, not what we happen to earn. We won't be taxed on what we choose to save or the interest those savings earn. The tax will apply only to new goods, so we can reduce our taxes further by buying a used car or computer.


cont'd

Our current progressive tax system penalizes us for working harder and becoming more successful. As we climb the ladder, the government lurks on each rung, hungry for a bigger bite out of our earnings. The FairTax is also progressive, but it doesn't punish the American dream of success, or the old-fashioned virtues of hard work and thrift, it rewards and encourages them. The FairTax isn't intended to raise any more or less money for the federal government to spend - it is revenue neutral.

Expert analyses have shown that the FairTax lowers the lifetime tax burden of all of us: single or married; working or retired; rich, poor or middle class.

The FairTax will instantly make American products 12 to 25% more competitive because the cost of those goods will no longer be inflated by corporate taxes, costs of tax compliance, and Social Security matching payments. When we buy products now, those taxes are built into the cost, so all of us pay corporate taxes indirectly on top of the personal taxes we pay directly. Compliance costs are just make-work with no real added value, yet they consume as much as 3% of our gross domestic product annually. These costs are an especially heavy burden on small businesses, which generate most of our jobs.

If you buy a bottle of domestic wine, you're paying the taxes/compliance/matching payments of all the folks who produced the grapes, the wine, the bottle, the cork, the label. If you buy a bottle of French wine, the producers had their Value Added Tax rebated to them when the wine was exported. So French consumers pay those taxes, but you don't. Our current tax system puts our goods at a disadvantage both here and overseas. Other governments give their goods an advantage on the world market, an advantage estimated at 18% compared to American goods.

So no matter how hard Americans work, no matter how innovative and creative we are, no matter how superior our products are, we suffer from a built-in competitive disadvantage simply because of our tax system. A recent study by MIT found that our tax system deprives us of about $1 billion in exports annually. When you export over-priced goods as we have, you inevitably end up exporting jobs and industries as we now are. We are the square peg trying to fit into the round hole of international trade. The rest of the world isn't going to change, it's time that we do.

Under the FairTax, American companies are far less likely to move overseas and foreign companies are far more likely to come here, hiring Americans to build and work in their new plants. The FairTax encourages growth by promoting investment and capital formation.

We have to scrap a 20th century tax system that is holding us back and keeping us down in the 21st century. The FairTax is the path to greater prosperity and job security for us and for our children.

As Governor of Arkansas, I pushed through the Arkansas Legislature the first major, broad-based tax cuts in state history - a $90 million tax relief package for Arkansas families. I also doubled the standard deduction to $2,000 for single taxpayers and $4,000 for those who are married. Some taxes I eliminated entirely: the marriage penalty, bracket creep caused by inflation, income tax on poor families, and capital gains on home sales. To encourage investment, I cut capital gains for both individuals and businesses. To help people better themselves, I provided tax credits for employee training and education. In total, I cut taxes and fees nearly 100 times during my ten-and-a-half years as Governor, saving the people of Arkansas almost $380 million.

When I left office in early 2007, Arkansas had nearly $850 million in state surplus, which I urged should go back to the people in the form of either a tax rebate or tax cut.

I believe that our massive deficit is not due to Americans' being under-taxed, but due to the federal government's over-spending. Achieving and maintaining a balanced federal budget is an important and worthy goal necessary to our long-term economic well-being. To achieve a balanced federal budget, I believe the President should have the line-item veto.

I believe in free trade, but it has to be fair trade. We are losing jobs because of an unlevel, unfair trading arena that has to be fixed. Behind the statistics, there are real families and real lives and real pain. I'm running for President because I don't want people who have worked loyally for a company for twenty or thirty years to walk in one morning and be handed a pink slip and be told, "I'm sorry, but everything you spent your life working for is no longer here."

I believe that globalization, done right, done fairly, can be a blessing for our society. As the Industrial Revolution raised living standards by allowing ordinary people to buy mass-produced goods that previously only the rich could afford, so globalization gives all of us the equivalent of a big pay raise by letting us buy all kinds of things from clothing to computers to TVs much more inexpensively.




Marriage

    * I support and have consistently supported passage of a federal constitutional amendment that defines marriage as a union between one man and one woman.
    * As Governor of Arkansas, I led the successful effort to pass a similar state constitutional amendment in 2002.
    * As Governor of Arkansas, I led the successful effort to make our state only the third to adopt "covenant" marriage.
    * Our true strength comes from our families.

I support and have always supported passage of a federal constitutional amendment that defines marriage as a union between one man and one woman. As President, I will fight for passage of this amendment. My personal belief is that marriage is between one man and one woman, for life.

No other candidate has supported traditional marriage more consistently and steadfastly than I have. While Massachusetts was allowing homosexuals to marry, I got a constitutional amendment passed in Arkansas in 2002 defining marriage as between one man and one woman. I got Arkansas to become only the third state to adopt "covenant" marriage. My wife Janet and I upgraded our vows on Valentine's Day, 2005. Today, many churches in Arkansas will perform only covenant marriages, so I'm hoping we'll see a decline in our divorce rates.

The late Cardinal O'Connor decried a domestic partnership law (which provided that all couples who signed up, whether heterosexual or homosexual, would be treated the same as married couples) as legislating that "marriage doesn't matter." I agree with the Cardinal that marriage does matter, I would add that nothing in our society matters more. Our true strength doesn't come from our military or our gross national product, it comes from our families. What's the point of keeping the terrorists at bay in the Middle East if we can't keep decline and decadence at bay here at home? The growing number of children born out of wedlock and the rise in no-fault divorce have been a disaster for our society. They have pushed many women and children into poverty and onto the welfare, food stamp, and Medicaid rolls. These children are more likely to drop out of school and end up in low-paying, dead-end jobs, they are more likely to get involved with drugs and crime, they are more likely to have children out of wedlock or get divorced themselves someday, continuing the unhappy cycle.

My wife Janet and I celebrated our thirty-third wedding anniversary this past May. For us, every anniversary is a miracle. When we were both twenty and married just over a year, when I was in my last semester of college, Janet was diagnosed with cancer of the spine. I can't tell you what a stunning blow it was - two kids just starting out, you don't think something like that can happen when you're so young. Yet there we were, staring death in the face. At first, they told us that even if she lived, she might be paralyzed from the waist down, so I'd be a young man with an invalid wife. After I learned she wouldn't be paralyzed, I was told that because of the radiation she had to receive following surgery, we'd probably never have children. I wanted children very much, I couldn't imagine never being a father. During that time, a lot of things went through my mind. But one thing never did - the thought of leaving her. If Janet were in a wheelchair today, if we'd never had children, I can tell you this - she would still be my wife.

cont'd

Energy Independence

    * The first thing I will do as President is send Congress my comprehensive plan for energy independence. We will achieve energy independence by the end of my second term.
    * Achieving energy independence is vital to achieving success both in the war on terror and in globalization. Energy independence will help guarantee both our safety and our prosperity.
    * We have to explore, we have to conserve, and we have to pursue all avenues of alternative energy: nuclear, wind, solar, hydrogen, clean coal, biodiesel, and biomass.

Energy independence has been on our "to do" list for over thirty years, my whole adult life. In 1973, in response to OPEC's oil embargo against us, President Nixon established Project Independence, which promised independence in 1980. We could have been energy independent a generation ago! The truth is, we are so pathetically behind the curve right now that federal spending for energy research and development is only 40% of what it was in 1979. Our efforts are haphazard and often pointless: today we have six million flex-fuel vehicles built to run on biodiesel or on E85, which is 85% ethanol, but only 2,000 pumps for those fuels in a country with 170,000 gas stations.

When energy shocks and crises come, we take aspirin to deal with the pain, but we don't address the underlying symptoms. This oil addiction is killing us. We have to stop popping pain pills and get ourselves cured. For all these years, we've never lacked the means, just the will. We've never harnessed the real energy source that independence requires - the energy of the American people.

The first thing I will do as President is send Congress my comprehensive plan for energy independence. I'll use the bully pulpit to inform you about the plan and ask for your support. I'll use the bully conference table to meet with members of Congress until I have the votes. The plan will get underway during my first term, and we will achieve energy independence by the end of my second term. The Huckabee Administration will be remembered as the time when we finally, finally achieved energy independence.

We have to explore, we have to conserve, and we have to pursue all avenues of alternative energy: nuclear, wind, solar, hydrogen, clean coal, biodiesel, and biomass. Some will come from our farms and some will come from our laboratories. Dwindling supplies and increasing demand from newly-industrialized countries of fossil fuels are driving up prices. These price increases will facilitate innovation and the opportunity for independence. We will remove red tape that slows innovation. We will set aside a federal research and development budget that will be matched by the private sector to seek the best new products in alternative fuels. Our free market will sort out what makes the most sense economically and will reward consumer preferences.

We think of globalization as primarily an economic issue and the war on terror as primarily a military issue. Yet the same key unlocks the door to success in both, and that key is energy independence.

None of us would write a check to Osama bin Laden, slip it in a Hallmark card and send it off to him. But that's what we're doing every time we pull into a gas station. We're paying for both sides in the war on terror - our side with our tax dollars, the terrorists' side with our gas dollars.

Our dependence on foreign oil has forced us to support repressive regimes, to conduct our foreign policy with one hand tied behind our back. It's time, it's past time, to untie that hand and reach out to moderate Muslims with both hands. Oil has not just shaped our foreign policy, it has deformed it. When I make foreign policy, I want to treat Saudi Arabia the same way I treat Sweden, and that requires us to be energy independent. These folks have had us over a barrel - literally - for way too long.

Energy independence will ease the effects of globalization because the future energy demands of countries like India and China, as their middle class grows, are going to be tremendous. Even if Middle East supplies remain stable - a huge if - that increased demand will drive prices up dramatically, which will hurt our economy by making everything more expensive here. But if we are energy independent, we will be able not just to take care of our own needs and protect our economy, we will also create jobs and grow our economy by developing technologies that we can sell to the rest of the world to meet their needs.

Achieving energy independence will make us safer and more prosperous, and is yet another way that I intend to lift America up.



Immigration


    * My number one priority is to secure America's border.
    * We have to know who is coming into our country, where they are going, and why they are here. We need a fence along our border with Mexico, electronic in some places, and more highly-trained border agents.
    * Those who are caught trying to enter illegally must be detained, processed, and deported.
    * Illegal immigrants already living among us who commit crimes must be prosecuted to the full extent of the law and incarcerated or deported.

I opposed the amnesty bill that was defeated by the Senate in June. I support the $3 billion that Congress recently appropriated for border security. These funds will be used to train and deploy 23,000 more agents, add four drone airplanes, build 700 miles of fence and 300 miles of vehicle barriers, and erect 105 radar and camera towers. They will be used to end "catch and release" by providing money to "catch and detain" those caught entering illegally and to crack down on those who enter legally, but overstay their visas. These border security provisions will stem the tide of illegals, which is what we must do before we can turn the tide and deal with those who are already here. Before you fix the damage in your house caused by a leaking roof, you stop the leak, which is what this legislation will do.

My number one priority is to have a secure border. Right now, we have too many people entering the country illegally, and this must stop. We can't turn the tide until we stem the tide. We need to know who is coming into our country, where they are going, and why they are here. We need to create a process to allow people to come here to do the jobs - plucking chickens, tarring roofs, picking fruits - that are going unfilled by our citizens. They must have a tamper-proof, scannable I. D. with a finger or retinal scan, so that their employers know they belong here.

Besides stopping terrorists, we must weed out those with a criminal background or a communicable disease. We have to build a fence along our border with Mexico, parts of which will be electronic. We need more well-trained border agents and cooperation agreements with local and state law enforcement officials, so that we have a clear and consistent approach by all jurisdictions.

Those who are caught trying to enter illegally must be detained, processed, and deported. Illegal immigrants who are already living among us and commit crimes must be prosecuted to the full extent of the law and incarcerated or deported.

cont'd

National Security/Foreign Policy: Iraq

    * Iraq is a battle in our generational, ideological war on terror.
    * The Democrats deny that the war in Iraq is part of the war on terror even as we fight Al Qaeda there. Al Qaeda seeks permanent bases in Anbar province to plot and train against us.
    * General Petraeus and our troops are giving their all to provide a window of opportunity for the Iraq government to succeed, while the Democrats are running for the exit doors.
    * The surge is a military means to achieve the political end of sectarian reconciliation among the Iraqis.
    * Setting a timetable for withdrawal is a mistake. This country has never declared war until "a week from Wednesday," we have always declared war until victory.
    * I am focused on winning. Withdrawal would have serious strategic consequences for us and horrific humanitarian consequences for the Iraqis.
    * I support a regional summit so that Iraq's neighbors become militarily and financially committed to stabilizing Iraq.

Iraq is a battle in our generational, ideological war on terror. The Democrats delusionally deny that the war in Iraq is part of the war on terror even as we fight Al Qaeda there. Al Qaeda is a major ally of the Sunni insurgents in their fight against the Shiite majority. One of the most significant events in the Iraq War was Al Qaeda's bombing of the Shiites' Golden Mosque in Samarra in February 2006. That bombing led to the dramatic rise in sectarian violence between Sunnis and Shiites we've seen ever since, furthering Al Qaeda's goal of fomenting chaos and civil war. What's in it for them? They need territory, a place to plot their evil and train their murderers for another September 11. Al Qaeda intends to keep and expand its bases in the Sunni area of Anbar province. But we've made great progress in denying Al Qaeda that Anbar sanctuary, where the Commandant of the Marines, General Conway, says that "we have turned the corner." Fourteen of Anbar's eighteen tribal leaders no longer support Al Qaeda.

General Petraeus and our troops are giving their all to provide a window of opportunity for the Iraqi government to succeed, while the Democrats are running for the exit doors. The surge has only been in place since the middle of June, but progress has already been made. It's way too early to write an obituary for the surge as the Democrat defeatists are doing. Having unanimously confirmed General Petraeus to lead the surge, the Democrats should let him do the job they sent him to do and await his report in mid-September. They're Monday morning quarterbacking while we're still playing the game, and some of us are playing to win.

To pressure the Iraqis into seizing the day before darkness descends, President Bush and Secretary Gates have been emphatic that this window will not remain open forever. At the same time, setting a timetable for withdrawal tells our enemies they don't have to win, they just have to wait. We have never in our history declared war until "a week from Wednesday," we have always declared war until victory.

I am focused on winning. Withdrawal would have serious strategic consequences for us and horrific humanitarian consequences for the Iraqis. If we leave, Iraq's neighbors on all sides will face a refugee crisis and be drawn into the war: Iran to protect the Shiites; Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Jordan to protect the Sunnis; and Turkey to protect its control over its own Kurd population. Iraq is a crossroads where Arab meets Persian and Kurd, Sunni meets Shiite, so if it's not a peaceful buffer, it can easily become a tinder box for the region. When we deposed Saddam, we emphasized Iraq's central location as a prime place to establish democracy and have it spread. That was the potential dramatic upside. Now we're faced with the potential dramatic downside that the terrorists are fighting to take advantage of: Iraq's central location as a prime place to create chaos and have it spread .

I support a regional summit so that Iraq's neighbors become financially and militarily committed to stabilizing Iraq now rather than financially and militarily committed to widening the war later. This summit will add more voices, Muslim voices, to the pressure to perform we're already applying to the Maliki government.



National Security/Foreign Policy: War On Terror


    * I believe that we are currently engaged in a world war. This war is not a conventional war, and these terrorists are not a conventional enemy.
    * The top priority of the President as Commander in Chief is first and foremost protecting our own citizens.
    * With a focus on renewed diplomacy and inclusion, we can accomplish the goals of our nation without having to go it alone.
    * During the Cold War, we had hawks and doves, but this new war requires us to be a phoenix, rising reborn to meet each new challenge and seize each new opportunity.
    * As President, I will fight this war hard, but I will also fight it smart, using all our political, economic, diplomatic, and intelligence weapons as well as our military might.
    * The terrorists train in small, scattered groups. We can accomplish a great deal with swift, surgical air strikes and commando raids by our elite units.
    * We have to get tough with President Musharaff who has allowed Al Qaeda and the Taliban to have bases in Waziristan.
    * We don't have a dog in the fight between Sunnis and Shiites - our enemy is Islamic extremism in all its guises.
    * The long-term solution is to empower moderates in the region by attacking the underlying conditions that breed terror.
    * Part of winning the war on terror is achieving energy independence.
    * I believe in the Powell Doctrine of using overwhelming force to accomplish a mission.
    * I have the executive and crisis management experience, the judgment and the temperament to be an effective commander in chief.
    * I will expand the army and increase the defense budget.

I believe that we are currently engaged in a world war. Radical Islamic fascists have declared war on our country and our way of life. They have sworn to annihilate each of us who believe in a free society, all in the name of a perversion of religion and an impersonal god. We go to great extremes to save lives, they go to great extremes to take them. This war is not a conventional war, and these terrorists are not a conventional enemy. I will fight the war on terror with the intensity and single-mindedness that it deserves.

The top priority of the president as Commander in Chief is first and foremost protecting our own citizens. While we live in a neighborhood of nations and must strive to be good neighbors, as President, I will ensure the peace, safety, and well-being of American citizens at home and abroad.

While I prefer America to be safe and secure within her own borders rather than loved and appreciated abroad, I believe we can accomplish both goals. We can resurrect relationships with our allies and neighbors. With a focus on renewed diplomacy and inclusion, we can accomplish the goals of our nation without having to go it alone.


cont'd

When the sun rose on September 11, we were the only superpower in the world; when the sun set that day, we were still the only superpower, but how different the world looked. During the Cold War, you were a hawk or a dove, but this new world requires us to be a phoenix, to rise from the ashes of the twin towers with a whole new game plan for this very different enemy. Being a phoenix means constantly reinventing ourselves, dying to mistakes and miscalculations, changing tactics and strategies, rising reborn to meet each new challenge and seize each new opportunity.

As president, I will fight this war hard, but I will also fight it smart, using all our political, economic, diplomatic, and intelligence weapons as well as our military might. The terrorists unfortunately have a great many sympathizers all over the world, folks who are happy to show up and be filmed shouting "Death to America," but the actual number of those willing to blow themselves up is relatively few, and they train and plot in small, scattered groups.

It's an enemy conducive to being tracked down and eliminated by using the CIA and the Pentagon's Joint Special Operations Command. We can accomplish a great deal, we can achieve tremendous bang for the buck, with swift, surgical air strikes and commando raids by our elite units, working with friendly governments, as we've done with the Ethiopians in Somalia. These operations are impossible without first-rate intelligence. When the Cold War ended, we cut back on our human intelligence, just as we cut back on our armed forces, and both have come back to haunt us. As President, I will beef up our human intelligence capacity, both the operatives who gather information and the analysts who figure out what it means.

Right after September 11, with wounds fresh and emotions running high, President Bush declared that all other countries were either for us or they were for the terrorists. Such a black-and-white stance doesn't work in the Arab and Muslim worlds, where there are more shades of gray than you'll find at Sherwin-Williams. Is President Musharaff of Pakistan for us 100%? No, since September 11, he's been playing both ends in the middle to survive. At the moment he's pulled too far away from us. While we have been focused on Iraq, Al Qaeda and the Taliban have expanded their training camps in the Waziristan region of Pakistan with impunity. This bodes ominously not just for Afghanistan, but also for Al Qaeda's plotting and training for more attacks all over the world, including here in the United States. This is the direct result of an ill-conceived autonomy agreement President Musharaff made with Waziristan's tribal leaders. In fact the tribal leader Musharaff has praised for fighting foreign terrorists, Mullah Nazir, recently said that he would protect Osama bin Laden! We have to get tough with Mursharaff and re-calibrate the carrots and sticks we use with him. Pakistan is the fifth largest recipient of American aid, and right now we're not getting real good value. We're in a game of chicken with this military dictator: he warns us not to pursue terrorists across the border with Afghanistan, not to strike their bases on his territory because it could cause his government to fall and an even less friendly figure to take his job. But we have to make clear to him that he is of no use to us if he allows the Taliban and Al Qaeda to use his territory with impunity. The current situation highlights that, despite our generous aid, both the Taliban and Al Qaeda enjoy a disturbing degree of popularity in Pakistan. Ultimately it is this popularity contest, this war of ideas, that we have to win. Creativity and flexibility are Musharaff's keys to retaining power.

Creativity and flexibility are our keys to dealing with him and other Muslim leaders. Instead of asking if someone is for us, instead of demanding that every ally be at the level of Great Britain, I will ask if we should be for them, if they can be useful in any way, however limited, however temporary.

The terrorists have succeeded in dividing us over how to fight them, but we are not taking full advantage of their divisions and of the broader divisions in the region. For example, Hamas, Al Qaeda, and Hezbollah are all terrorist groups, but Hamas and Al Qaeda are Sunni and hate Hezbollah, which is Shiite, as much as they hate us. We are worried about the Iranians extending their sphere of influence west, but so are the Sunni Arabs in Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Jordan, who dislike the Iranians not just because they are Shiites, but because they are Persians. Fighting smart means learning the neighborhood, achieving a level of political, religious, and cultural sophistication about the Arab and Islamic worlds that will pay huge dividends for us. We have to know the cast of characters, not just the national political leaders and their leading opponents, but the clerics, the tribal and clan leaders. We get criticized for our arrogance, but it's our ignorance that's killing us.

As for the underlying dispute between Sunnis and Shiites that's been going on for fourteen hundred years, we don't have a dog in that fight. Our enemy is Islamic extremism in all its guises. The Saudis want us to support extremist Sunni groups to counter growing Iranian influence. The Saudis assure us that they can control these groups and keep them from turning against us. We saw how well that turned out with Al Qaeda. I will support moderates, not extremists, with no favoring of Sunnis or Shiites.

The long-term solution to terror is to empower moderates in the region. My goal in the Middle and Near East is to correctly calibrate a course between maintaining stability and promoting democracy. It's self-defeating to try to accomplish too much too soon, you just have elections where extremists win, but it's equally self-defeating to do nothing. First, we have to destroy the terrorists who already exist, then we have to attack the underlying conditions that breed terror, by creating schools that offer an alternative to the extremist madrassas that take impressionable children and turn them into killers, by creating jobs and opportunity and hope, by encouraging a free press and other institutions that promote democracy. The recent rising appeal of Al Qaeda across North Africa - Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia - shows why we have to do better in the war of ideas - and soon.

In the past, we've been constrained from helping some of the good guys because our dependence on oil has forced us to support repressive regimes, to conduct our foreign policy with one hand tied behind our back. It's time, it's past time, to untie that hand and reach out to the moderates with both hands. Oil has not just shaped our foreign policy, it has deformed it. When I make foreign policy, I want to be able to treat Saudi Arabia the same way I treat Sweden, and that requires us to be energy independent. These folks have had us over a barrel - literally - for way too long. The first thing I will do as President is send Congress my comprehensive plan for energy independence. We will achieve energy independence by the end of my second term. We will explore, we will conserve, and we will pursue all avenues of alternative energy - nuclear, wind, solar, hydrogen, clean coal, biodiesel, and biomass.

If I ever have to undertake a large invasion, I will follow the Powell Doctrine and use overwhelming force. The notion of an "occupation with a light footprint" that was our paradigm for Iraq always struck me as a contradiction in terms. Liberating a country and occupying it are two different missions. Occupation inevitably demands a lot of boots on the ground. Instead of marginalizing General Shinseki when he said we needed several hundred thousand troops for Iraq, I would have met privately with him and carefully weighed his advice and his underlying analysis.

Our current armed forces aren't large enough - we have been relying far too heavily on our National Guard and our Reserves, we have worn them out. When our enemies know that we are spread thin, they're more apt to test us by provoking a crisis. Having a sizeable standing army actually makes it less likely that we'll have to use it. So I will increase the defense budget. We have to be ready to fight both conventional and unconventional wars against both state and non-state enemies. Right now we spend about 3.9% of our GDP on defense, while we spent about 6% in 1986 under President Reagan. I would return to that 6% level. I believe we can do this without raising taxes. I will limit increases in other discretionary spending and rely on the normal increase in federal tax revenue that is generated annually as Americans' incomes rise.

Crises arise suddenly and unpredictably, and no one has the database for every possible scenario. What we have to evaluate is the strength of a leader's operating system, because if that's sound, he can always add the data. I'll be an effective commander in chief because I have executive experience and crisis management experience. My record as Governor shows that I'm intellectually curious, a quick study, and have sound judgment. I will get advice from a broad circle with differing perspectives and portfolios; encourage dissent and stay out of the bubble; refuse to wilt under criticism, but also be flexible and ready to change course if a policy isn't working. I will communicate my rationale for our foreign and defense policies clearly and frequently to Congress and to the American people.


cont'd

Brother you already know how I feel about Mike Huckabee. ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D

Foreign Policy: Israel

    * I am a steadfast supporter of Israel, our staunch ally in the War on Terror, the only fully-functioning democracy in the Middle East, and our greatest friend in that region.
    * The United States must remain true to its long-standing commitment to the Israeli people. 
    * As President, I will always ensure that Israel has access to the state-of-the-art weapons and technology she needs to defend herself from those who seek her annihilation.

I've visited the Middle East extensively over the past thirty-five years, including nine trips to Israel. I salute and support Israel as our staunch ally in the War on Terror and our greatest friend in that region. As the only fully-functioning democracy in the Middle East, Israel occupies a unique position both geographically and geopolitically. Israel is an important partner in the spread of freedom and democracy throughout the Middle East and the world.

The United States must remain true to its long-standing, bipartisan commitment to the Israelis. I will always ensure that Israel has access to the state-of-the-art weapons and technology she needs to defend herself from those who seek her annihilation.




Agriculture

    * We must be able to feed ourselves as part of our national security.
    * We must help our farmers lead the way to energy independence.
    * As a percentage of national income, we spend only half as much on food as people in other developed countries. Subsidies help keep our food costs low by keeping production levels high.
    * We need subsidies to help our farmers compete with heavily subsidized farmers in Europe and Asia and to insulate them from the effects of natural disasters.
    * We need a counter cyclical revenue program that makes payments based on low yields as well as low prices, and we need a fully-funded crop insurance program.
    * Our agricultural policies must encourage young people to enter and stay in farming.
    * As President, I will watch out for our farmers because our national well-being depends on theirs.


A nation must provide its citizens freedom and security. To accomplish this, a nation must be able to defend itself and feed itself. We have learned how disastrous it is to be dependent on other countries for our energy needs – we must never be dependent for our food needs. Being able to feed ourselves is not just sound economic and agricultural policy, it is wise national security policy.

Besides growing our food, our farmers are growing our energy and leading the way to energy independence. We need more ethanol, including cellulose-based ethanol from sources such as switch grass and agricultural residues. We need more bio-fuels and bio-diesel from food processing wastes, such as fat from processing plants and used cooking oils. We need methane gas from livestock and dairy operations. These alternative fuels will not only make us independent, they will also provide additional markets for our farmers’ products and create more jobs in rural areas.

We take for granted that our food is not only plentiful and diverse, but also inexpensive. As a percentage of income, we spend about half what people in other developed countries do, which gives us an enormous economic advantage. We have so much more money to spend on discretionary items. Part of the reason prices are low is that subsidies keep production at high levels, so keeping American farmers in business is not just good for them but for all of us.

We must continue subsidies because our farmers compete with highly subsidized farmers in Europe and Asia, and they face fixed costs (land, equipment, seed, supplies) whether or not they produce a crop. Subsidies insulate farmers from natural disasters like droughts, floods, hurricanes, and tornadoes, as well as from sudden spikes in the price of fuel, feed, and fertilizer.

I also support a more flexible counter cyclical revenue program that makes payments based on low yields and/or low prices rather than the current program, which is based only on low prices. I support a fully-funded crop insurance program, so that Congress will not have to pass emergency assistance every time disaster strikes.

We need agricultural policies that encourage our young people to enter and stay in farming. They face the high costs of starting and capitalizing a farm, plus the fears generated by onerous government regulations and rapid policy changes. We have to reduce their risks and increase their potential for profitability. We have to assure that they have outstanding rural schools, state-of-the-art health care, and first-rate infrastructure.

As Governor of Arkansas, a state with about 47,000 farms growing 165 crops, I saw first hand how our farmers struggled to cope with the challenges of fluctuating prices, policies, and natural disasters, and I was constantly amazed that they would go back year after year. As President, I will always watch out for our farmers because our national well-being is inextricably interwoven with theirs.

cont'd

Crisis Management

    * You need to know that your President will calmly and confidently lift you up in a crisis. During the massive emergency of Hurricane Katrina, when local, state, and federal governments were in melt-down, I stepped forward and directed the rescue and relief of 75,000 victims. Our island of success in a sea of failure was one of the reasons Time magazine named me one of America's five best governors.
    * I will remove FEMA from the Department of Homeland Security and restore it to Cabinet status, so that the Director reports directly to me. My FEMA Director will have sterling credentials, including extensive, hands-on experience in disaster response.
    * I will reassess, tighten, and strengthen the focus and mission of the Department of Homeland Security. When the Department was formed, it brought together 180,000 people from 22 agencies, and its size and structure have proven to be unwieldy and inefficient.
    * I will address the many unresolved issues from 9/11, such as the security of our ports and our chemical plants. I will not allow the federal government to pre-empt stricter state standards enacted for your protection.

You need to know that your President will calmly and confidently lift you up in a crisis. During the sudden and massive emergency of Hurricane Katrina, I conceived and directed the rescue and relief of 75,000 people. As Governor, I had dealt with severe ice storms and tornadoes and other emergencies within Arkansas, but Katrina was a major national disaster, one of the worst in our history. The scale and scope of that undertaking was the type of challenge I will face as President, and I met that challenge. Even though these people were displaced by a hurricane, the results were the same as if Al Qaeda had blown up the levees, so it was experience relevant to coping with a terrorist attack as well.

Given the massive incompetence at all levels of government, it didn't take much for anybody to look good during Katrina, mere competence would have made me and the people of Arkansas look like heroes. But I never settle for competence, I demand excellence, and that's what we achieved. We had plenty of state facilities, like armories, that we could have used - big, cavernous, impersonal places - but to me that wasn't housing people, that was warehousing them. In looking for alternatives, I thought of our church camps and scout camps, which had just closed for the season, and I invited their leaders to my office to ask if they would re-open for us. Not a single one said no. They gave me the keys to their kingdom.

Over that Labor Day weekend, we raised an army of volunteers, and we had folks making up beds and sorting clothes and chopping vegetables and grilling meat. I'll never forget the mountains of toys and diapers, the flats of bottled water as far as the eye could see. The stream of buses was endless, but we were ready for them, ready with a hug and a teddy bear, a hot shower, a new wardrobe, an inviting buffet. I had a clear vision of how I wanted to welcome and care for these people: they were beyond hungry and thirsty and dirty and exhausted, they had been traumatized and dehumanized, treated like packages bouncing around a UPS truck, and we brought them back to life.

When Congress put FEMA in the Department of Homeland Security, they moved its Director too far down the food chain. I will restore FEMA to Cabinet status, so that the Director reports directly to me. My FEMA Director will have sterling credentials, the leadership and management skills required by a cabinet-level job, including extensive, hands-on experience in disaster response.

I will reassess, tighten, and strengthen the focus and mission of the Department of Homeland Security. When the Department was formed, it brought together 180,000 people from 22 agencies, combining tasks as diverse and unrelated as the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service from the Agriculture Department and the Nuclear Incident Response Team from the Energy Department. Its size and structure have proven to be unwieldy and inefficient. We need to create a leaner structure with a passionate esprit de corps dedicated to identifying threats and foiling attacks.

I will address the many security issues still unresolved after 9/11, such as the security of our ports and our chemical plants. If states choose even tougher standards to protect their people, I will respect their authority and not allow the federal government to pre-empt those standards. When New Jersey passed standards for its chemical plants, lobbyists for the chemical companies tried to get Congress to pass weak federal legislation for these plants and to pre-empt New Jersey from enforcing its stricter standards. I will always fight for you, not the lobbyists.

I have been tested, and I have proven my ability to provide creative, decisive, and effective leadership during a major catastrophe. My crisis management ability is one of the reasons Time magazine named me one of America's five best governors.



2nd Amendment Rights

    * The Second Amendment is primarily about tyranny and self-defense, not hunting. The Founding Fathers wanted us to be
      able to defend ourselves from our own government, if need be, and from all threats to our lives and property.
    * Second Amendment rights belong to individuals, not cities or states. I oppose gun control based on geography.
    * I consistently opposed banning assault weapons and opposed the Brady Bill.
    * As Governor, I protected gun manufacturers from frivolous law suits.
    * I was the first Governor in the country to have a concealed handgun license.

No candidate has a stronger, more consistent record on Second Amendment rights than I do. Our Founding Fathers, having endured the tyranny of the British Empire, wanted to guarantee our God-given liberties. They devised our three branches of government and our system of checks and balances. But they were still concerned that the system could fail, and that we might someday face a new tyranny from our own government. They wanted us to be able to defend ourselves, and that's why they gave us the Second Amendment. They knew that a government facing an armed populace was less likely to take away our rights, while a disarmed population wouldn't have much hope. As Ronald Reagan reminded us, "Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction." Without our Second Amendment rights, all of our other rights aren't inalienable, they're just "on loan" from the government.

Other candidates say gun control doesn't affect hunting. Now I'm a very avid hunter, but the Second Amendment isn't really about hunting. It's about tyranny and self-defense. The Founding Fathers weren't worried about our being able to bag a duck or a deer, they were worried about our keeping our fundamental freedoms.

I once saw a bumper sticker that said, "Criminals prefer unarmed victims." Criminals will always find a way to get guns. By disarming our law-abiding citizens, we take away the strongest deterrent to violent criminals - the uncertainty that they don't know who is helpless and who is armed. Our law enforcement officials can't be everywhere, all the time. Lawfully-armed citizens back them up and prevent robberies, rapes, and the murder of innocents. Right after Katrina, with law enforcement non-existent, many victims were able to protect their lives, their homes, and their precious supplies of food and water only because they were armed.

Other candidates believe gun control should be determined geographically, but Second Amendment rights belong to individuals, not cities or states. Your Second Amendment rights don't change when you change your address.

Other candidates filed frivolous law suits against gun manufacturers. When I was Governor, I protected gun manufacturers from exactly those types of suits. I allowed former law enforcement officials to carry concealed handguns and removed restrictions on concealed handgun permit holders. I was the first Governor in the country to have a concealed handgun license, and of course I'm a lifetime member of the National Rifle Association.

Other candidates have supported banning assault weapons. When the federal ban on assault weapons expired in 2004, I said, "May it rest in peace." It won't be returning in the Huckabee Administration.

Zealously protecting your Second Amendment rights is another way that I will lift all law-abiding Americans up, by consistently championing your right to defend yourself.


cont'd

Hello Pastor Roger,

I agree completely with your statement that Huckabee couldn't have made it this far without GOD behind him. He doesn't have the money to buy and grease folks, and he probably wouldn't if he did. After considerable thought, prayer, and reading this thread I've decided that Huckabee is my choice - not for Vice President - For President!

I've wanted to decide early so I can properly give some support. It appears that Mike Huckabee is a Godly man who is completely qualified, able, and talented. I think that Christians will get behind him and try to make sure that he at least has the money for some campaign literature and advertising. He has gotten to this point in the race with almost nothing but Christian qualifications and hard work. He will need some help, and we should give it to him. I plan to do just that.

I like his stance on everything I've heard so far. I doubt very seriously that any other candidate is going to come close, and I'm certainly not going to hold my breath for a third party candidate. Mike Huckabee will need our prayers and support to make it. If it's GOD'S Will, Mike Huckabee will make it!

Love In Christ,
Tom

He will definitely be getting all the support that I am able to give to him also.


Amen!

So be it then,
Mike Huckabee it is!
For Pres. NOT Guilliani's Vice!
If not I wont be voting anymore!
I'll just kick back and wait for the Wrath of God to come down on all those that Love the wages of Sin & vote
to continue it!
Your Loving Brother Duane

Did anyone see him the other night on Fox news with Bill O'riley?

Hello Brother Duane,

I understand how easy it is for Christians to become discouraged with all of the evil things going on around us every day. However, I would say that it's certainly not time for Christians to sit down and be quiet. We shouldn't allow the devil to have a single thing without a fight. We might lose every battle, but CHRIST will win the war. I've always firmly believed that being silent is many times calling evil good, so I won't do it. LORD Willing, I hope and pray to stand up and remain standing until CHRIST comes to take us home. It will become more discouraging if these are the last days of this Age of Grace. I, for one, pray that all Christians keep standing and trying - regardless of how bad things get. I have children and grandchildren who have to live in this society, and they are Christians also. I will definitely stand up for CHRIST, but I will also stand up for my children and grandchildren. I'll just say "May GOD give all of us the strength and courage to do HIS Will until the last moment."

Love In Christ,
Tom

Good Morning Sister Tina!

YES - I saw that interview and I was very impressed. I thought he was genuinely a good and Godly man with the courage to tell it like it is. I also recognized what I thought to be considerable talent. On top of everything else, his stance, record, and qualifications are excellent. I'm not hinting that he's perfect, but I think he's the best man that Christians will be proud to vote for.

Love In Christ,
Tom

Hi Everuone,
I will never give up on spreading the good news,
However, IF this Country does'nt turn back to God?
I WILL NOT SUPPORT HER ANYMORE!
Yes, I Love Bill O'
It's the only news i watch(FOX)
I do watch Glen Beck though!(CNN)
Good man of God

Poll: Evangelicals looking beyond GOP
AP - Wed Oct 31, 5:17 PM ET
 
WASHINGTON - More than half of white evangelical Republicans would consider voting for a conservative third-party candidate should the 2008 presidential race pit Hillary Rodham Clinton against Rudy Giuliani, a poll said Wednesday.
Republican field still up for evangelical grabs
Reuters - Wed Oct 31, 5:04 PM ET
 
DALLAS (Reuters) - White evangelical Protestants, a key support base for the Republican Party, still have not united behind a single candidate for the 2008 White House race, according to a new poll released on Wednesday.

I hear ya there Brother Tom!  ;D

I must admit that I  was puzzled/bothered by his answers to the question that Bill ask him in regards to other Religions going to Hell or not since they do NOT believe in Jesus. He danced around it ( his answer)  and said something like "they will have to find their own way to Heaven" ( something like that ). Why he just didn't say what he really believes'

Because Sister Tina, although he is a good and God fearing man, it is still "Politics" and to get into office and do some good he has to get the votes of not only Christians but of as many others as he can.  To be more radically clear now would be political suicide for him.  They all "dance" but that's the game.  I just hope he "dance" long enough to get in the running!  :D
Someone else could probably give you a more clear and precise reason but that is the "Reader's Digest" version.
In Christ,
Yvette

Huckabee did dance around that answer somewhat as well as a few others. Basically he was saying that everyone had to make up their own minds and hearts as to what the truth is and that he was not going to try to shove his beliefs down other peoples throats. That as president he would not be trying to force a Theocracy onto the people.

As a minister he can preach the whole word of God, telling people what is right or wrong. As a president he must walk a narrower line. Although our country was based on Christian principles it is not and never was a Christian theocracy. One of those principles is that people are given the free will to determine their own spiritual path.

Hello Sister Tina,

If we're talking about the same interview, I think that Huckabee may have taken this further than the limit. In fact, he was more specific than any other candidate for President I can remember in my lifetime - BY FAR.  I think the gist of the question was something like "Is there a single way to Heaven?" He did say that he believed faith in JESUS CHRIST was the only way to Heaven, but he realized others had different beliefs and he wouldn't be forcing his beliefs on anyone.

I don't think that any Christian candidate has ever been asked questions this pointed and specific about faith, and I don't think that any candidate has ever given such a specific answer. Huckabee went far enough to put a BIG target on his back for the Godless LEFT to shoot at. If I remember right, the dancing part involved him saying that others had different beliefs, and he wouldn't be condemning them or trying to force his beliefs on anyone. I think that I do remember right. It's possible that there is a transcript of this interview on Bill O'Reilly's web site or the Fox News web site. I've heard about transcripts, but I've never tried to use them. There is also some kind of "Premium Member" pay site for Bill O-Reilly, but I'm not a member. I can't afford stuff like this.

Love In Christ,
Tom

Bro Tom

That sounds like Huckabee.  He is very very good about keeping his religion out of his politics but letting everyone know that it is his faith that drives his decisions.  There was an interview where he was asked questions about evolution.  And he basically said that he does not believe in it.  He also said that even as President he could not remove it from school books or anything of that nature.  Not dancing around things, but being very truthful and quite insightful into the role he is seeking election too.

I personally believe that Huckabee is being asked questions unlike any other candidate in history.  Personal questions that truly have no bearing on the office he seeks.  And so far I have seen him take those questions and provide an answer as well as show that they have no relevance on the office at hand. 

Hello Brother Jerry,

All I know is that everything I've seen and heard so far about Huckabee impresses me. He's the only candidate who impresses me, and I don't think that any Christian would have conscience problems in voting for him.

Love In Christ,
Tom

WH Hopeful Huckabee Builds Evangelical Support

Arkansas Gov. and Republican presidential contender Mike Huckabee is gaining traction in headlines, polling and in drumming up support among Evangelical Christians.  (AP Photo/Steve Mitchell)
As the 2008 presidential race heads toward the first nominating contests, Mike Huckabee is getting more news coverage, moving up in polls, and even drawing some attacks from other Republicans.

Now the former Arkansas governor needs enough money to capitalize.

Full Coverage
VOTE 2008: Who is Your Candidate?Despite strong showings in a recent Iowa poll and a straw poll of evangelical voters Oct. 20, Huckabee has struggled to raise money to keep up with Mitt Romney, the Republican fundraising leader, and Rudy Giuliani, who tops national surveys for the nomination.

Huckabee spent the weekend raising money in Texas, his second-largest source of donations from July through September. His appearances at churches in Plano and Irving on Sunday also highlighted a strategy of his long-shot White House bid: building support from evangelical Christians who make up a chunk of Iowa's GOP voters.


"We're really grateful for the prosperity of Texas," Huckabee, a former minister, joked after preaching Sunday at Plano's Prestonwood Baptist Church, north of Dallas.

"Historically, there are three tickets out of Iowa," Huckabee said. "First class, business and coach. If you don't get one of those, you go home freight."

Huckabee said his church appearances were not political, though some of his listeners were not so reticent.

"I think he's the most godly of all the candidates," said Susan Pinkerton, a homemaker from Rockwall, Texas.

The sermons stuck to Scripture, though some of Huckabee's lessons could apply to politics. Discussing how he once took bobsledding lessons, Huckabee quoted his young teacher's advice to "steer for the curve ahead — forget what's behind you."

An Oct. 29 Hawkeye Poll put Huckabee third in the nation's first caucus state, with 12.8%, up from 2% in August. Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, led with 36.2%, and former New York City mayor Giuliani was at 13.1%. The poll had an error margin of +/-5.8%.

Huckabee's campaign said its online fundraising for October topped $1 million and exceeded by $1 his entire take for July through September. He picked up $100,000 on Saturday at an event in DeSoto, south of Dallas.


WH Hopeful Huckabee Builds Evangelical Support

Hi Brother Jerry.  I sure agree with you.  I didn't know about him at first but since hearing about him a few months ago, reading about him and listening to his interviews, I am very impressed.  I've also found him honest and easy to understand.  Not seeing the gegaw-hemha-ing as with others.
Amazing how you can hear and understand the questions the candidates are being asked, but by they time they've given their answer you have no clue what they just said!  ;D

And that's the way they want it. If you can't dazzle 'em with brilliance, baffle 'em with nonsense and we know where the brilliance went.

AMEN!!
I just taped my voting card back together ;D

Mike Huckabee: a conservative with a social gospel By Gail Russell Chaddock
Wed Nov 7, 3:00 AM ET
 


Washington - The first time Mike Huckabee walked into the Church at Rock Creek, then meeting in a storefront, he knew he'd found a church home.

 
There was no lack of Southern Baptist churches for Arkansas's new governor to attend in Little Rock. But Mr. Huckabee, an ordained minister-turned-politician, liked the people he met at the fledgling church – many coming off addictions or otherwise rebuilding their lives, none wearing a suit and tie.

"This is a church that was created for the people that no one else wants," says Huckabee, in a Monitor interview. Its motto is: Taking Jesus as he is to people as they are.

Now in a race for the GOP presidential nomination, Huckabee is shaping his come-from-behind campaign on the same principle that grew the Church at Rock Creek from a few dozen people in 1996 to more than 5,000 today: Every life has value – and don't count anyone out.

"We care about individuals because of the intrinsic worth and value in every single human life," he says often on the campaign trail.

It's the central theme in his campaign on issues ranging from abortion rights, which he opposes, to healthcare for poor children, which he promoted as governor. But it's opened him to charges that he is not a "consistent conservative," because he's willing to tax and spend on issues like education and healthcare to meet those needs.

Until recently, Huckabee has been consigned to a second tier by most political handicappers – and is typically given less airtime in debates than the front-runners. But he's winning converts, especially among so-called values voters, by his ease and agility on the stump.

If elected, Huckabee would be only the second preacher president, after James Garfield. He senses that could be an obstacle. "Anytime you have been a person who was identified as a pastor and you've got a seminary education and theology degree, people tend to worry about you," Huckabee told the Values Voter Summit in Washington last month.

He heads off the issue with a story: "When I first started running for office, a lady asked me, 'Are you one of those narrow-minded Baptist ministers who think only Baptists will go to heaven?'" He replies, "Actually I'm more narrow than that. I don't think all the Baptists are going to make it."

His appeal prompts comparisons with another politician from Hope, Ark. Bill Clinton went off to Georgetown University, Yale Law School, and Oxford University. But Huckabee sank deep roots in the evangelical culture of the New South – and the vast Christian communications networks that shot up around it.

As a Southern Baptist, Huckabee grew up in a culture of moral absolutes, where issues such as the "inerrancy of the Bible" and the changing role of women stirred strong passions and hard sermons. Moreover, he came of age just as evangelical Christians began an alliance with the Republican Party.

Huckabee, who saw it all close up, would later take the connections and communications skills he honed in church life straight into politics.

The roots of faith

Huckabee was born in Hope, Ark., in 1955. His father, Dorsey, was a local fireman and a mechanic on his days off. His mother Mae's family was "one generation away from dirt floors and outdoor toilets," Huckabee says.

Like many families in town, his parents struggled to pay the rent, but encouraged him to do well in school. From Grade 2 on, he read every biography he could find. He learned to make lists – now one of many daily disciplines. In spare moments, he got a chuckle from classmates with impersonations of John Wayne and Jimmy Stewart. (Friends say he still does a spot-on Clinton.)

On his 11th Christmas, his parents gave him an electric guitar, which he practiced until his fingers bled. That guitar is now Exhibit A in his case for funding for the arts in public schools. Schools shouldn't just fund kids who run fast, jump high, or throw a ball, he said, as he became chairman of the Education Commission of the States in 2004. "It is critical to touch the talent of every kid, no matter what that talent is."

It wasn't until his first trip out of Arkansas as a 16-year-old that Huckabee realized that not everyone acknowledged Jesus as their personal savior.

"I assumed that everyone had faith in the church, lived the same value system. It was shocking to me to find out that I was living in a very protected and different kind of a world," he said in the interview.

Huckabee graduated from Ouachita Baptist University in Arkadelphia in just over two years, magna cum laude. At the same time, he worked on-air at local radio station KVRC and pastored a Baptist congregation on weekends. "He had a great sense of humor that came out on the radio, in his sermons, and in the dorm room with the guys," says college roommate Rick Caldwell, who is on leave from his business to work with the Huckabee campaign.

In college, Huckabee began a lifelong practice of reading a chapter in Proverbs every day. "There are 31 chapters, and you can read through the whole book every month. It's a great source of wisdom and principles of life that are very valuable," he says. That's not just a casual goal, notes his wife, Janet. "If it's the 22nd of the month, he's on Chapter 22."

After attending Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth for a year, Huckabee moved to Dallas to be director of communications for James Robison, an evangelical leader who helped broker Evangelicals' support for Ronald Reagan's presidential bid in 1980.

By the time Huckabee returned to Arkansas in 1980 to preach at the Immanuel Baptist Church in Pine Bluff, he was a skilled communicator. At age 21, Huckabee was directing a faith-based advertising agency, including producing television programs. He set up a 24-hour broadcast ministry and, by 1984, was hosting a TV show. When he moved to the Beech Street First Baptist Church in Texarkana, he did the same.

"If the medium for moving public policy is television, then understand that TV is the field of play and learn to run on it," he writes in his 2007 book "Character Makes a Difference."

In 1989, he was elected president of the Arkansas Baptist State Convention at a time of deep division over issues such as the role of women in family and church. Conservatives say Huckabee did not do enough to help them in this struggle. Supporters say he tried to bring sides together. "Mike's whole personality is one of conciliator," says Rick Scarborough, a pastor who heads Vision America and was Huckabee's classmate at seminary.

His stint as head of the Baptist State Convention also gave him wider recognition and contacts to launch a statewide political organization.

Huckabee credits his 12 years in the ministry with helping him understand the issues facing average people. "As a pastor, I've seen every step of a person's life from cradle to grave. None of it is abstract to me, and I've seen it all," he says.

But over time, he lost some of his early idealism in the ministry. Instead of "leading God's troops into battle to change the world," most people seemed to want me "to captain the Love Boat, making sure everyone was having a good time," he writes in his 2007 book. "I wasn't bitter or angry; I just wanted my life to count for something more than being an ordained cruise director."

Commenting on that passage, Huckabee said in an e-mail: "I didn't leave the ministry, as I am still ordained. The good news is that churches have been changing over the past 15 years – with not only a continuing and proper focus on eternal issues but also involved in confronting hunger, poverty, disease, lack of education, housing, stewardship of the earth, etc. That is a good trend that is taking hold in the most conservative and evangelical churches."

A new calling
Huckabee launched his career in politics with a race against three-term US Sen. Dale Bumpers (D) in 1992. To his surprise, he lost. "He felt that God wanted him to run for the Senate. I, too, felt that that was what he was supposed to do," says his wife, Janet, in an interview. "We didn't have a Plan B" when he lost, she adds. "But you can't second guess something when you think you've done the right thing. You have to make the decision and have peace about it. That's where your faith comes in."

But after then-Governor Clinton won the White House, Huckabee had another shot at politics. He won a special election to replace Lt. Gov. Jim Guy Tucker, and after then-Governor Tucker was convicted of conspiracy and mail fraud in 1996, Huckabee moved into the governor's mansion. He was elected to a four-year term in 1998, and reelected in 2002.

One of his first moves as governor was to review state laws, rules, and practices with an eye to their impact on families. He signed legislation to double the child-care tax credit, protect the rights of parents to home-school their children, eliminate the marriage penalty in the tax code, outlaw same-sex marriage, and require parental consent for abortion. He also launched a program to provide health insurance to more than 70,000 children, ARKids First.

He says the answer to America's healthcare crisis is preventing chronic disease, rather than finding a way to pay for it. He often cites his own example. In grade school, he was asked to bring a symbol of his faith to a show-and-tell on religion. One student brought a crucifix, another brought a menorah. "I brought a casserole in a covered dish," he says.

Since 2000, he's lost more than 100 pounds and has started running marathons. "Of my many motivations to move toward a concept of forever fit, the primary one is faith," he writes in his 2005 book "Quit Digging Your Grave with a Knife and Fork."

MAN!!! I like this guy....and a great underdog campaign as well....I pray that he can pull it off and keep his faith intact as well.

Heard that Brother!  I'm with ya!

AMEN!
I CAN'T believe P. Robertson indorsed R. Gulliano, I think that DUDE ruined our chances...
It think that it will also take an act of God Now for him to even be nominated to run against Hillary or Obama?
I hope we hav'nt been brought to power(like Egypt was) Just to be Destroyed by the Hand of God, As they were?
I put U.S just below the Sodomites, OH Yey, WE know the word of God, My Bad, it will be worse for us then it was for them!(Prophecy fulfilled??)= Professing to be WISE they have became FOOLS? ;D
Your Loving Brother Duane

Hello Brother Duane,

I really can't understand why Pat Robertson did that. Rudy is for abortion and has some other problems that turn many Christians off. So far, I can't find anything immoral about Huckabee. That doesn't mean he's perfect, but he does appear to be a highly qualified and Godly man.

Brother, I know this is nothing to brag about, but I think you will still find this part of the world much closer to GOD than others. AND there are much greater numbers here trying to live like Christians should. I thought the same thing until I did some reading about other parts of the world. I don't think that we can find a better place to move to. The places to move to are worse, and many are much worse. I know that we don't want our families being surrounded by evil, but there is no better place to go.

Love In Christ,
Tom

   

AMEN Brother Tom, Theirs only one other place on Earth that i would rather be then here, Isreal!
I've been to other Countries about 5 of them, and could'nt wait to get back to the World(USA)!
In 1979 i almost got to go to Iran 3 different times if you know what i mean?
The Peanut Farmer could'nt figure it out!(sorry Jimmy) ;D
Your Loving Brother Duane

Cheery conservative Huckabee shakes up Republican race by Stephen Collinson
Thu Nov 8, 9:53 AM ET
 


CEDAR FALLS, United States (AFP) - Mike Huckabee, a wise-cracking, guitar-strumming, Baptist pastor has leapt into a conservative void and shot into contention in the unpredictable 2008 Republican White House race.

ADVERTISEMENT
 
Huckabee, 52, was hitherto best known for being born in the same town, Hope, as Bill Clinton, and shedding more than 100 pounds from his once portly frame.

But, partly by exploiting discontent among Christian conservatives with the Republican field, Huckabee, a witty former Arkansas governor, has powered into second place in polls in Iowa, 65 days before the state's crucial caucuses.

"The religious right vote in the Iowa caucuses is a substantial bloc, and if you secure that support you are a serious player," said Cary Covington, a political science professor at the University of Iowa.

"Huckabee is, I think at a tipping point, he is going to need to do something splashy, a big financial haul, or a major endorsement," Covington said.

Huckabee's style is to leaven his staunch conservatism -- pro gun rights, doubts about the theory of evolution, opposition to gay marriage, and hawkish rhetoric on Iraq and the war on terror, with levity.

At an education forum at Northern Iowa University Wednesday, Huckabee, author of a book "Quit Digging Your Grave with a Knife and Fork," slipped into stand-up comic mode when a mobile phone rang.

"That's probably Dick Cheney wanting to take me hunting, and I am not going with him, OK?" he quipped, mocking the vice president's infamous shooting incident.

Such patter, and the fact that several of his Republican rivals are trying to appear something they are not -- lifelong social conservatives -- helps Huckabee to come across as humble and at ease.

Though a conservative, Huckabee is an outspoken advocate of spending government money on education, and healthcare for poor children.

And he told students at NIU that US schools had focused too narrowly on mathematics and science -- demanding the launch of "weapons of mass instruction" -- music and art.

"Math and science without music and art, is like trying to fly an airplane with a wing on the left, but without one on the right," he warned.

A bit-player at the start of the Republican race, polls now show Huckabee apparently on a roll.

In Iowa, an average by RealClearPolitics.com of recent polls has him in second place, on 15 percent and rising, behind former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney on 29 percent.

Nationally, a Rasmussen national daily tracking poll had Huckabee Wednesday third among Republicans, behind Rudolph Giuliani and Fred Thompson, but ahead of Senator John McCain and Romney.

Huckabee also came a strong second to Romney in a straw poll of evangelical voters recently in Washington.

He may also have another advantage, as ex-governors like Clinton, George W. Bush and Ronald Reagan have dominated the presidency in recent decades.

But Huckabee will still be a longshot for the Republican nomination, even if he causes a stir in the Iowa caucuses on January 3.

Despite warm reviews from pundits, strong performances in Republican debates and backing of grass-roots conservatives, he is short of campaign cash.

Up until October, he had raised only 2.3 million dollars -- limiting his capacity to mount an Iowa advertising blitz.

By comparison, Romney, who has piled millions of dollars of his own cash into the race, had raised 62 million.

Huckabee also suffers from questions about his depth. He has no foreign policy experience -- a liability with Iran, Iraq and terrorism top issues.

So, Huckabee is increasingly being mentioned as a possible vice presidential pick.

As an evangelical Christian, with strong support from the "religious right" Huckabee would be a good match for Giuliani, who has alienated the bloc with his support for abortion rights and gay rights.

On a Romney ticket, Huckabee could head off suspicion among evangelical voters about the former Massachusetts governor's Mormon religion.

And as a southerner, Huckabee could help balance a ticket with either man, both of whom made their names in the liberal northeast.
-=-=-=-=-=--==-=--=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-==-=-=-=-=-==-=
Sounds like it might be Huckabee & Romney running our Country, I can live with that!

Yes, I was taken back by that also. I found it very hard to believe.

I Believe our Brother just might do it!
Huckabee moving up in the Iowa "Polls"
Thank God ALMIGHTY, We might not be thrown too the Wolves...
I think I'm going to have a yard sell so I can donate to his/our cause....
YLBD

Huckabee offered 'no-cost' deal for Mexican Consulate 
Developer confirms role, legislator raps ex-governor for using taxpayer funds for illegals

An Arkansas commercial developer confirmed his role in a no-cost "incentive deal" packaged by former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee to attract a Mexican Consulate to Little Rock.

Meanwhile, an Arkansas legislator expressed concern that Huckabee used taxpayer funds inappropriately in a plan ultimately designed to assist illegal immigrants in Arkansas.

Bruce Burrow told WND his commercial real estate company acquired the land and developed the Mexican consulate building in Little Rock at the request of Huckabee, in a deal the then-governor engineered to make sure he snared the Mexican consulate away from other states.

"I agreed to do the project at no cost," Burrow told WND, confirming his involvement in the Huckabee plan.

Arkansas Republican state legislator Rick Green objected to Huckabee using taxpayer funds in the scheme.

"I'd like to sit down with Huckabee and visit with him on the issue and see if there is anything he can tell me on the Mexican consulate deal that I am not seeing," Green told WND in a telephone interview.

"But I have not seen any argument Huckabee has made that convinces me that the Mexican consulate deal was the right thing to do," he said.

"Any taxpayer money that is used to help facilitate breaking the law is wrong," Green emphasized.

WND previously reported Robert Trevino, commissioner of the Arkansas Rehabilitation Services, had signed a lease providing the Mexican Consulate space in an Arkansas Rehabilitations Services building at a cost of $1 per year. The lease provided the consulate temporary space until permanent space could be found.

Green told WND that two legislative study groups he helped organize this past summer concluded Arkansas has more illegal immigrants per capita than any other state and that its Hispanic illegal immigrant population is the fastest growing of any state in the nation.

Burrow detailed to WND how he became involved in financing the Mexican Consulate office in Little Rock.

"In a trip to Mexico, Governor Huckabee had agreed with (then-Mexican President) Vicente Fox to work with the Mexican government to establish that facility in Arkansas in the capital city of Little Rock," Burrow said.

"But since there was really no government mechanism for the state to go and acquire that property and then to go and turn around and lease to the Mexican government, it had to be done by private enterprise," he continued.

"That's where I got involved," Burrow admitted. "That's what we do. We own a number of properties and we're a developer.

"So we agreed to do it at no profit," Burrow said. "And that's what I did. I acquired the property, renovated it for the Mexican government."

The entire project cost about $1.2 million, Burrow recalled.

"I think that we paid south of $500,000 for the existing facility which was a former doctor's office," he said. "Then I went in and renovated it completely to meet their needs and their specifications. "We spent probably another $700,000 renovating, so probably about $1.2 million for the project all in."

WND asked Burrow why Huckabee felt the urgency to offer the Mexican government such a good deal.

"What had happened, as I understand it," Burrow explained, "is that Governor Huckabee had met with President Fox in a trip. Huckabee kind of wrestled the Mexican Consulate office away from our surrounding larger states. ...."

"From day one, the Mexican government paid us rent on the property," he added, "and the Mexican government has the right to purchase the property and the Mexican consulate office here in Little Rock. I can't remember the exact dates, but I'm assuming the Mexican government will go ahead and acquire the property."

Burrow acquired land near the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, at 3500 South University, an address adjacent to a Bank of America branch bank.

"We estimated that $410 million per year from Arkansas is sent back to Mexico alone, just in remittance payments," Green noted.

Since 2005, Bank of America has advertised "SafeSend," a nationwide "free remittance to Mexico" program designed to send money to Mexico without charging fees.

WND also reported receiving a copy of a check from the city of Little Rock, dated June 1, paying contractor Baldwin and Shell $60,000 for two invoices, dated April 30 and May 31, in conjunction with the contract for the Mexican Consulate.

Burrow confirmed that Baldwin & Shell was the contractor he hired to renovate the consulate building.

He also explained the Little Rock check.

"That Little Rock check was paid as 'economic development,'" Burrow told WND. "As I understand how that worked, Governor Huckabee talked with the city of Little Rock about how they could provide an incentive basis for the Mexican government to decide to put the Mexican Consulate for Little Rock.

"So, Little Rock put up $50,000 from the city under their economic development fund," Burrow continued, "and $10,000 came from the state economic development fund."

The check, then, reflects a total of $60,000 invested by the city, but $10,000 was paid by Huckabee out of the state fund, he said.

"I can't remember exactly how the development money was flowed into the project," he added, "but anyway it all went into the project. It may have been for the demolition portion, or whatever, but it was applied to the project."

The government contributions then reduced the total redevelopment cost by $60,000, Burrow said.

"From my perspective, it reduced the acquisition cost by $60,000," he explained, "and that was the economic incentive to the Mexican government.

"We had to do it that way, once Governor Huckabee realized the deal could not be completely done by the state government but had to be a private enterprise deal," he said.

Burrow confirmed a WND report that a July 21, 2006, memo from Trevino's as commissioner of the Arkansas Rehabilitations Service suggested that the deal, even after Huckabee decided to involve private commercial developers, would be financed by a consortium of Arkansas companies, such that Mexico would have no costs for three years to support the Little Rock consulate.

"But all that got changed, that Mexico wasn't going to pay any expenses for three years," Burrow explained. "Once the project got over into our ownership – and there's probably not any documents in the file in that regard – but we decided there had to be a lease agreement, and the Mexican government has been paying the rent from day one."

Nevertheless, he emphasized, "I agreed to do the project at no cost."

"I am out my time and expenses, but I am happy to do that," Burrow said. "We were able to get the Mexican Consulate in Little Rock instead of it going to Oklahoma City or Memphis or Nashville, so it was a great economic thing for us.

"We have and awful lot of Hispanic workers in the state," he continued, "and I grew up in a predominately Hispanic neighborhood in California. So, I felt if we could assist in any way that we would."

WND asked Burrow if Huckabee wanted to provide Mexico incentives because having the Mexican Consulate in Little Rock would help attract low-cost Hispanic workers to the state.

"The Mexican Consulate was never considered an inducement for any illegal aliens to come into the state," he protested. "The Mexican government placed the consulate here simply to handle the representation of their citizens in this part of the mid-South area. The Mexican government has done everything they said they would do, and I am very satisfied with the situation."

Green, however, expressed concern.

"We're an agricultural state, and a poultry producing state," he said. "That's where we get the argument that there would not be enough people to fill the jobs if every illegal was deported from the state of Arkansas."

Still, this was not enough to satisfy Green.

"Even if that were the case," he countered, "you still have to be willing to obey the law.

"We've got to look at reforming the welfare system too," Green added. "If enough able-body people were put to work from welfare, there would be plenty of people to fill all the jobs available in Arkansas."

Burrow boasted, "By all accounts, the Mexican Consulate has been successful. There's been a huge backlash and a huge discussion about the illegals in this country, and somebody has to serve these people, legal or illegal, and to provide advice and to represent them in a foreign land, and I think that's what these consulate offices do."

WND previously reported Trevino confirmed in a telephone interview the authenticity of the $1-per-year lease he arranged for the Mexican Consulate to occupy space in the Arkansas Rehabilitations Services government building.

WND also reported Trevino, then serving as economic development adviser to Huckabee, accompanied the governor to Mexico on the initial trip in which the financial incentives were offered.

Brothers and Sisters,

This story about the Mexican Consulate does concern me, so I decided to check it out some. First, the person providing the information to WND appears to be uncertain what he's reporting and has questions. I would have questions also, and I don't know if I have all of the answers or not. However, I do have some answers.

First, all states and most major cities have economic development money designed to attract business and jobs. In fact, this is many times a competition and it's completely legal. It's done every day and taxpayer funds have already been allocated for that specific purpose. There's all kinds of deals to attract anything that brings in industry, jobs, tourists, etc. It's out in the complete open, and there isn't anything hidden or shady about it. Some citizens might not agree with trying to attract certain entities, but that has nothing to do with whether it is legal or not. Land, buildings, utilities, local taxes, water and all kinds of things are commonly involved. As an example where I live, the last big one I remember was the Goodyear Tire Company. A much smaller city to the West of us won the deal, and they have benefited from it greatly ever since.

Here's the specific answer from Mike Huckabee's web site:
______________________________________

Critics say that Governor Huckabee's motives behind opening a Mexican consulate office in Little Rock was to court illegals to come work in Arkansas.

The Mexican consulate provided Arkansas businesses with access to Mexico and opportunities to expand their markets, and would help further ensure that immigrants from Mexico are legal and better able to secure legal documentation. At the same time, the office would open up opportunities for Mexican investors to invest money with Arkansas partners, which would help create more jobs in the state.
______________________________________

I still have questions, so I'll try to find the answers. See the next post for Mike Huckabee's official stance on immigration issues.

Governor Mike Huckabee on Immigration:

    * Securing our borders must be our top priority and has reached the level of a national emergency.
    * The Governor supports the $3 billion the Senate has voted for border security. This money will train and deploy 23,000 more agents, add four drone planes, build 700 miles of fence and 300 miles of vehicle barriers, and put up 105 radar and camera towers. This money will turn “catch and release” into “catch and detain” of those entering illegally, and crack down on those who overstay their visas.
    * In this age of terror, immigration is not only an economic issue, but also a national security issue. Those caught trying to enter illegally must be detained, processed, and deported.
    * The Governor opposes and will never allow amnesty. He opposed the amnesty President Bush and Senator McCain tried to ram through Congress this summer, and opposed the misnamed DREAM Act, which would have put us on the slippery slope to amnesty for all.
    * The Governor opposes and will not tolerate sanctuaries for illegals. The federal government must crack down on rogue cities that willfully undermine our economy and national security.
    * The Governor opposes giving driver’s licenses to illegals and supports legislation to prevent states from doing so.
    * The Governor will stop punishing cities which try to enforce our laws and protect the economic well-being, physical safety, and quality of life of their citizens.
    * The Governor opposes and will not tolerate employers who hire illegals. They must be punished with fines and penalties so large that they will see it is not worth the risk.
    * The Governor opposes the economic integration of North America that would create open borders among the United States, Canada, and Mexico. He will never yield one iota or one inch of our sovereignty.
    * The Governor will take our country back for those who belong here. No open borders, no amnesty, no sanctuary, no false Social Security numbers, no driver’s licenses for illegals.

 Governor Huckabee knows that securing our borders must be our top priority and has reached the level of a national emergency. He is as sick and tired as you are that it is harder for us to get on an airplane in our home town than it is for all these illegals to cross our international border unchallenged.

We cannot stem the tide of illegals until we turn the tide. Before you fix the damage to your house caused by a leaking roof, you have to stop the leak, which the Governor is determined to do.

The Governor supported the $3 billion Congress passed this summer for border security. This desperately-needed money will train and deploy 23,000 more agents, add four drone planes, build 700 miles of fence and 300 miles of vehicle barriers, and put up 105 radar and camera towers. This money will turn “catch and release” into “catch and detain” of those entering illegally and crack down on those who overstay their visas.

But where is this $3 billion? The President threatened to veto the bill it was part of! Now the Senate has again voted for this money as part of the Defense Bill. The Governor will continue to fight until we get these funds.

In this age of terror, immigration is not only an economic issue, but also a national security issue. We must know who is coming into our country, where they are going, and why they are here. All those who are caught trying to enter illegally must be detained, processed, and deported. As Governor, he ordered his state troopers to work with the Department of Homeland Security to arrest illegals and enforce federal immigration law.

The Governor opposes and will never allow amnesty. He passionately rejected the amnesty bill that President Bush and Sen. McCain tried to ram through Congress this summer after secret meetings of an under-the-radar cabal of amnesty-loving senators.

The Governor opposed the misnamed DREAM Act, which was a nightmare because it would have put us on the slippery slope to amnesty for all. Because once we open that door even a crack, we’ll never get it closed again.

The Governor opposes and will not tolerate sanctuaries for illegals. The federal government must enforce our existing laws by cracking down on rogue cities and towns that willfully undermine our economy and our homeland security by giving benefits and protection to illegals. The consequences for illegal entry must be swift, certain, and uniform throughout our country.

The Governor opposes giving driver’s licenses to illegals, such as Governor Spitzer is trying to do in New York. The Governor supports legislation that would prevent the states from granting this privilege to illegals. In 2005, he signed legislation that prevents illegals in Arkansas from getting driver’s licenses.

The Governor will stop punishing cities which are trying to enforce our laws. He will appoint judges who will uphold the law, not side with the ACLU against cities like Hazelton, Pennsylvania, which are trying to protect the economic well-being, physical safety, and quality of life of their citizens.

The Governor will not tolerate employers who hire illegals – they must be punished by fines and penalties so large that they will understand it is not worth the risk. Once again, as with Hazelton, liberal judges are gumming up the works. Right now, a court in San Francisco -- Pelosiland – has delayed enforcement of the “no match” letters for Social Security numbers that the Department of Homeland Security will use to crack down on those who hire illegals. If illegals cannot find work, they will go back where they belong. The Governor will do everything he can to hasten their trip home by denying them employmeThe Governor strongly opposes the economic integration of North America that would have open borders among the United States, Canada, and Mexico. He knows we must have closed and secure borders. He will never yield either one inch or one iota of our sovereignty. He will recognize no authority but our Constitution.

Governor Huckabee will take our country back for those who belong here and those who are willing to play by the rules for the privilege to come here. No open borders, no amnesty, no sanctuary, no false Social Security numbers, no driver’s licenses for illegals.

Thank you for those posts, brother. There has been a lot of negative coming out on Huckabee since his position in the polls has gone up. Most of them have been completely fictitious or at the very least key information left out. One of these stories had the Arkansas government being further in debt by indicating the amount of money spent by the state increasing by at least 4 times. The truth of the matter was that spending had increased but then state revenue had increased even more than the debt putting the state in the black for the first time by about $420,000. This same story had the state income taxes increasing yet they failed to mention that it was to replace the personal income taxes that had been dramatically cut and that those tax increases were on non-essentials such as cigarettes and alcohol.

(http://i203.photobucket.com/albums/aa37/RobOZ_2007/AMERICANREVOLUTIONSpiritof76illustr.gif)

Brother,

You're most welcome, but I wanted the information just as badly for myself. I'm sure there is some real dirt somewhere, and many will be looking for it, but I don't think this is it. I'm positive that Huckabee isn't perfect or he wouldn't be human, so someone will eventually find something real. In the meantime, I'm also sure that some will try to slow him down with stuff that isn't real. That's just politics.

He still has my vote..
And with my Vote come's my wife's, 3 kids & my son-in-law..  A 5 in 1 deal !!!GO GOD!!! :)
NO KIDDING they all have me tell them what & who too vote for!
AS Godly of a man as you can get, That is electable, So you don't waste a Vote, Because as you know by doing so you are helping The Hillary's and Obama's of the world become President.. (remember R. Perot) God Bless his Heart...
YLBD
I HOPE & PRAY HE's NOMINATED as the man that will run against the Dems. for President,
He'll have my support for as long as he has a Chance to be Electable

Iowa: Huckabee hounds his way to No. 2 
Poll shows Arkansan surging in early presidential state

Democrats and Republicans are both headed toward heated showdowns in Iowa, where, according to a new CBS News/New York Times poll, Hillary Clinton holds a statistically insignificant lead over John Edwards and Barack Obama, and GOP hopeful Mitt Romney finds his long-held position as the state's front-runner challenged by a surging Mike Huckabee.

The situation in Iowa, where nominating caucuses are scheduled for Jan. 3, is in stark contrast to New Hampshire, where Clinton and Romney continue to hold large leads among those likely to vote in the state's first-in-the-nation primary, which could come only days after Iowa's contests.

But in both states, large chunks of voters have yet to make up their minds, meaning the results of the contests that will kick off the 2008 nominating season are still difficult to predict.

In Iowa, the Democratic contest is knotted up. Among likely caucus-goers, Clinton came out on top with 25 percent support, but she was trailed closely by Edwards at 23 percent, and Obama at 22 percent. With a margin of error of 4 percentage points, there is no clear leader. Trailing behind was Bill Richardson, at 12 percent, with all other candidates in single digits.

None of the top three has firmed up their support yet - about half of those backing each candidate said they could change their minds before caucus night. Despite that fluidity, there are some clear patterns that show how important it will be for each candidate to turn out certain groups of voters: Women have a strong preference for Clinton, while those under the age of 45 give Obama a double-digit lead. Obama and Clinton are nearly tied for support among first-time caucus-goers, but previous attendees give Edwards a narrow edge over Clinton.

    Read The Complete CBS News/NY Times Poll

The findings indicate that if older and established voters dominate turnout, the caucuses could be a two-way contest between Clinton and Edwards. If the Obama campaign succeeds in its bid to bring young voters and first-time caucus-goers out on Jan. 3, however, it could leave Iowa with a win and a crucial momentum boost headed into later contests. Doing so will be a challenge: Only a third of possible first-time attendees say they will "definitely" attend the caucuses, compared with six in 10 of previous attendees.

One factor in Obama's favor is that nearly two-thirds of the state's independent voters who plan on voting on Jan. 3 say they'll attend the Democratic caucus. Obama attracts the support of 37 percent of those voters, compared to only 17 percent for Edwards and 15 percent for Clinton.

The priorities of Iowans will also be crucial. Clinton is seen as the most electable in November 2008 by a wide margin. However, Obama is clearly seen as the most likely to bring about change in Washington and Edwards holds a strong edge on the question of who understands the problems of Iowans.

Edwards and Obama may also want to spend time making sure supporters of second-tier candidates see them favorably: Among those favoring other candidates besides them and Clinton, Edwards was the second choice of 30 percent, while Obama was close behind at 27 percent. A supporter of any candidate getting less than 15 percent support on the first count at a caucus is allowed to switch to another candidate or enter an "uncommitted" group.

While the Democratic contest in Iowa has been a three-way battle for some time, most polls have shown Romney, a former Massachusetts governor, with a strong lead in the Hawkeye State, dominating the GOP field. Recent surveys, however, have shown Huckabee picking up steam, and he is well within striking distance in the CBS News/New York Times poll, where he trails Romney, 27 percent to 21 percent, with a 5 percent margin of error.

Rudy Giuliani was in third at 15 percent. All other candidates were in single digits, including Fred Thompson, who had 9 percent support among likely caucus-goers.

While Romney still leads in Iowa, his support base is far softer than that of Huckabee, a former Arkansas governor whose campaign has gained momentum in recent weeks. Half of Huckabee supporters said they had made up their mind, compared to two-thirds of Romney supporters who said they could change their mind before caucus night. Overall, 57 percent of GOP caucus-goers said they haven't settled on one candidate.

Huckabee could run into trouble if immigration is as important an issue as the poll indicates. When asked what issue candidates should discuss, illegal immigration topped the list at 20 percent, and 44 percent of caucus-goers said illegal immigrants should lose their jobs and leave the country. Huckabee has been criticized for supporting pre-natal care for immigrants and educational opportunities for the children of immigrants, and only 13 percent said Huckabee agreed with them on this issue, compared to 26 percent for Romney.

However, immigration may not be a deal-breaker: 75 percent said they could support a candidate who is less conservative than they are. This could offer hope to Huckabee, but not to Giuliani. While 38 percent said he was the most electable of the GOP candidates, likely caucus-goers were split nearly evenly on whether they could support a candidate who disagreed with them on social issues like abortion and gay marriage - Giuliani favors abortion rights and supports extending gay rights, though he does not support same-sex marriage.

As contentious as Iowa is, the next state on the campaign calendar, New Hampshire, is far less competitive. Among likely Democratic primary voters, Clinton has 37 percent support, putting her 15 points ahead of Obama. Among Republicans, Romney continues to dominate. He was backed by 34 percent in the poll, while John McCain and Giuliani both trailed at 16 percent. All other candidates were in single digits.

Clinton's support in the Granite State is solid. Though 52 percent of voters say they could change their mind, 62 percent of Clinton supporters "strongly favor" the New York senator and former first lady. As in Iowa, her experience is the top reason people are supporting her.

Many New Hampshire Republicans also have yet to make up their minds, even moreso than Democrats. Among likely GOP primary voters, 66 percent said they hadn't made up their minds. Romney, unlike Clinton, has yet to solidify his support - only 31 percent of Romney backers said they had made up their mind. More than half of his supporters have reservations about him or are behind him because they dislike other candidates in the race. And the poll indicates Romney's religion could be a problem: more than one-in-four voters said they know someone who would not vote for a Mormon candidate.

The Huckabee Hound Dogs ;D
Sounds like a nice Blue Grass name... ;D
YLBD

Huckabee passes Gulliani in the Polls.... :) :) :)
YLBD

Huckabee reaffirms opposition to civil unions

Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee is rejecting claims that he backs homosexual civil unions.



Paul Weyrich of the Free Congress Foundation recently told OneNewsNow that one of the reasons he chose not to endorse Mike Huckabee for president was that the former Arkansas governor told the Concord Monitor, a newspaper in New Hampshire, that he was "open to state-supported civil unions." A June 7, 2007, article on the Monitor's website states: "Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee ... recently told the Monitor that he opposes same-sex marriage and that his evangelical faith informs his views. Huckabee ... added that [he] is open to the idea of states passing civil union laws."

Huckabee, however, says the Monitor report was inaccurate and he does not support "legal recognition of alternative unions." In a statement provided to OneNewsNow, Huckabee says: "I strongly, firmly and unequivocally believe that the traditional definition of marriage is for 'one man, one woman, for life.' That is why I worked hard in Arkansas to enact legislation at the state level to protect traditional marriage, and why I have vowed to work hard for federal language as president."

"While I believe that people have a right to decide how they live their personal lives," reads the statement, "they have to respect not changing the definition of marriage."

Huckabee gaining ground in Iowa 
Now challenging Romney for lead in Republican caucuses

Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee, buoyed by strong support from Christian conservatives, has surged past three of his better-known presidential rivals and is now challenging former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney for the lead in the Iowa Republican caucuses, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News Poll.

Huckabee has tripled his support in Iowa since late July, eclipsing former New York mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani, former senator Fred D. Thompson (Tenn.) and Sen. John McCain (Ariz.). Huckabee now runs nearly evenly with Romney, the longtime Iowa front-runner.

Huckabee's rise from dark horse to contender in Iowa is one more unexpected twist in a race that has remained fluid throughout the year and adds another unpredictable element to the competition for the GOP nomination. His support in Iowa appears stronger and more enthusiastic than that of his rivals.

Still, there are other signs in the poll suggesting that Romney remains the candidate to beat in the state and that gains for Huckabee may be harder to achieve in the next 43 days than they were over the past four months.

Romney outperforms Huckabee and other Republicans on key attributes, with two notable exceptions -- perceptions of which candidate best understands people's problems and which candidate is the most honest and trustworthy. On both, Romney and Huckabee are tied. At the same time, Iowa Republicans see the former Arkansas governor as less credible than Romney, Giuliani or McCain on some top issues.

The poll found that overall, 28 percent of likely GOP caucus-goers support Romney, while 24 percent support Huckabee. Thompson ran third in the poll at 15 percent, with Giuliani at about the same level, with 13 percent. McCain, whose Iowa campaign appeared to derail earlier this year over his stance on immigration, had 6 percent and was tied with Rep. Ron Paul (Tex.), who rose from 2 percent in July.

Huckabee's gains were concentrated among the party's conservative core. He saw a 28-percentage-point jump in support from evangelical Protestants, to 44 percent, and a 19-point rise among conservatives, to 30 percent. Among previous caucus attendees, his support increased from 9 percent to 29 percent.

Huckabee probably benefited from the decision of Sen. Sam Brownback (Kan.) and others to quit the race. Brownback and Huckabee had been competing for many of the same religious and conservative voters. Moreover, Huckabee's gain in this poll does not come at the expense of those still running, all of whom are faring about the same as they were in July.
ad_icon

But almost half of Huckabee's supporters (48 percent) said they would definitely vote for him in January and only a quarter said there was a good chance that they would change their minds before the caucuses. In contrast, just 29 percent of Romney's backers said they would definitely vote for him, while 42 percent said there was a good chance that they could vote for someone else at the caucuses.

The enthusiasm among Huckabee supporters was striking, particularly in a year in which Republicans have been considerably dissatisfied with the field of candidates. Half of those who now back the former Arkansas governor said they are very enthusiastic about him, compared with 28 percent of Romney's backers.

But despite these advantages, Huckabee's support comes almost exclusively from certain groups of voters. His challenge will be to expand his appeal.

Nearly seven in 10 of his backers are evangelical Protestants, and nearly three-quarters attend religious services at least weekly. Just 5 percent of moderate and liberal GOP voters back his candidacy. Romney, by contrast, has wider support.

It is also primarily social issues that galvanize Huckabee's backers.

More than four in 10 Huckabee voters call abortion or broader moral or values issues the race's top one or two concerns. That is nearly double the number of Romney supporters to highlight these issues. Overall, three-quarters of likely GOP voters think that abortion should be illegal in most or all cases, and among the 24 percent who want the procedure to be unlawful in every instance, 36 percent support Huckabee and 22 percent Romney.

But a slew of issues drive likely GOP caucus-goers. A quarter of those surveyed said immigration is their biggest or second-biggest concern when considering whom to back on Jan. 3. The same percentage, 24 percent, highlighted the war in Iraq, and nearly as many, 21 percent, singled out terrorism and national security.

Ten percent or more cited five other issues: the economy, health care, abortion, taxes, and morals and family values. Overall, eight issues ranked in the double digits, making the discussion in the Republican contest potentially more wide-ranging than that on the Democratic side. Among likely Democratic caucus-goers, only three issues reach 10 percent, and two -- Iraq and health care -- dominate voters' concerns.

On immigration, Romney has an edge: 27 percent said the former Massachusetts governor is best on the issue, while Huckabee and Rep. Tom Tancredo (Colo.) each received 13 percent. No candidate is clearly preferred on the other top issue, Iraq, with Giuliani, McCain and Romney each considered the best by about two in 10. Giuliani doubles up the competition, however, on handling the terrorism fight.

Romney tops the field as the candidate most trusted to handle the economy and the federal budget deficit. He and Huckabee are preferred by about equal percentages on social issues, such as abortion and same-sex civil unions.

Campaign activity on the GOP side appears to be more subdued than it is among Democrats, perhaps in part because national leaders Giuliani and McCain are not prioritizing Iowa's caucus.

About six in 10 likely caucus-goers said they have been called by one of the campaigns. Twenty-nine percent have attended a campaign event, up six percentage points from July, but far less than the percentage of Democrats who have attended an event (52 percent). A third of GOP voters have visited one of the candidates' Web sites and 29 percent have received e-mail. About one in five has spoken with or shaken hands with one or more of the GOP candidates. Fifteen percent have contributed money.
ad_icon

Romney, who has pinned his bid for the nomination on success in Iowa and New Hampshire, is widely seen as the candidate who has made the biggest effort in the Hawkeye state. More than six in 10 said that he has "campaigned the hardest in Iowa." That's up 14 percentage points from July, and no other candidate scored in the double digits on that question.

Romney has an advantage on the question of who has the "best experience to be president," after a 10-point increase from July, when he was about even with Giuliani and McCain. Romney had held a marginally significant edge on "best understands problems of people like you," but while he has stayed at 21 percent on this question, Huckabee has soared from 10 percent to 25 percent.

In July, Romney had the lead on "most honest and trustworthy" at 21 percent. He has risen to 25 percent, but Huckabee jumped from 10 percent to 26 percent.

Romney and Giuliani share the top spot as the field's "strongest leader" and as the Republicans with the best shot at capturing the White House in November 2008. About one in eight said Huckabee is the most electable Republican, while 1 percent thought so in July. About a quarter of evangelical Protestants now think Huckabee is the GOP's top option; four months ago, that percentage was less than 1 percent.

The poll was conducted by telephone Nov. 14 to 18 among a random sample of 400 likely GOP caucus-goers. The results have a margin of sampling error of plus or minus five percentage points.

Brothers and Sisters,

It appears that Mike Huckabee is doing almost the impossible with the tiny amount of money he has compared to the other candidates. His web site indicates that he is now getting more support by the day, including financial support. If Huckabee takes Iowa, I think that he will be seen as a viable candidate and then get enough support to take on the other contenders. Frankly, the other candidates have problems that most Christians will have a difficult time dealing with.

 Huckabee: America enslaved to Saudi oil

Consumers are financing both sides in the war on terror because of the actions of U.S. ally Saudi Arabia, Republican presidential hopeful Mike Huckabee said Sunday.

The former Arkansas governor made the comments following what he suggested was a muted response by the Bush administration to a Saudi court's sentence of six months in jail and 200 lashes for a woman who was gang raped.

"The United States has been far too involved in sort of looking the other way, not only at the atrocities of human rights and violation of women," Huckabee said on CNN's "Late Edition."

"Every time we put our credit card in the gas pump, we're paying so that the Saudis get rich — filthy, obscenely rich, and that money then ends up going to funding madrassas," schools "that train the terrorists," said Huckabee. "America has allowed itself to become enslaved to Saudi oil. It's absurd. It's embarrassing."

Huckabee said "I would make the United States energy independent within 10 years and tell the Saudis they can keep their oil just like they can keep their sand, that we won't need either one of them."

Responding to the gang rape case in Saudi Arabia, the State Department expressed astonishment about the sentence of the Saudi court against the rape victim.

The woman was convicted of being in the car of a man who was not a relative. The seven men convicted of raping her were given prison sentences of two years to nine years.

Under Saudi Arabia's strict interpretation of Islamic Sharia law, women are not allowed in public in the company of men other than relatives.

The woman has said the 2006 attack occurred as she tried to retrieve her picture from a male friend. While in the car with the friend, two men climbed into the vehicle and drove to a secluded area. She said she was raped by seven men, three of whom also attacked her friend.

The woman initially had been sentenced to 90 lashes after she was convicted of violating rigid laws on the segregation of the sexes. The Saudi court said the woman's punishment was increased because of what the court said was her attempt to aggravate and influence the judiciary through the media.

State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said that "when you look at the crime and the fact that now the victim is punished, I think that causes a fair degree of surprise and astonishment. But it is within the power of the Saudi government to take a look at the verdict and change it."

Last Tuesday, the same day as McCormack's comments, President Bush telephoned Saudi King Abdullah, trying to get Saudi Arabia to co-sponsor this week's U.S.-organized conference aimed at working toward a peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians. On Friday, Abdullah agreed to send its foreign minister to the conference.

Giuliani: Jonah of Bible not really swallowed
GOP candidates at debate asked if they believe all of Good Book


Do the Republicans running for president believe every word of the Holy Bible?

That issue was the focus of a portion of tonight's CNN/You Tube debate, as a questioner brought it to the forefront.

"How you answer this question will tell us everything we need to know about you," said Joseph Dearing from Dallas, Texas. As he held a Holy Bible up to the camera, he asked, "Do you believe every word of this Book?"

"The reality is, I believe it, but I don't believe it necessarily literally true in every single respect," said former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who is Catholic. "I think there are parts of the Bible that are interpretive; I think there are parts of the Bible that are allegorical; I think there are parts of the Bible that are meant to be interpreted in a modern context."

"I don't believe every single thing in the literal sense of Jonah being in the belly of the whale," he added.

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, a Mormon, drew applause when he said "the Bible is the Word of God, absolutely."

"Does that mean you believe every word?" asked moderator Anderson Cooper.

"Yeah, I believe it's the Word of God," Romney said. "I might interpret the Word differently than you interpret the Word, but I read the Bible and I believe the Bible is the Word of God. I don't disagree with the Bible. I try and live by it."

The only other candidate presented with the question was former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, a Baptist minister.

"It's the Word of revelation to us from God Himself," Huckabee said. "The fact is when people ask if you believe all of it, you either believe it or you don't believe it."

"As the only person here probably on this stage with a theology degree, there are parts of it I don't fully comprehend and understand, but I'm not supposed to. Because the Bible is the revelation of an infinite God, and no finite person is ever gonna fully understand it. If they do, their God is too small."

When asked what would Jesus do concerning the death penalty, Huckabee quipped, "Jesus was too smart to ever run for public office, Anderson. That's what Jesus would do."

Huckabee: Send Mrs. Clinton into space
'Maybe Hillary can be on the 1st rocket to Mars'

Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee outlined one special plan he'd consider for NASA's exploration of space.

"Maybe Hillary can be on the first rocket to Mars," he said.

The Republican presidential candidate responded to a question asking if more money would be put into space exploration. His witty response about Clinton generated cheers from the St. Petersburg audience and followed his description of the earthly benefits of NASA's programs.

"Whether it's the medical technologies that saved many of our lives and the lives of our families, it's the direct result from the space program," he said. "We need to put more money into space and technology exploration."

The question, posed by Steve Nielson of Denver, Colorado, asked if the candidates would commit to sending Americans to Mars by the year 2020.

Rep. Ron Paul of Texas, an advocate for smaller government, disagreed with Huckabee's promise and would not commit to sending anyone to Mars because, "We can't afford some things, and going to Mars is one of them."

I would figure the Ron  would be all for going to Mars....get us to Mars as fast as we can so we can claim and it for the U.S. and move us all there and truly isolate ourselves from everyone else.

And Huckabee is either just so plain honest that it hurts or one of the slipperiest talkers out there...And with his background I tend to believe the honesty bit.  But I tell you what, I like the man.  Strait shooting and apparently honest and forthcoming. 

I don't think Ron wants to go to Mars because he just came from there and didn't like it.

RORL...now that is funny.

 ;D   ;D   ;D    ROFL!

If there is a trip to Mars, I request that both Clintons go, and I think that radical Dems should be the crew. If we need a larger craft, I think we should gladly pay for it.   ;D

One way to Mars with no return trip. Now that would work.

Bill would go only if he could take an intern with him....to take notes of course.

And do you think they would volunteer to fly on one of the rockets they sold to the Chinese?

Hey DreamWeaver!  Did you see on O'Rielly (I think it was), Huckabee's new commercial with Chuck Norris!!  It was great! I thought of you as soon as I saw the clip... ;D ;D ;D

Frontrunners Get Passed Up in Latest Iowa Poll

Hey? What happened to the inevitability of it all coming down to Rudy vs. Hillary? Both frontrunners get passed up in Iowa. Hopefully a sign that people are waking up. Things get turned around. Or as Blue Crab Boulevard puts it, the world turned upside down. Well, at least Iowa has. The latest Iowa polls puts Huckabee ahead of Giuliani and Obama ahead of Hillary. If this trend were to continue, personally I would find it a much more interesting race.

    Huckabee wins the support of 29 percent of Iowans who say they definitely or probably will attend the Republican Party’s caucuses on Jan. 3. That’s a gain of 17 percentage points since the last Iowa Poll was taken in early October, when Huckabee trailed both Romney and Fred Thompson.

    Other poll findings indicate that the former Arkansas governor is making the most of a low-budget campaign by tapping into the support of Iowa’s social conservatives.

    Romney, who has invested more time and money campaigning in the state than any other GOP candidate, remains in the thick of the Iowa race with the backing of 24 percent of likely caucusgoers. But that’s a drop of 5 points since October for the former Massachusetts governor.

    (Obama story) Despite the movement, the race for 2008’s opening nominating contest remains very competitive about a month before the Jan. 3 caucuses, just over half of likely caucusgoers who favor a candidate saying they could change their minds.

    Obama, an Illinois senator, leads for the first time in the Register’s poll as the choice of 28 percent of likely caucusgoers, up from 22 percent in October. Clinton, a New York senator, was the preferred candidate of 25 percent, down from 29 percent in the previous poll.

    Former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards, who led in the Register’s May poll, held steady with 23 percent, in third place, but part of the three-way battle.

Frankly, I'm amazed but encouraged. A preacher with almost no money DOES have a chance to become the President of the United States!

   

I'm LOV'IN it!  Must be one of those "God things"!  Hallelujah!

From 2000 to 2006, the Religious Right helped elected a Republican President, Republican House, Republican Senate and had the benefit of a conservative Supreme Court.

What great successes have the Religious Right have to show after those 6 years - are they any closer to overturning Roe vs Wade?

Both the Republicans and Democrats need the moderate swing vote from the center to win - and WINNING is the name of the game in politics.

Since the MODERATE CENTER is not commited to the Religious Right's agenda, and the Right always votes Republican, issues like ABORTION, GAY MARRIAGE, etc. are doomed to be put on the "backburner."

Any Republican Presidential candidate, including Huckabee, can only give "lip service" to the Religious Right's agenda if he's going to be president.

Hello jgarden,

You might be right. However, we at least wouldn't have a push from the top for MUCH WORSE. There needs to be a balance somewhere. The sewer is overflowing, and things do stink. We at least need to slow down the effort to open all of the sewers and let them run waist deep. I, for one, don't plan to ignore the SEWER, and I'm tired of the stench.

If this is the end days of this Age of Grace, the Bible tells us that things will get much worse. However, NOTHING is implied that Christians will sit down and be quiet. We might not be able to fix the sewer, but we'll keep trying. That's part of a reasonable service to GOD and our families. Besides, there's nothing pretty in the sewer and it stinks.

Huckabee would close Gitmo, ban waterboarding 
New Iowa front-runner met with generals lobbying against torture

Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee, for months cast as a "second-tier" candidate, now finds himself with another label he is not eager to have: "front-runner."

With a Des Moines Register poll released over the weekend showing him topping the GOP presidential field, Huckabee returned to Iowa Monday for his first visit as the front-runner in the state, sharing his mix of homespun jokes and socially conservative views on talk radio, in half a dozen television interviews, and in speeches at an energy plant and a financial services company in the Des Moines area.

The one thing he did not do: attend a traditional campaign town hall meeting or rally, as his top rival, former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney, has done for months. Unable to raise enough money earlier in the year to run a traditional campaign, Huckabee is employing an unprecedented and risky strategy to win the caucuses here: a campaign with almost no on-the-ground operation.

Without the money to hire field organizers around the state to ensure that voters will turn out, the campaign is instead relying on a network of pastors, parents who home-school their children, and other Christian conservatives. Monday night, he appeared at a closed-door meeting with Iowa pastors that was organized in part by some of his conservative religious backers.

Huckabee, a former Baptist minister, was introduced by Tim LaHaye, a conservative Christian activist. LaHaye is author of the "Left Behind" series of apocalyptic novels highly popular among Christian conservatives, who make up more than a third of Iowa GOP caucus-goers. While LaHaye has not officially endorsed Huckabee, he and his wife are listed on the program of events sponsored by a group of pastors, and Huckabee has been the only candidate invited to these forums.
ad_icon

As he has risen in the polls, rivals are increasingly attacking his record as governor. How effectively he can respond remains an open question, as he has little money to flood the airwaves here with ads. And because Huckabee has a staff of only about a dozen in the state -- a fraction of the size of Romney's operation -- reporters frequently complain that they cannot get his increasingly overwhelmed spokesmen to return calls.

Asked whether Huckabee could win, Steve Scheffler, head of the Iowa Christian Alliance, said "maybe," and was quick to tick off the challenges he faces. "He doesn't have nearly the people or the staff to deliver the votes," said Scheffler, who has not endorsed a candidate.

As Huckabee made stops Monday, it was clear that while he has momentum, voters are also hearing the attacks on him. At a speech at Principal Financial Group in downtown Des Moines, a man asked Huckabee if he was a "tax raiser" and "soft on immigration." Huckabee backed some tax increases while in Arkansas and supported a bill that would have allowed the children of illegal immigrants to pay in-state tuition, something Romney and other GOP candidates have lambasted.

He faced questions about taxes throughout the day, and he noted frequently that a conservative named Ronald Reagan had supported tax increases both as governor of California and later as president. "Does anyone in the Republican Party call Ronald Reagan a liberal?" Huckabee said.

Huckabee is no longer considered a long-shot candidate running a quixotic campaign. Even as he sought to lower expectations, saying he is "running second" and needs only to finish in the top three, he was introduced at each event as either the "front-runner" or the "leading candidate" among Republicans.

After the Iowa poll showed that Republican voters like him but found him much less "presidential" and "electable" than Romney, Huckabee sought to build his foreign policy credentials, meeting with a group of retired generals who are in Des Moines to urge the 2008 candidates to commit to opposing torture. After the meeting, Huckabee joined Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) in declaring his opposition to the interrogation procedure known as "waterboarding," and said he would support closing the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, a contrast with the other leading Republicans.

Huckabee also argues that the model he has employed here, with an emphasis on the candidate's message and personal appeal, not only can win here but also propel him toward the nomination.

"We're running second in a state where we don't have any structure," he said, attempting to suggest that Romney is still ahead. "Where we don't have offices or paid staff, we have something better: We have an army of ordinary people."

As he stumped in New Hampshire last weekend, some of those who saw him said they were proud that a candidate such as Huckabee can come back.

"That's what the New Hampshire primary is all about. Someone seen as a second-tier candidate a couple of weeks ago turns it on," said Robert Boyce, a state senator in the Granite State who is leaning toward Huckabee.

Before he can head to New Hampshire and South Carolina, though, Huckabee needs to a strong showing in Iowa.

"We can't build the staff, we don't have the resources," said Bob Vander Plaats, Huckabee's Iowa chairman. "It will be a great case study of the Iowa caucus. You have a candidate with a great staff, a lot of paid staff . . . versus a candidate with a great message, limited staff and relying on a lot of volunteers to carry his water on caucus night."

The attacks against Huckabee might backfire and actually help him instead of hurt him. He can let the other candidates pay to put his name out in the media and let the people find out the truth for themselves. So, Mike Huckabee might appreciate some more personal attacks. Those who aren't getting attacked have no chance at all. That's just the way politics works, and Huckabee is making it work without any money. WHAT A NOVEL IDEA!

Wiley was a word that came to my mind. The Lord has a way in giving us the wisdom that is needed to accomplish His will.

Huckabee: Romney should be queried about LDS beliefs

Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee says fellow Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney should be asked some tough questions about his Mormon faith.



The former Massachusetts governor will be speaking tomorrow at the George Bush Presidential Library in College Station, Texas on "religious tolerance" and "keeping faith in the public square." The speech, titled "Faith in America," will not detail specific teachings of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. He tells Associated Press he is hopeful that his willingness to discuss religion openly will convince critical evangelical Christians that he is worthy of their support.

During a Republican presidential debate last week on CNN, when Romney was asked whether he believes every word in the Bible, he stammered a bit and then said, "Yeah, the Bible is the Word of God .... I might interpret the word differently than you interpret the word, but I read the Bible and I believe the Bible is the Word of God."

Governor Huckabee says he "unapologetically" believes in the "inerrant, infallible scriptures," adding that "if that's a deal breaker for somebody, they'll just have to break the deal."

"I could see that other candidates were squirming on that question," Huckabee tells OneNewsNow when asked about the debate. "For many of us who love the Word of God and who live by it, it's not to me a great challenge to be able say we believe -- and I find it harder to say I don't believe it than I do."

Huckabee, an ordained Southern Baptist minister who has faced some pointed questions about his faith while on the campaign trail, says Governor Romney should not be exempt from such questioning. "If we're going to ask me about my faith, let's ask all the candidates about theirs," he suggests. "Now as you noticed, I'm not hesitant or reluctant to talk about mine."

In early November, Romney did not rule out addressing his faith in a speech, but said he had been warned by his political advisers that it was "not a good idea" because it would draw too much attention to that issue alone. Now a Romney spokesman has stated that during his speech on Thursday, the GOP presidential candidate will share his views on religious liberty, religious tolerance, and how his Mormon "faith would inform his presidency if he were elected."

Polls show Romney is losing ground to Huckabee in Iowa, which holds presidential caucuses January 3.

Huckabee bristles at creationism query

DES MOINES, Iowa - Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee, a Southern Baptist preacher who has surged in Iowa with evangelical Christian support, bristled Tuesday when asked if creationism should be taught in public schools.

Huckabee - who raised his hand at a debate last May when asked which candidates disbelieved the theory of evolution - asked this time why there is such a fascination with his beliefs.

"I believe God created the heavens and the Earth," he said at a news conference with Iowa pastors who murmured, "Amen."

"I wasn't there when he did it, so how he did it, I don't know," Huckabee said.

But he expressed frustration that he is asked about it so often, arguing with the questioner that it ultimately doesn't matter what his personal views are.

"That's an irrelevant question to ask me - I'm happy to answer what I believe, but what I believe is not what's going to be taught in 50 different states," Huckabee said. "Education is a state function. The more state it is, and the less federal it is, the better off we are."

The former Arkansas governor pointed out he has advocated for broad public school course lists that include the creative arts and math and science. Why, then, he asked, is evolution such a fascination?

In fact, religion seems to be more of an issue in the GOP Iowa caucuses with one month left before the voting.

In recent weeks, Huckabee has moved from the back of the pack in the state to challenge longtime leader Mitt Romney, who would be the first Mormon president. The race is now a dead heat, with the Iowa caucuses - the first contest in the nomination fight - set for Jan. 3. Christian evangelicals, by many estimates, make up anywhere from 30 percent to 50 percent of Republicans who will attend the caucuses.

Huckabee, at a dinner in Des Moines, told reporters that the theory of intelligent design, whose proponents believe an intelligent cause is the best way to explain some complex and orderly features of the universe, should be taught in schools as one of many viewpoints. "I don't think schools ought to indoctrinate kids to believe one thing or another," he said.

Earlier Tuesday in Newton, Iowa, Huckabee wouldn't say whether he thought Mormonism - rival Romney's religion - was a cult.

"I'm just not going to go off into evaluating other people's doctrines and faiths. I think that is absolutely not a role for a president," the former Arkansas governor said.

While he said he respects "anybody who practices his faith," Huckabee said that what other people believe - he named Republican rivals Romney, John McCain, Rudy Giuliani and Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton - "is theirs to explain, not mine, and I'm not going to."

He also resisted wading into theology when pressed to explain why some evangelicals don't view the Mormon faith as a Christian denomination.

For months, Romney held wide leads in polls in the state, but he also has faced skepticism about his religion. The former Massachusetts governor plans to address his faith in a major speech Thursday in Texas.

Huckabee has consolidated the support of influential religious conservatives, primarily by reaching out to a network of pastors across the state. He spoke privately Monday night to several hundred gathered in Des Moines for a conference, the only presidential candidate to do so.

He appeared with more than 60 Iowa pastors endorsing him at a news conference Tuesday, including best-selling author Tim LaHaye of "Left Behind" fame and his wife, Beverly. Also endorsing him was Chuck Hurley, an influential Iowa conservative who had backed Kansas Sen. Sam Brownback, a conservative who quit the race in October.

LaHaye called Huckabee "the most electable candidate who shares our commitment."

As he has risen in polls, Huckabee has emphasized his own faith and in recent weeks has sought to draw subtle distinctions with his rivals by running a TV ad on the issue in the state.

"Faith doesn't just influence me. It really defines me. I don't have to wake up every day wondering what do I need to believe," Huckabee says in the ad. "Let us never sacrifice our principles for anybody's politics. Not now, not ever."

A group affiliated with Huckabee supporters has begun taking on his rivals directly, organizing caucus-goers in Iowa and making automated phone calls that favor Huckabee and criticize his rivals. Huckabee has urged an end to the calls; Romney on Tuesday asked Iowa's attorney general to investigate the group's activities.

Huckabee said an investigation "would be fine with me."

"As you heard me say, I repudiate anything that attacks another person. It does not help us. I believe it hurts us."

Most overlooked issue in presidential debates


Despite that candidates like Mitt Romney have outspent Mike Huckabee 20 to 1 on the campaign trail, Mike has a 2 to 1 lead over Romney in Iowa and is placing No. 1 in some national polls.

Newt Gingrich said this past week that Mike Huckabee could "absolutely" win the Republican presidential nomination. "People tend to underestimate him. This is a man who got more than 40 percent of the African-American vote in Arkansas, getting re-elected as governor. He has a very attractive personality."

Is this an important issue to anyone but Mike?

While Huckabee and I were being interviewed on Newt's radio broadcast, Mike mentioned two facts about education that shocked me.

The first is in 905 total minutes of formal Republican debate time thus far, only two questions amounting to roughly four minutes of air time have been given to address the topic of education and America's kids. And the majority of that time appears to have originated at the Values Voter debate, where most of the front-tiered candidates didn't even show!

The second is that every day 6,000 students leave the approximately 94,000 public schools in America. By the time you read this column about 12 more will follow.

Both of those facts reveal alarming disproportions. The first should be far more and the second far less. If the first is properly proportionate, the second must not be a problem to those creating questions for the debates. But if the second truly demonstrates an attritional and educational crisis, time for the first should be far better allocated.

Mike's plan to fix our public schools, halt that exodus, and provide citizens with support for alternate sources of education is exactly what our country needs. But to date, he has not been asked one question in any formal debate about it.

Stop the governmental bureaucracy over education

Mike believes the government needs less of a role in running our children's education and more of a role in supporting parents' educational decisions for their children. Children belong to their parents, not the government. And the parents ought to have the right and government support to personalize their child's education as they so wish. And where the Department of Education, unions or any other organizations impede their decisions, they must be stopped.

Mike would shift the emphasis of the centralized federal gridlock on education and place it more directly upon the people of each state. If education reform is going to happen, it is going to happen at that level. As our Constitution grants, "we the people" must have more power to modify, create and expand our educational options. The No Child Left Behind act is a step in the right direction, but we need to go even further.

Personalize education and curriculum

Mike's plan is to raise the standard of education – and he's not merely talking math and science scores. No doubt we must do better and score higher nationally and internationally in those courses, and Mike has the experience to help us. Test scores rose dramatically when he was governor of Arkansas because of his education reforms.

But, if we expect to stop the attrition in our public schools and build a better tomorrow, we must do more than increase students' knowledge and skills of arithmetic and the experimental world.

We have created a left-brain lopsided educational system. We tell kids to sit down, be quiet, and merely attempt to download information into their brains. We've fostered programming not ingenuity. So why is it a surprise that our students are bored out of their minds, unchallenged, and our classrooms have turned into babysitting centers of undisciplined minds and unruly behavior?

Mike believes America's survival and prosperity will be obtained and maintained by creativity and innovation, so that the educational world should create an academic environment that produces those. He believes we should personalize and design a core curriculum around each student, rather than forcing every student into a universally intellectual mold. He espouses that we send into our schools "weapons of mass instruction" to increase the right-side of education again with music and the arts.

We need a complete overhaul of curriculum and the methodology of how we educate. We need education that produces the caliber of people that we want to run our country in the future, with more leadership training, community participation programs and more practical classes on managing homes, businesses, investments, civility, marriage and parenting.

And we must not fear conservative curriculum courses like world religion, ethics, Intelligent Design, and the most overlooked yet embedded text in Western culture and civilization – the Bible – which even our Founders expected us to teach.

Provide further support for educational options

If states continue to oppose conservative curricula and impose overarching liberal educational revisions and law like California recently enacted in SB777, which will in the end reverse discrimination against religious students and students with traditional family values, public schools should continue to expect an increased exodus. (A petition drive has until Dec. 20 to repeal SB777.)

And what if public schools don't change? The minds and hearts of our children are on the line. And if the curricula don't match the values in our homes, then we must seek other alternatives. If it doesn't fit, we must omit! We must remove our children from the public schools and seek private ones, chartered ones or homeschooling co-ops.

As far back as the late '80s, and then as governor, Huckabee has always been a big backer of educational alternatives to public schools. He's always been passionate about children's education, period! That enthusiasm even carried to his daughter Sarah, who attempted to correct academic wrongs when she worked for two years in the Department of Education.

Education that 'shall forever be encouraged'

Lastly, Mike believes America ought to make the profession of teaching much more attractive and esteemed. We need to create a new level of appreciation for teachers. If we believe our children are our future, then we must re-establish that teaching is one of the most vital professions to America's welfare and future.

The fact is we currently don't believe that. That is why we've only heard two questions and spent no more than four minutes in 15 hours of national debate on the issue of education.

When will our liberal media get a clue? The public wants to hear about real issues and how the candidates can improve the future of America, not just about the size of the holes that pundits can puncture or blast in candidates' records.

Education is the next big issue our country and its presidential candidates need to address. Our Founding Fathers still cry out for us to remember its essential constituency in our republic. As in 1789 when President Washington signed into law the Northwest Ordinance, stating, "Religion, morality, and knowledge, being necessary to good government and the happiness of mankind, schools and the means of education shall forever be encouraged."

That's where Mike Huckabee stands on education – and I support him for it. One more reason why he's my choice for president, and I believe we should all join his team, spread word about him.

(http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s14/juddsarah/likemike.png)

The man is just plain smart.
I can only pray that he not only wins but is not hamstrung by the Democratic Congress.

DEMS HOLD FIRE ON HUCKABEE; SEE 'EASY KILL' IN GENERAL ELECTION


Democrat party officials are avoiding any and all criticism of Republican presidential contender Mike Huckabee, insiders reveal.

The Democratic National Committee has told staffers to hold all fire, until he secures the party's nomination.

The directive has come down from the highest levels within the party, according to a top source.

Within the DNC, Huckabee is known as the "glass jaw -- and they're just waiting to break it."

In the last three weeks since Huckabee's surge kicked in, the DNC hasn't released a single press release criticizing his rising candidacy.

The last DNC press release critical of Huckabee appeared back on March 2nd.

[DNC Press Release Attack Summary:

Governor Mitt Romney (R-MA) – 37% (99 press releases)
Mayor Rudy Giuliani (R-NY) – 28% (74)
Senator John McCain (R-AZ) – 24% (64)
Senator Fred Thompson (R-TN) – 8% (20)
Governor Mike Huckabee – 2% (4)]

In fact, as the story broke over the weekend that Huckabee said he wanted to isolate AIDS patients back in 1992, the DNC ignored the opportunity to slam the candidate from the left.

"He'll easily be their McGovern, an easy kill," mocked one senior Democrat operative Tuesday morning from Washington.

"His letting out murderers because they shout 'Jesus', his wanting to put 300,000 AIDS patients and Magic Johnson into isolation, ain't even scratching the surface of what we've got on him."

The discipline the Democrats have shown in not engaging Huckabee has earned the praise of one former Republican Party official:

"The Democrats are doing a much better job restraining themselves than the GOP did in 2003 when Howard Dean looked like he was on the brink of winning the nomination."

A close friend to Huckabee explains: "Look, Mike is Hillary Clinton's worst nightmare. They should be squirming."

The truth os the matter is that they don't have anything on him. The only thing they can say about him would simply bring out their own weaknesses and failures into the limelight.

Brother, I have the same conclusion. However, many people don't view good morals as a quality these days. We live in a sick world, and many people would rather hear someone is fighting for gay rights and continued abortions.

Love In Christ,
Tom

 

Mike Huckabee: Standing Tall For The Second Amendment


To most Americans, Mike Huckabee is probably best known for shedding 110 pounds. But gun owners may remember the former Arkansas Governor as a man who stood firm for the Constitution, and in particular, the Second Amendment, in the face of unspeakable horror.

On March 24, 1998, Andrew Golden and Mitchell Johnson went to a Jonesboro, Arkansas middle school, pulled a fire alarm, and from a nearby wooded area shot and killed four students and a teacher.

The Jonesboro incident was the third in a string of school shootings, and the calls for gun control were deafening. President Bill Clinton, who had been Arkansas' Governor several years earlier, not surprisingly led the charge to restrict gun ownership.

People across the country also saw, most for the first time, Governor Huckabee. Would he join those exploiting the tragedy for political purposes and compromise on gun rights? Many people expected him to do just that, but even as the media, the president and anti-gun activists from around the country derided him, the Governor stood by his convictions to uphold the rule of law.

Instead of jumping on the bandwagon to add to the burgeoning list of gun laws on the books, Governor Huckabee talked about personal responsibility and the obsession with violence widespread among this country's youth.

On NBC’s Today Show, Governor Huckabee refused to allow host Katie Couric to blame law-abiding gun owners for the shooting:

    Couric: Governor Huckabee, this is the third deadly shooting to take place in the South in the last five months. And some criminal experts have ventured a guess that southern society, which has a more permissive attitude towards guns and hunting, and perhaps in some circles even glamorizes those things, that that might have been a factor in some -- in this recent spade of shootings. What's your view of that?

    Gov. Huckabee: I take strong exception to that kind of view. Southerners may have a very positive view toward the ownership of firearms and even hunting, but we don't have a positive view about murder, and we certainly don't have a positive view toward murder in a schoolyard.

Two years later, Governor Huckabee was involved in another widely publicized Second Amendment debate. In 2000, much of the firearms industry was involved in a series of bogus lawsuits brought by cities, states, and the federal government.

Gun maker Smith & Wesson relented to pressure from the Clinton Administration to settle out of court, and agree on nearly all of the outlandish charges brought in the lawsuits.

In return for this, the company would be rewarded with state and federal government contracts. New York's Attorney General (now Governor) Elliot Spitzer sent a letter to elected officials across the country urging them to support the deal.

Governor Huckabee responded less than enthusiastically.

"Gun manufacturers make the Second Amendment a viable right rather than some theoretical proposition. I will not abuse my authority as governor to pursue their demise or dictate their business practices through coercion," he wrote.

"I will not seek the capitulation of firearm manufacturers through the use of asinine lawsuits or the doling out of taxpayer-funded government contracts. I regret that you feel either of these tactics to be worthwhile endeavors."

Governor Huckabee also signed a law prohibiting frivolous lawsuits against gun makers and eased restrictions on concealed carry permit holders in Arkansas.

Mike Huckabee has been in the heat of battle over gun rights and has proven himself to be a steadfast friend to gun owners and the Second Amendment.


Huckabee On The Issues Oppose reauthorization of of the 1994 semi-auto ban?    Yes

Oppose background checks on private firearms transactions at gun shows?       Yes

Oppose expansion the unconstitutional Brady law, as found in HR 297, introduced in 2007?   Yes

Oppose legislation requiring firearms intended for self-protection to be locked up when they are not in use?     Yes

Oppose a ban or further restrictions on .50 caliber firearms?    Yes

Oppose a waiting period for the purchase of a firearm?   Yes

Oppose a ban on any type of ammunition?   Yes

Support a repeal of the Washington, D.C., gun ban?    Yes

Support a repeal of the requirement that trigger locks be sold with every retail firearm?   Yes

Support recognition among the states to allow a person who has the right to carry a concealed weapon in his or her home state to have the right to carry in other states?    Yes

Will you Repeal the Executive Order banning the importation of certain semi-automatic rifles?  Yes


Will you nominate judges who interpret the Constitution as the Founders intended, rather than as a "living document" that reflects current political fads and opinion?    Yes

Will you issue an Executive Order directing that carrying weapons in national forests and parks be governed by local laws?       Yes

Well although I understand the mentality and I still love the man..I do disagree on some of the answers he did give to those questions.

Huckabee On The Issues Oppose reauthorization of of the 1994 semi-auto ban?    Yes
* Not really interested one way or another I guess.

Oppose background checks on private firearms transactions at gun shows?       Yes
* Agree completely with doing checks for guns.  Sure you have the right to bear arms, but convicts have been stripped of that right.  If we do not do checks on who is buying then we invite anyone at all coming over...9/11 could have been a gun shooting spree instead of planes.

Oppose expansion the unconstitutional Brady law, as found in HR 297, introduced in 2007?   Yes
I have not seen it so I cannot comment on it.

Oppose legislation requiring firearms intended for self-protection to be locked up when they are not in use?     Yes
*** I can agree with this...because wording sounds funny...when not in use but for self protection...I am sorry Mr. Burglar could you just wait a minute while I unlock my gun safe?

Oppose a ban or further restrictions on .50 caliber firearms?    Yes
*** There is NO ONE...I repeat NO ONE in the civilian sector that needs a 50 cal.

Oppose a waiting period for the purchase of a firearm?   Yes
*** I do not have a problem with waiting periods.  A cool down for those that may be purchasing to do harm.  If you honestly wanted a gun for good intentions (hunting and such) then you can wait...if not there is always next season.

Oppose a ban on any type of ammunition?   Yes
*** Again there is NO ONE in civy sector that needs armor piercing round, high explosives, or anything of that nature.

Support a repeal of the Washington, D.C., gun ban?    Yes
*** did not know there was one.  But should be a Mayor option and not Fed option.

Support a repeal of the requirement that trigger locks be sold with every retail firearm?   Yes
*** personally I think the gun manufactures should supply a basic one with every gun.  If you want something fancy then you pay for it.

Support recognition among the states to allow a person who has the right to carry a concealed weapon in his or her home state to have the right to carry in other states?    Yes
*** No.  That is a state level function.  If MA does not want to honor AL conceal status then so be it.  If you are travelling and conceal then get registered in every state you will be traveling too.  Bounty hunters have to register in every state they are going to pick people up...so gun laws should be similar.

Will you Repeal the Executive Order banning the importation of certain semi-automatic rifles?  Yes
*** I would not.  We do not import Cuban cigars and other products from there.  We should certainly be able to ban certain weapons from entering our country.

Will you nominate judges who interpret the Constitution as the Founders intended, rather than as a "living document" that reflects current political fads and opinion?    Yes
*** Kind of a loaded question there.  I agree that we have to understand the intentions of the law when it was written and not try to re-interpret it.  however the Constitution is a living document that we can amend and add to it when the need arises to do so.

Will you issue an Executive Order directing that carrying weapons in national forests and parks be governed by local laws?       Yes
*** to me this comes down to who is paying the bill.  If the national forests are being paid for by the Fed then it should be upheld by fed laws...otherwise state laws.

So I am a little one to another when it comes to the gun control.  I could not answer any of those with just a yes or no and I am sure Huckabee was limited in his ability to clarify.

You are right, he wasn't permitted anything except a straight yes or no answer. example on the 50 cal. There is an exhibit displaying a PBR from the Viet Nam war. The Veterans setting up this exhibit wanted to include 50 cals on it to make it at least appear all original. They were willing to insure the fixing of it so that it could not be fired. That wasn't good enough for those that opposed it. The last I knew this group was still fighting for the right to have the 50 cals placed on the boat exhibit.

Perkins says media attack on Huckabee a 'reverse religious test'

A prominent evangelical Christian leader says a "reverse religious test" is being applied to Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee because he believes his Christian faith should impact the way he lives. Tony Perkins says the attempt by elite secularists in the media to subject the surging GOP candidate to that test may not achieve its desired objective.



Mainstream news media outlets have been regurgitating comments Huckabee made as far back as 15 years ago regarding HIV/AIDS and homosexuality. Reporters are branding the ordained Southern Baptist minister's belief that homosexuality is an "aberrant, unnatural and sinful lifestyle" as "controversial," and are pressuring the former Arkansas governor to retract a remark he made in 1992 about the need to "isolate the carriers" of AIDS. Media outlets also have been dredging up statements Huckabee made in the past stressing the need to "take this nation back for Christ."

Tony Perkins, president of Family Research Council (FRC) in Washington, DC, says Huckabee is being subjected to the same reverse religious litmus test that was applied during judicial confirmation hearings between 2003 and 2005.

"Senator Charles Schumer of New York said that he was opposed to some of these nominees of the president because of their 'deeply held personal beliefs' and those beliefs coming from their faith -- in particular, regarding abortion and seeing it as wrong," Perkins points out. "So we see a reverse religious test being applied [saying essentially] that anyone who has a vibrant Christian faith that impacts their life will have to choose between that faith and serving in public office -- and that, simply, is wrong."

Perkins says "elite secularists" are trying single out Huckabee because of his evangelical Christian faith, and are attempting to "make him look scary" to the public because he, among other things, rejects evolution, believes in the Bible, and trusts in Jesus Christ. But such efforts, the evangelical leader suggests, may only serve to generate more support for Huckabee in the conservative Christian community.

"I think there's a clear understanding and an attitude [about this] among Christians," says the FRC president. "They're simply tired of the elites who belittle their beliefs and attempt to rob them of every public reflection of their faith -- and I think this could backfire."

According to Perkins, many Bible-believing Christians may choose to look past some of their policy differences with Huckabee to "stand by and support a candidate who is being attacked because he believes, as they do, that their Christian faith should impact the way they live." And if that happens, Perkins predicts that Huckabee's "meteoric rise" in recent polls "could look miniscule compared to the tsunami of support" he will get from sympathetic Christians.

UM? - Scary? - I don't think so! The "elite secularists" need to be sent home. It sounds like common sense to reject evolution, believe in the Bible, and Trust in JESUS CHRIST! The so-called "elite secularists" are only "elite" in their own minds. I for one, feel sorry for the "elite secularists", but the only thing they should be running is their own bath water.

Best-selling author says Huckabee's tough talk on immigration doesn't match his record


Dr. Jerome Corsi, An investigative journalist and author says Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee's recently released plan for strong border enforcement does not jive with his record as governor.

The former Arkansas governor proposes to stop illegal immigration with a border fence along the U.S.-Mexico border, more Border Patrol agents, and a policy that forces illegal aliens to return home before they can re-enter the U.S. legally. While this new tough stance has convinced Minuteman founder Jim Gilchrist to endorse Huckabee, best-selling author Jerome Corsi says it does not match Huckabee's actions as governor.

"Huckabee has the same problem on immigration that Mitt Romney has -- and that is Mitt Romney and Huckabee, as governors, do not have a strong secure border record. And Huckabee's record is terrible," Corsi points out.

Corsi is highly critical of Huckabee for giving then Mexican President Vicente Fox what he calls a "sweetheart deal" to locate a Mexican consulate in Little Rock. (See earlier article) According to the highly acclaimed writer, the consulate deal is basically a calling card for illegal immigrants who are searching for a sanctuary state. Taking that into consideration, he says he doubts Huckabee would really crack down on illegal immigration if elected president.

Huckabee Hides His Full Gospel?

Is Mike Huckabee the presidential candidate shunning Mike Huckabee the preacher? Before entering politics, he was a pastor at two Baptist churches. Now his campaign tells Mother Jones it won't make his sermons available to the media and the public.

Now that he has his moment in the political spotlight, former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee does not want his days at the pulpit to be scrutinized.

As Huckabee has surged to the front of the Republican pack in Iowa, his religious views have drawn media and voter attention. After all, Huckabee, a former Baptist pastor, has been campaigning as a "Christian leader." But he has vacillated on how far to interject faith into politics. At an early debate, he indicated he does not believe in evolution, but at a more recent debate, when he was asked by Wolf Blitzer if the creation of the Earth occurred six thousand years ago and only took six days, as stated in the Old Testament, Huckabee said, "I don't know. I wasn't there." During a question-and-answer session with students at fundamentalist Liberty University last month, he asserted that his rise in the polls has an explanation that is "beyond human" and is due to the power of his supporters' prayers. Afterward, he backtracked slightly, adding, "I'm saying that when people pray, things happen.... I'm not saying that God wants me to be elected." (At a victory rally held after Huckabee won a 1993 special election for lieutenant governor, Huckabee told his supporters that he had only won because God had intervened, according to the Texarkana Gazette.)

With Huckabee walking this fine line, his campaign has declined to make available sermons that Huckabee delivered during his preaching days.

Before beginning his political career, Huckabee was a Southern Baptist minister for 12 years in his home state of Arkansas. He assumed the pastorate at Immanuel Baptist Church in the town of Pine Bluff in 1980, at the age of 25. Six years later, he moved to Beech Street First Baptist Church in Texarkana. In both locations, Huckabee's energy, ambition, and skills as a communicator energized his congregation. Under his leadership, each church grew.

When asked for copies of the sermons Huckabee delivered at Immanuel Church, an employee there claimed none could be found. A Beech Street Church pastor's assistant maintained that much of the archival material from Huckabee's tenure as pastor had been destroyed during a remodeling. The rest, she said, was not available to the press.

When Mother Jones contacted the Huckabee campaign and asked if it would help make his previous sermons available, the campaign replied in a one-sentence email that it had received multiple requests for such material and was "not able to accommodate" them.

Only a small sampling of Huckabee's early speeches are publicly available. While the pastor at Beech Street, Huckabee became president of the Arkansas Baptist State Convention. (At 34, he was the youngest person to ever preside over the 490,000-person group.) He held the office from 1989 to 1991. Several of his sermonlike speeches were featured in the convention's publications. In a 1990 speech to his fellow state Baptists, Huckabee urged the audience to hold to what he called "The 10 Commendations," including "Thou shalt love like a family" and "Thou shalt be found faithful." Huckabee also said, "It doesn't embarrass me one bit to let you know that I believe Adam and Eve were real people."

This remark was a bolder endorsement of biblical creationism than any comment Huckabee has been willing to make while campaigning for president this year. During a CNN/YouTube debate, the Republican field was asked by a man holding a Bible, "Do you believe every word of this book?" Huckabee said that portions of the Bible should "obviously" be seen as "allegorical." He again stated that he could not know the exact meaning of parts of the Bible, saying, "There are parts of it I don't fully comprehend and understand, because the Bible is a revelation of an infinite god, and no finite person is ever going to fully understand it." His earlier comment about Adam and Eve suggests he takes at least Genesis literally.

Huckabee certainly has reason to be concerned about an examination of his earlier remarks and sermons. Comments he made 15 years ago about AIDS and homosexuality recently became a campaign issue. During a failed run for the U.S. Senate in 1992, Huckabee noted in response to a questionnaire, "Homosexuality is an aberrant, unnatural, and sinful lifestyle, and we now know it can pose a dangerous public health risk." He suggested that the federal government commit no additional federal funding to finding a cure for AIDS, then considered by many to be a gay disease. In the same reply, Huckabee displayed callousness toward AIDS victims and an ignorance about the ways in which AIDS could be transmitted. "If the federal government is truly serious about doing something with the AIDS virus, we need to take steps that would isolate the carriers of this plague," he wrote. "It is the first time in the history of civilization in which the carriers of a genuine plague have not been isolated from the general population, and in which this deadly disease for which there is no cure is being treated as a civil rights issue instead of the true health crisis it represents." Instead of additional federal funding, said Huckabee, "An alternative would be to request that multimillionaire celebrities, such as Elizabeth Taylor [,] Madonna and others who are pushing for more AIDS funding be encouraged to give out of their own personal treasuries increased amounts for AIDS research."

Seeking to explain these comments recently, Huckabee made it clear that he still sees homosexuality as sinful, but that he has softened his position on AIDS research. "If I were making those same comments today, I might make them a little differently," he said.

Huckabee has indeed mixed religion with policy previously. In 1997, when he was governor, he answered a question about capital punishment during a call-in show:

    Interestingly enough, if there was ever an occasion for someone to have argued against the death penalty, I think Jesus could have done so on the cross and said, "This is an unjust punishment and I deserve clemency."

Huckabee's argument: since Jesus didn't say that, according to the New Testament, capital punishment is fine. Also that year, Huckabee refused to sign legislation to assist storm victims because the measure referred to tornadoes and floods as "acts of God." Putting his name on such legislation, Huckabee explained, "would be violating my own conscience" due to the bill equating "a destructive and deadly force" as "an act of God."

In all the sermons Huckabee delivered before jumping into politics, he no doubt revealed beliefs and ideas that would be of interest to voters today. But his campaign, looking to attract evangelical Christian voters without alienating others, is not interested in seeing that material become part of the current political discourse. Huckabee the candidate is shunning Huckabee the pastor?

2Ti 1:8  Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner: but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God;

Rom 1:16  For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.


Is he afraid that if he speaks out about his beliefs that he will not be accepted as President? Would a person that does this when in times of trials and tribulations still stand up for Jesus? I would have to speak out and stand up for Jesus anyway no matter what the consequences.

Another completely misrepresentation of what was said and is meant.

This is a true statement.  If I was asked if the creation took place 6000 years ago and 6 days.  I could only honestly say that I was not there.  But I believe that it did because God says that it did in the Bible. 

This would be a correct statement as well.  You have to look at the context...and in this situation the tense..At the victory celebration I too would say that it happened only because God wanted it to happen.  But before that celebration I could say that I only hope that God wants me to win and that He will do great and mighty things with me.  If Mike say "God wants me to be elected." what do you think the outcome would have been?! 

The AIDS thing is the same.  15 years ago we did not know near what we do now.  And his statement about this being the first epidemic of this sort in which we did not isolate the people is true.  However we also look upon things slightly different as well in that they are not contagious via airborne or similar.  Also that we hope to find a cure sort of thing.  In light of new information on the disease and how it is transmitted and such, of course opinions can change.  I do not think he is changing his stance on homosexuality and how it is an abomination, but would change his stance on the treatment of the ill.

I do not think he is afraid to speak about his faith.  And has answered questions truthfully and justly.  It is the press once again stepping up and spinning things incorrectly.  Taking just enough of one to the other to try and prove their point.  And in this case I think they failed if looking at in the light just as we do when we study our Bibles.

Huckabee's theology degree?
Now says ain't necessarily so 
Campaign admits Republican candidate
doesn't have claimed religious credential

Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee told the Christian Broadcasting Network he had a theology degree, he told voters in Iowa he had a theology degree, he repeated the claim in last month's CNN YouTube debate ... but, his campaign now says, it was not true.

Huckabee's claim began unraveling following his offhanded comment about Mormonism in a New York Times interview last weekend.

Reporter Zev Chafets wrote: "I asked Huckabee, who describes himself as the only Republican candidate with a degree in theology, if he considered Mormonism a cult or a religion. 'I think it's a religion,' he said. 'I really don't know much about it.'

"I was about to jot down this piece of boilerplate when Huckabee surprised me with a question of his own: 'Don't Mormons,' he asked in an innocent voice, 'believe that Jesus and the devil are brothers?'"

In the interview, Huckabee's account of his education made no mention of his having earned a theology degree.

Chafets wrote: "If young Mike Huckabee was ever rebellious or difficult, there's no record of it. He preached his first sermon as a teenager, married his high-school sweetheart and went off to Ouachita Baptist University in Arkadelphia. There he majored in speech and communications, worked at a radio station and earned his B.A. in a little more than two years. He spent a year at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Tex., before dropping out to work for the televangelist James Robison, who bought him his first decent wardrobe and showed him how to use television."

While Huckabee apologized personally to fellow candidate and Mormon Mitt Romney for his remarks, Chafets' characterization of the former Arkansas governor and ordained Baptist pastor as a seminary dropout who did not seem well-versed in comparative religion, drew the attention of political bloggers.

National Review's Jim Geraghty cited Huckabee's claimed theology degree when criticizing the candidate for telling CNN's Wolf Blitzer he had been trying to avoid talking about the subject with Chafets but the reporter was "comparably well-schooled on comparative religions."

"I'm going to call horsepuckey on Huckabee's claim that a New York Times reporter knew more about comparative religions than [a] guy with a theology degree," Geraghty wrote.

That prompted Joe Carter, Huckabee's research director, to respond to Geraghty by e-mail.

    Jim,

    Governor Huckabee doesn't have a theology degree. He only spent a year in seminary.

    Also, it's not surprising that he doesn't know much about the specific beliefs of the LDS church. There aren't a lot of LDS members in Arkansas; they comprise just .007 percent [sic] of the population (about 20,000 out of 2,810,872 people). Most Southern evangelicals don't have much exposure to that particular religion. Even in seminary you're not likely to study the LDS faith unless you take a class on apologetics.

    Joe

Carter made a math error – 0.7 percent of Arkansas' residents are members of the Church of Jesus Christ Latter Day Saints.

Today, following a news conference announcing that former Reagan confidante, Ed Rollins, has become Huckabee's national campaign manager, the candidate was asked about a PowerlineBlog story that he did not have the theology degree he had claimed.

"I have a Bachelor of Arts in religion and a minor in communications in my undergraduate work," Huckabee answered. "And then I have 46 hours on a master's degree at Southwestern Theology Seminary. So, my degree as a theological degree is at the college level and then 46 hours toward a masters – three years of study of New Testament Greek, and then the rest of it, all in seminary was theological studies, but my degree was actually in religion."

Speaking in Iowa in October, Huckabee told a sympathetic crowd, "Anytime you have been a person who was identified as a pastor and you've got a seminary education and theology degree, people tend to worry about you."

In November, while appearing on the Christian Broadcasting Network, Huckabee said, "People look at my record and say that I'm as strong on immigration, strong on terror as anybody. In fact I think I'm stronger than most people because I truly understand the nature of the war that we are in with Islamofascism. These are people that want to kill us. It's a theocratic war. And I don't know if anybody fully understands that. I'm the only guy on that stage with a theology degree. I think I understand it really well. And know the threat of it is absolutely overwhelming to us."

Last month, during the CNN YouTube debate, Huckabee responded to a question to the candidates about their belief in the Bible: "Sure. I believe the Bible is exactly what it is. It's the word of revelation to us from God himself. ... And as the only person here on the stage with a theology degree, there are parts of it I don't fully comprehend and understand, because the Bible is a revelation of an infinite god, and no finite person is ever going to fully understand it. If they do, their god is too small."

This one is going to cause him a whole lot of grief.

And why should he?  It would only be used against him.  I think everyone on earth knows what a Christian believes.  It's really not a mystery or a deep dark secret.  If they want to read a sermon they can log on here.  If they want to hear one they can go to any of their local churches on Sunday morning.  They don't need one of Huckabee's specific sermons.  That is if their intentions are all above board.  Right?  :o

Yes.  That's a bit disappointing.

Huckabee accuses Bush of "bunker mentality"

Mike Huckabee, who has joked about his lack of foreign policy experience, is criticizing the Bush administration's efforts, denouncing a go-it-alone "arrogant bunker mentality" and questioning decisions on Iraq.

Huckabee, the former Arkansas governor now running for the Republican presidential nomination, lays out a policy plan that is long on optimism but short on details in the January-February issue of the journal Foreign Affairs, which is published by the Council on Foreign Relations. A copy of his article was released Friday.

"American foreign policy needs to change its tone and attitude, open up, and reach out," Huckabee said. "The Bush administration's arrogant bunker mentality has been counterproductive at home and abroad. My administration will recognize that the United States' main fight today does not pit us against the world but pits the world against the terrorists."

In one specific criticism, Huckabee said Bush did not send enough troops to invade Iraq. And he accused the president of marginalizing Gen. Eric Shinseki, the Army chief of staff, who said at the outset of the war that it might take several hundred thousand U.S. troops to control Iraq after the invasion. "I would have met with Shinseki privately and carefully weighed his advice," Huckabee said.

He said this year's troop increase under Bush has resulted in significant but tenuous gains, and he said - much as Bush has - that he would not withdraw troops from Iraq any faster than Gen. David Petraeus, the top U.S. commander there, recommends. The military has now slowly begun to reverse the troop increase.

Huckabee has previously joked about his lack of experience in international affairs. "I may not be the expert as some people on foreign policy, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night," he said earlier this month.

While the Foreign Affairs article is missing the one-liners he is known for, it does have a few folksy comparisons to illustrate his points. On Iran, for example, he makes a case for diplomacy by saying, "Before we put boots on the ground elsewhere, we had better have wingtips there first."

He adds that the U.S. can exploit the Iranian government's hunger for regional clout, saying, "We cannot live with al-Qaida, but we might be able to live with a contained Iran."

Last week, Huckabee missed a report the White House released saying Iran had halted its nuclear weapons program; one day later, the candidate said he was unaware of the report and had been campaigning too hard to read the newspaper or be briefed. The Foreign Affairs article seems to have been written before the report was released, citing "urgent concerns about Iran's development of nuclear weapons."

In his article, Huckabee also thumped Bush for failing to pursue al-Qaida in Pakistan, noting recent terrorism plans, since thwarted, that were planned there: "Whereas our failure to tackle Iran seems to be leading inexorably to our attacking it, our failure to tackle al-Qaida in Pakistan seems to be leading inexorably to its attacking us again."

Earlier Friday, on another topic in Boscawen, N.H., Huckabee said eliminating federal income taxes in favor of a national sales tax would help save Social Security - an odd pitch in a state where residents pay no state income or sales taxes.

"Instead of basing our national budget off of payroll taxes for Social Security ... it means the base of funding is much broader," said Huckabee, whose shoestring campaign has surged nationally and in Iowa, which holds caucuses five days before New Hampshire's Jan. 8 primary.

The tax plan Huckabee has proposed, called the "FAIR tax," would eliminate federal income and investment taxes and replace them with a 23 percent federal sales tax. Even the backers of the tax admit it is unlikely to get through Congress, and other leading GOP candidates have been critical of the idea.

It's a tough sell in New Hampshire, where residents do not pay state income taxes or general sales taxes. Scott Sweezey, a programmer at the plant where Huckabee spoke, said he doesn't know how to make a consumption tax treat people fairly.

"Low-income or retired would pay the same tax as somebody who has a million dollars," said Sweezey, an independent. "I guess if you don't buy anything, you don't pay any sales tax, but if you do buy something, you pay sales tax."

Separately, Huckabee also named Republican political strategist Ed Rollins as his national campaign chairman. Rollins was national campaign director for Ronald Reagan in the 1984 presidential election.

Yeah...that could hurt a bit.  I personally do not think it matters, but he should not say he has one when he does not.

And as far as Iraq is concerned if I were him I would walk that line very carefully as well.  Lot of folks even on the right who are looking hard at that.  And wrong moves there could cost a pretty penny.

He is not in office yet so please do not let the current surge to first get to his head.

Hi! I just joined this forum, so please excuse me if this question has been dealt with already.  I watch a lot of political coverage on TV, and I can't understand the reaction to Gov. Huckabee from other Christians. People who share his principles ,object to him being too openly Christian. The ad with the apparent cross in the background is an example---there was a Christmas tree, and he said "Merry Christmas", so what difference would it make if there were a cross, or not?  But the head of the Catholic League criticized the ad as "subliminal advertising".  Other Christian commentators criticize his Bible-based beliefs, but don't even look at some of the basic Mormon beliefs of Romney; I looked into Mormonism a while ago, and some of their teachings on the nature of God and the destiny of man are very strange, more like science fiction than theology.  Yet Romney is not having his beliefs questioned as Huckabee is.  Nor do I remember Jimmy Carter being criticised for being a Baptist; of course, he puts liberalism before Biblical authority, so I suppose that kind of wishy-washy Christianity is  OK with the commentators.

carlotta, welcome to Christians Unite forum.


Gov. Huckabee has already explained the the "Cross" behind him was a bookcase. Only part of the case was seen, causing the "Cross Effect."

The other reason for people openly apposing Gov. Huckabee Christian attitude is........

Matthew 24:3-5, 8-10  While He was seated on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately and said, Tell us, when will this take place, and what will be the sign of Your coming and of the end (the completion, the consummation) of the age?  4 Jesus answered them, Be careful that no one misleads you [deceiving you and leading you into error].  5 For many will come in (on the strength of) My name [appropriating the name which belongs to Me], saying, I am the Christ (the Messiah), and they will lead many astray.  8 All this is but the beginning [the early pains] of the birth pangs [of the intolerable anguish].  9 Then they will hand you over to suffer affliction and tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for My name's sake.  10 And then many will be offended and repelled and will begin to distrust and desert [Him Whom they ought to trust and obey] and will stumble and fall away and betray one another and pursue one another with hatred.

Thank you for replying to my question.  I'm not sure I understand your answer--are you saying that Gov. Huckabee is a true Christian, and therefore he is being persecuted by false Christians?  Sometimes (well, usually) I have to have things explained in pretty plain terms so I can understand them. 

Yes carlotta, I believe that Gov. Mike Huckabee is being persecuted by false Christians.

Hi carlotta,

You mentioned the word "liberal" in reference to Christians and the Catholic League. Both of these groups have objected to many Christians that stand on the fundamental teachings of God and have supported very liberal leaning teachings and government policies. I can't speak for Mike Huckabee's teachings as his writings have been prevented from being open to the public. He does give the impression that he is a fundamental type of Christian. What I mean by fundamental is that he takes his teachings directly from scripture. Because of this public impression he is going to be a very large target for criticism by these groups. Some of this criticism I believe is also because of the liberals having used tactics such as subliminal messages. It wasn't long ago that Hillary Clinton pulled such a trick as that and when it was pointed out did not even deny it. Naturally they are going to accuse others of doing what they have done even if it is not true and was just an innocent happening.

Thank you for the replies.  I am still not sure what to make of Gov. Huckabee, because I was reading an article yesterday which said that many  Southern Baptists do not support him (even though he is a Southern Baptist) because when they recently had a doctrinal split, he went with the l iberals. The conservative Southern Baptists are supporting Fred Thompson.

Also--if Gov. Romney wins the GOP nomination, should Christians vote for him?  I would vote for ANYBODY rather than Hill lary, but Mormonism denies the fullness of Christ, voting for a Mormon would make me very uncomfortable.

I would have to question why any Christian would support a man like Fred Thompson. He is by far a much more liberal person than Huckabee. Check out Thompson's stance on many of the issues. Fred Thompson's own personal life is far from being a role model for Christians. His stance on the marriage amendment does not reflect a Christian stance,  his membership in the Council on Foreign Relations and support of a North American Union, he has also lied about his affiliation with a church having not attended  a church in many years, and their is much more that is not in accordance to a Christian stance. Who Fred Thompson is in front of a camera is not who he is when the camera is gone. He has a strong habit of telling the public what they want to hear but does not really mean it.

I was going by the information in a Washington Post article by Robert Novak, which pointed out that a prominent Southern Baptist conservative from Texas,  Judge Paul Pressler, is backing Thompson. The article says that during 'the Baptist wars' in the 70s, Gov. Huckabee fought against the conservatives, including Judge Pressler.    This is all new to me, I am not from the South and was not a Christian in the 70s. I like Gov. Huckabee a lot, I hope he can gain the support of the GOP, but I rather think that Sen. McCain will be the candidate.

I have seen the article by Robert Novak and I would say that it doesn't hold water. I would still have to say that Judge Paul Pressler reflects more liberalism in endorsing Thompson than Huckabee has in his entire career both as a pastor and a politician.

Robert Novak has his information wrong. The split in SBC was not over one being more liberal than the other although that was the charges that were being conveyed by Presslers group. The entire thing was about certain people gaining more power and those opposing them did not want that power over them but rather held to the idea that only Jesus could be the head of the church and only Jesus could determine proper doctrine. Pressler and his group wanted a creed established and the opposing group wanted strictly the word of God as their guide with no doctrinal man made creed.

All of the churches and organizations that Huckabee has been affiliated with are definitely conservative.

Thanks for explaining that. Did the in-fighting in the SBC result in an actual split into 2 official groups, or was it resolved by one group winning?  Sorry about my ignorance, I attend a small independent fellowship so I don't know much about the large denominations.

Also, I read recently that Jimmy Carter had left one group of Baptists for another group which permits the ordination of women. Is that correct?

The split caused an exodus from the SBC. Those that left the SBC joined another group. I can't remember off hand which one at this time.

That may or may not be true about Jimmy Carter. I do know that he is a very liberal person that has gone against much of what the Bible teaches us. The most prominent of those things in my mind at this moment is that he has taken a stance against Israel and is supporting the terrorists.

Huckabee campaigning for 23% sales tax 
But also wants to abolish all federal income levies, payroll deductions

Political suicide? Quite the opposite for the GOP White House hopeful -- so far. But many call the plan for a national levy 'crackpot' (even if it would shut down the IRS).

Mike Huckabee, one of the most conservative Republicans in the 2008 presidential race, has embraced one of the most radical ideas on the campaign trail: a plan to abolish all federal income and payroll taxes and replace them with a single 23% national sales tax.

The idea -- dubbed the "fair tax" by proponents -- has been a political asset for Huckabee; its well-organized backers have helped catapult him from the back of the presidential pack to its top tier.

Sales tax proponents have tapped into seething voter hostility toward the Internal Revenue Service to become a below-the-radar political force, popping up at campaign events and candidate forums in Iowa and elsewhere.

The efforts on Huckabee's behalf by sales tax advocates helped spur his surprise second-place showing in an August Iowa straw poll -- the breakthrough that marked the beginning of his rise in the state and nationwide.

He is the only major presidential candidate to make the idea central to his campaign. "The first thing I'd love to do as president: Put a 'going out of business' sign on the Internal Revenue Service," he said at one debate.

Some wonder, however, whether his embrace of the plan eventually could turn into a liability.

The sales tax proposal has been around for years but languished on the fringes of practical politics and policy. Tax professionals generally regard the idea as impractical, regressive and even "crackpot," as one critic puts it.

It has gone nowhere in Congress. The 2005 Presidential Advisory Panel on Federal Tax Reform soundly rejected the idea. And many politicians shy away from it because it is easy for opponents to portray it as a huge tax increase -- as Democrats did in a 2006 Senate race in South Carolina.

The front-runner, Republican Jim DeMint, faced an unexpectedly stiff contest because of his support for a national sales tax. "DeMint wants an extra 23% on nearly everything -- gas, food, clothing," one Democratic ad said.

DeMint responded that his position was being misrepresented, but he still suffered a sharp decline in the polls. He won in the end, but what many thought would be a cakewalk for him turned into a cliffhanger.

Grover Norquist, a conservative activist who, as head of Americans for Tax Reform, pushed candidates to take a no-tax-hike pledge, said promoting a national sales tax in the presidential election would be "political poison."

Still, the proposal inspires grass-roots passion, in large part because it would replace or abolish the Internal Revenue Service, one of the most hated federal agencies and a symbol of intrusive government in some conservative circles.

Among the early advocates of a national sales tax were members of the Church of Scientology, a group that battled the IRS for years to gain recognition as a legitimate religious institution eligible for tax-exempt status. Church leaders backed the establishment of Citizens for an Alternative Tax System in 1990 to advance the cause of replacing the income tax with a national sales tax.

Eventually, the church won tax-exempt status and the group faded. But the issue was taken up by another group, Americans for Fair Taxation -- better known as Fairtax.org -- founded in 1995 by a group of Texas millionaires.

Proponents of a national sales tax say it would be an improvement over the current system because it would increase the incentive to save, by taxing money spent instead of money earned.

Also, the proposal would rid the tax code of its myriad loopholes and would free taxpayers and businesses from the time-consuming, often costly task of preparing annual tax returns.

"What we would do with the fair tax is to eliminate all the taxes on productivity, which means you could earn anything you want," Huckabee said. "You wouldn't be penalized for saving, earning, for having a capital gain, making an investment."

Huckabee and Fairtax.org call for a 23% tax on virtually all purchases in place of federal income taxes, as well as payroll taxes to fund Social Security and Medicare.

To ease the effect on the poor, they propose a "prebate" -- a monthly cash payment to every family -- to cover sales taxes on spending up to the federal poverty level.

Critics argue that this aspect of the plan would create an unwieldy new government program akin to welfare.

A report by the president's tax-reform panel said such a program could cost $600 billion a year -- "which would make it America's largest entitlement program," the report said.

Even with the subsidies to poor families, critics argue, the tax would primarily benefit the rich because they save the largest share of their income.

Independent analyses have concluded that the tax would have to be far higher than 23% to maintain the government at current levels -- especially if Congress did not eliminate popular tax breaks, such as the mortgage-interest deduction.

William G. Gale, a tax expert at the centrist Brookings Institution think tank, estimates that the levy could run as high as 50% -- a tax so steep that it would be an invitation to mass tax evasion.

"It's a crackpot plan," said Bruce Bartlett, a conservative economist and former Treasury Department official who is a leading critic of the sales tax. "Anyone who supports it should not be taken seriously."

Ken Hoagland, communications director for Fairtax.org, said critics had financial and professional interests in continuing the current tax code.

The group has spent about $2.5 million to mobilize supporters in early caucus and primary states, and plans to spend $1 million more in coming months.

As a nonprofit, it cannot endorse a candidate. But it lets people know where the candidates stand -- and that Huckabee is a particularly strong backer of the tax.

Thousands attended a May rally in South Carolina promoting the sales tax plan, just before the GOP candidates met for a debate there.

None of the then-leading candidates accepted the group's invitation to speak at the gathering. But Huckabee -- at that point still a dark horse in the race -- did speak and for the first time endorsed the group's plan.

"I have a dream that one day in this country . . . April 15 will just be another beautiful spring day," he told the cheering crowd.

A boost in Iowa

The group's biggest push was in Iowa leading up to the August straw poll. Fairtax.org advocates hit the talk-radio circuit. The group aired a radio ad featuring a jackalope -- a mythical animal -- with the tag line: "Real tax reform shouldn't be as mythical as a jackalope."

It sent stuffed jackalopes to every political reporter in Iowa. It hosted an open-bar reception at a major spring political dinner for Iowa Republicans. The group bought up all the tickets to a minor league baseball game and gave them to anyone who would listen to its tax pitch.

For the straw poll, Fairtax.org rented 10 buses and paid the $35 individual fee for 400 tickets to the event.

Huckabee placed second, behind former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, and garnered the first major coverage he had received in the campaign.

No one knows how many Fairtax.org voters backed Huckabee. But a Romney strategist said the group's effort clearly benefited the former Arkansas governor.

"They were engaged on the ground," said the strategist, who requested anonymity when discussing another campaign. "They were determined to play in this election."

Having depleted its resources in the straw-poll push, Fairtax .org scaled back its publicity efforts to recover financially.

"We went for broke, and almost got there," Hoagland said.

But the cause has been brought to the heart of the Huckabee campaign: David C. Polyansky, a former officer of Fairtax .org, has become a senior Huckabee campaign advisor.

For Huckabee, the proposal may prove a politically useful antidote to the intense criticism he has taken from his party's anti-tax wing for overseeing several tax increases as Arkansas governor.

The sales tax proposal, with its anti-Washington undertone, dovetails with the populist campaign themes he has crafted -- especially on economic issues.

"The average American is more afraid of an IRS audit than getting mugged," he frequently says.

I wish he would not bring up his ideas of fair tax and such while running....It could turn to a great killer.

He would do better stating that he is going to get rid of the complications that are in the tax code.  And he would do better if he said that in order to do anything with the tax system what first has to be done is identify and curb spending.  YEah others have said it too...but if can show some work already done on the investigation aspect of things....

Taxing the spending is crazy.  The government budgets it's spending annually.  We calculate sales revenues daily and report them monthly.  A bad day on Black Friday send the stock market down.  If we rely on Americans to spend money in order to make money and then turn right around and say we do not want to penalize you for saving money....well then how are we going to make money to operate?  If you want to make money off of what money people spend then you want them to spend more.  Because then you can either make more, or at best case reduce the rate of taxation.  If you drop the rate of taxation then they go out and spend more and save less.  And we get harder and harder to plan for what the government is going to make.

With a tax on income you can estimate that if we made 1 billion dollars this year, our population has not changed much over this next year and their jobs probably have not either...so you can easily project that you will have approximately the same amount coming in.

Just does not make good sense...and If I were Huck...I would keep my mouth shut on it.

I'm arguing with you in the least bit on this. However I can see why Huckabee is doing this. His success in doing the same thing in Arkansas is why he is doing it. The state of Arkansas turned into the black for the first time in it's history because of this same tax change. The people of Arkansas also seem to have more spending money. Although it is still one of the highest unemployment rates of all states the unemployment rate is down and the overall economy "looks" much better.

Unfortunately all the job increases were government positions making it more of a big government state.

But he did not get rid of the state income tax.  He did do some reductions and such.  But it was and still is a state with an income tax.  The fair tax system that he is lending his support on is one that claims to eliminate the income tax altogether. 

So let us look at that aspect of things...I already did a flat tax fun thing a while back...let us take a look at quick numbers here.
Say there are 1,000,000 people in our sampling.  And let us pretend that everyone makes $50,000.
That puts them in the tax bracket of 15% by our current standards.
So each person is going to pay $7,500 per year simply.  This is $7,500,000,000 per year in tax revenue.

Now let us look at just doing things off of sales tax.
Same 1,000,000 people with each earning $50,000
Now the idea is that you are not going to tax everything.  but let us look at a couple of variables.  Let us say we will take a look at people who spend 25% of their income on taxable stuff, 50%, as well as 75%.

25%. Indicates that people spent $12,500 on taxable stuff.  In order to get that $12,500 to generate the revenue of the income tax then sales tax would have to be at 60%
50%. Indicates that people spent $25,000 on taxable stuff.  In order to get that $25,000 to generate the revenue of the income tax then sales tax would have to be at 30%
75%. Indicates that people spent $37,500 on taxable stuff.  In order to get that $37,500 to generate the revenue of the income tax then sales tax would have to be at 20%
Just for fun
90%. Indicates that people spent $45,000 on taxable stuff.  In order to get that $45,000 to generate the revenue of the income tax then sales tax would have to be at 16.66666% which generates $7,500 per person.  You figure they just spent $45,000 on goods and paid $7,500 for sales tax to the fed....and they just spent more than the earned.

Let us not forget that there is state, county, city sales taxes as well to pay. 
Now who here would want to go to the Dollar Tree and have to pay $1.50 for everything?  Not me...so I guess I would spend less...sure it would be good for me because I would not spend as much on frivolous stuff.  Only what I need.  And the kids would have terrible Christmas's because I know I would not have gone out and bought them that PSP if I had to pay $300 for it instead of $200.  Which less spending on the consumers part means less revenue for the gment...and the only way to get more revenue is to increase the sales tax revenue.  How do you do that?  You either increase the actual tax, or increase what you are actually taxing. 

Now let me also ask some common sense questions.  When you are making out your budget for the week, month, howmuchever, do you take into account gifts of money you may receive?  Of course not because you cannot account for how much you may get one time or another.  People can change their spending habits.  They do it all the time and that is why they keep track of that stuff so closely and why the market shifts dramatically at bad news.  And since we people can change our habits on spending why would you base your next paycheck on that?  (you being the President and your paycheck clearly dependant on the income of the gment).  People can go without the steak dinners and stick with canned ham if pushed too.  But they cannot go without jobs for the most part.  As expensive as it is to survive people will generally work.  Why tax something that may change verse that which does nto change?

I left out a most important word in my last post. I meant to say "I'm not arguing with you in the least bit on this.

Yes, Huckabee was not successful in getting rid of the personal income tax. Another reason why many consider him to be in perfect line with the democrats on taxes (say one thing and do another). That and the fact the number of government jobs were increased during his term.

LOL...I do not think that I figured you were argueing with me :)

Still felt the need to expand upon the concept a little bit

This is a very long thread, so I didn't read all comments.  However, I read enough to conclude that most here are in support of Huckabee.   I find it extremely difficult to believe any of the candidates.  Most will say and do anything to garner votes.  Once in office, who knows?  I will say, there is something about Huckabee I simply do not trust.  The fact that he is a minister is irrelevant.  There are countless charlatans in the pulpit, and the Bible warns us of such.

I agree with you in that we will only be able to tell once in office.  And it has been noted that we hope that Huckabee is as genuine as he appears to be. 
I have expressed that there are issues of his that I do not agree with, mainly the tax issue.   And I know he does not have nearly as much foreign policy experience as others do.  But what I do find about him is an openness of character.  A willingness to speak what he feels. 

Is he perfect?  By no means.  But quite honestly on either side of the running right now I think he is a better person than the rest.  And as far as ability to run the country.  I think he could do it, would he be the best President ever?  only time would tell.

Our system was not designed to limit those who can be in office to elites, those with degrees, lawyers, former governors, life long politicians, etc...ANYONE can run for the office of President.  And in a pure system of our election process ANYONE could get elected.

I think that most people in this thread have their reservations on this. We all have seen that situation where a person "seems" to be one thing and ends up being the opposite. All we can do is pray about this and do as we think is the right thing.

Huckabee Defends Jesus as Point of Christmas
By
Michelle Vu
Christian Post Reporter
Tue, Dec. 25 2007 10:35 AM ET

Presidential candidate Mike Huckabee said Jesus Christ is the point of Christmas during a sermon in reference to his Christmas ad, which has come under fire for its frank religious tone.

“Sometimes in the middle of Christmas, Jesus is the one person who’s tough to find. You can find Santa at every mall. You can find discount in every store,” Huckabee said at the 25,000-stong Cornerstone Church in San Antonio on Sunday, according to Fox News. “But if you mention the name of Jesus, as I found out recently, it upsets the whole world. Forgive me, but I thought that was the point of the whole day.”

The former Arkansas governor began running a new ad last week in several of the primary states in which he wishes American voters of all faiths a “Merry Christmas.” In the ad, he references the birth of Christ as the Christmas carol “Silent Night” plays in the background and a cross-like image glows behind him, which he explains is just bookshelves.

“I got in a little trouble this last week because I actually had the audacity to say ‘Merry Christmas.’ Isn’t that an odd thing to say at this time of year,” Huckabee said during his 30-minute sermon to a nearly full 5,500-seat auditorium.

The former Arkansas governor was said to receive a 30 second standing ovation and copious applause for his refusal to apologize for referencing Jesus Christ in his Christmas ad, according to Fox News.

Huckabee has surged in state polls in Iowa and South Carolina riding on the support of evangelicals. He has made several stops at churches to deliver sermon while on the campaign trail, but Huckabee clarified that his speaking at Cornerstone was not about politics.

“I have to remind people there’s a time for political things and this is not one of them,” said the ordained Baptist preacher. “Trouble is when you’ve been a Baptist pastor and then you run for office, you become a political person. People get real nervous when you show up for church.”

He said people usually think about two things when they see a pastor and a politician, “you’re going to be here a long time” and that he is “going to ask for money,” Huckabee joked.

His sermon focused on the meaning of the Christmas story.

“The great truth of Christmas is that no matter how good we are, we’re not good enough to know God without the Christ,” Huckabee preached, according to The Associated Press. “And no matter how bad…we are not so bad that he cannot find us.”
“So while some people seem to want us to lose Jesus, I would like for us to do our best to find him,” Huckabee said at the megachurch founded by televangelist John Hagee.

Hagee is nationally known for his staunch support of Israel and is the founder of Christians United for Israel.

“One hundred years from now when all your worries are over, if your faith is in that child in Bethlehem born that day, and you’ve taken yourself off the throne and you’ve decided you’d rather be a shepherd than a Herod, then the good news for you is, when the game is over no matter what It looks like now, you win in the end. That is the message of Christmas so I say to you, Merry Christmas! Jesus is Lord!” Huckabee said.

The Republican presidential hopeful said he will return to his home in Arkansas for Christmas before hitting the campaign trail again ahead of the Jan. 3 Iowa caucuses.

Huckabee Defends Jesus as Point of Christmas (http://www.christianpost.com/article/20071225/30638_Huckabee_Defends_Jesus_as_Point_of_Christmas.htm)

Huckabee stands by 1988 Jesus comment 
'I hope we answer the alarm clock and take this nation back for Christ'

Mike Huckabee, a Republican relying on support from religious conservatives in Thursday's hard-fought presidential caucuses, on Sunday stood by a decade-old comment in which he said, "I hope we answer the alarm clock and take this nation back for Christ."

In a television interview, the ordained Southern Baptist minister and former Arkansas governor made no apologies for the 1998 comment made at a Southern Baptist Convention meeting in Salt Lake City.

"It was a speech made to a Christian gathering, and, and certainly that would be appropriate to be said to a gathering of Southern Baptists," Huckabee said on NBC's "Meet the Press."

He gave the speech the same year he endorsed the Baptist convention's statement of beliefs on marriage that "a wife is to submit graciously to the servant leadership of her husband even as the church willingly submits to the headship of Christ." Huckabee and his wife, Janet, signed a full-page ad in USA Today in support of the statement with 129 other evangelical leaders.

The former governor, who rallied Christian evangelicals to make him a surprise force in Iowa, has put his faith front and center in his campaign. His stump speech sounds like a pastor's pitch from a pulpit. Campaign ads emphasize faith and call him a Christian leader. He frequently quotes Bible verses.

As his fortunes have improved, Huckabee has faced a drumbeat of questions and criticism about his gubernatorial record and the role of faith in his administration. He also has made some missteps while trying to fend off a challenge—and critical TV ads—from Mitt Romney, a former Massachusetts governor and Mormon whose faith unsettles some religious conservatives.

Four days before the caucuses Thursday, a new poll found Huckabee's surge may have stalled; his once double-digit lead over Romney has evaporated. Private polling shows the two in a dead heat.

The television interview was Huckabee's only campaign appearance Sunday.

With the media throng following him having grown immensely, Huckabee scrapped a public event at a church in favor of attending a private service closed to reporters. Instead of courting voters, he hunkered down to film new TV ads, perhaps spots responding to Romney's barrage of critical commercials.

As recently as Friday, Huckabee insisted he wanted to run a positive campaign. He also reserved the right to respond aggressively.

"Hopefully we'll just be talking about issues," Romney told reporters Sunday. In contrast to Huckabee, Romney had a full slate of events on a bus tour of eastern Iowa.

In the NBC interview, Huckabee argued that his emphasis on his Christian beliefs does not mean he's alienating atheists. He said, if elected, he would have no problem appointing atheists to government posts.

"The key issue of real faith is that it never can be forced on someone. And never would I want to use the government institutions to impose mine or anybody else's faith or to restrict," Huckabee said.

Those skeptical of the role of faith in his presidency, he said, should look at his record in Arkansas.

"I didn't ever propose a bill that we would remove the Capitol dome of Arkansas and replace it with a steeple," he said. "You know, we didn't do tent revivals on the grounds of the capitol."

    With 40 percent of Iowa’s Republican caucus voters expected to come from the ranks of conservative Christians, peace activists appeared at Mike Huckabee’s campaign headquarters in Iowa’s capital city today with signs asking the former Baptist minister, “Who Would Jesus Bomb?”

    Eight members of the Iowa Occupation Project and Voices for Creative Nonviolence arrived at Huckabee’s Locust St. campaign office early Monday afternoon, waiting for the former Arkansas governor’s reply to a letter delivered two months ago that sought his pledge to completely withdraw from Iraq within 100 days of assuming office; halt all military actions against Iraq and Iran; fund the rebuilding of Iraq as well as health, education and infrastructure needs in the U.S.; and “…the highest quality health care, education and jobs training benefits for veterans of our country’s Armed Services.”

    Brian Terrell, director of the Catholic Peace Ministry in Des Moines, said approximately 35 reporters, including a number of international journalists, were at Huckabee’s office during the protest.

    Terrell said in addition to the “Who Would Jesus Bomb?” banner, the eight protesters held signs that read, “End Iraq War” and “No War with Iran,” sang the refrain from “Auld Lang Syne,” chanted ‘Who Would Jesus Bomb?’ and then read names of Iraqis and U.S. soldiers killed in the war.

“Who Would Jesus Bomb?”

Rev 9:18  By these three was the third part of men killed, by the fire, and by the smoke, and by the brimstone, which issued out of their mouths.

Rev 20:9  And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.

Brother, it makes me angry that these mental cases toss the Precious Name of JESUS around in such a flippant manner. They wouldn't be so casual about the improper use of HIS NAME if they knew anything about THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST! As we both know, it will be in HIS HOLY WRATH against evil, and HE will kill great millions.

These clowns need to learn some respect for GOD and leave HIS NAME out of their cheap political agendas. Their time will come soon enough to find out what JESUS CHRIST will do with evil men! There won't be any evil men left to read the names after CHRIST is finished, but it would take years to read the names anyway! They could start with over 200 million from one battle. GOD is NOT a NAME to banter about by a bunch of idiots. Every knee that is left will bow to HIM one day SOON! Let them see if they can laugh about JUST ONE of many portions of Scripture that will be fulfilled soon:

Ezekiel 38:14-23 NASB
"Therefore prophesy, son of man, and say to Gog, 'Thus says the Lord GOD, "On that day when My people Israel are living securely, will you not know it? "You will come from your place out of the remote parts of the north, you and many peoples with you, all of them riding on horses, a great assembly and a mighty army; and you will come up against My people Israel like a cloud to cover the land. It shall come about in the last days that I will bring you against My land, so that the nations may know Me when I am sanctified through you before their eyes, O Gog." 'Thus says the Lord GOD, "Are you the one of whom I spoke in former days through My servants the prophets of Israel, who prophesied in those days for many years that I would bring you against them? "It will come about on that day, when Gog comes against the land of Israel," declares the Lord GOD, "that My fury will mount up in My anger. "In My zeal and in My blazing wrath I declare that on that day there will surely be a great earthquake in the land of Israel. "The fish of the sea, the birds of the heavens, the beasts of the field, all the creeping things that creep on the earth, and all the men who are on the face of the earth will shake at My presence; the mountains also will be thrown down, the steep pathways will collapse and every wall will fall to the ground. "I will call for a sword against him on all My mountains," declares the Lord GOD. "Every man's sword will be against his brother. "With pestilence and with blood I will enter into judgment with him; and I will rain on him and on his troops, and on the many peoples who are with him, a torrential rain, with hailstones, fire and brimstone. "I will magnify Myself, sanctify Myself, and make Myself known in the sight of many nations; and they will know that I am the LORD."'

Huckabee nets endorsement from prominent black conservatives

Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee has gained the endorsement of a large coalition of black conservative leaders who say he's the candidate who can best "repair" the nation's public school system and "advocate policies conducive to strengthening families."

In 2002, when running for reelection, Huckabee garnered 47 percent of the black vote in Arkansas. Now, as he seeks the Republican presidential nomination, it appears he is being rewarded for his track record with the African-American community. A group of more than 50 black conservative leaders, including some veteran Republican Party activists and state lawmakers, has announced its support for Huckabee.

One of those backers is Dean Nelson, an ordained Baptist minister who heads the Network of Politically Active Christians. According to Nelson, many conservative black leaders decided to rally around Huckabee in September following his performance in the Republican presidential debate at Morgan State University.

"Since that time, with his rise in the polls, I think more and more African-American conservatives have looked at Governor Huckabee and his credentials and have decided to get behind him largely because he's the only frontrunner who spoke at that event," he says. "As well as the fact that he has so much African-American support from his home state in Arkansas."

Nelson says that support played a big role in his decision to endorse Huckabee. "It was really easy for me to get behind a candidate [who] not only ... has the values or possesses those traditional values like marriage as well as being opposed to abortion, but also ... is able to articulate those values in an authentic way where African-Americans can embrace," says the pastor.

The coalition applauds Huckabee for making 300 "appointments of African-Americans to state boards, commissions and key executive level positions within the Arkansas state government." Among the African-American leaders endorsing Huckabee -- Star Parker of the Council on Urban Renewal and Education (CURE), and the president and vice president of Republicans for Black Empowerment, Donald Scoggins and Lorin Crenshaw.

Huckabee criticized for second 'covert Christian' ad

Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee is once again under fire from liberal media organizations for his association with Christianity.



According to CNN's website, "for the second time in two weeks … Huckabee has aired a commercial in which a Christian symbol appears in the background." The CNN article refers to a Huckabee campaign ad featuring the logo of the group Huckabee was addressing -- the Iowa Christian Alliance (ICA). ICA's logo is the Ichthys -- the "fish" symbol used by early Christians to identify themselves to fellow believers without provoking persecution.

Robert Knight of the Media Research Center's Culture and Media Institute says Huckabee's critics are just showing their anti-Christian bias. "In past generations, candidates have been very open about their Christian faith, and recently [Connecticut Senator] Joe Lieberman was open about his Jewish faith," observes Knight. "But people didn't jump all over him, accusing him of wanting to impose his values on the whole nation -- and yet they're doing that to Huckabee now."

The first supposed controversial ad -- Huckabee's Christmas message to voters -- was criticized for displaying a so-called "floating cross" in the background. The cross was actually a bookshelf. Knight says he understands, at least to some degree, why other candidates are complaining about Huckabee.

"I think what's happened is that a lot of people are jealous that he doesn't seem to mind being shown speaking to Christian groups," Knight added. "Some of the liberals speak to groups that don't share mainstream values and they don't want to show the symbols of their groups -- such as Hillary Clinton speaking before the radical homosexual activist group, the Human Rights Campaign. I bet she doesn't use that in an ad in Iowa."

Knight says it is preposterous to think that someone who has been so open about his faith would be sending hidden messages to voters about his Christianity.

LOL that is sorta funny.  "I am a Christian....let me hide a symbol in an ad to see if you can find it"

Huckabee Supporters Get Warning Letters
Ministers Who Support Huckabee Receive Anonymous Warning Letters

Iowa pastors who support Republican Mike Huckabee for president have received letters warning them that getting involved in politics could endanger the tax-exempt status of their churches.

Several pastors who have publicly backed Huckabee, a Southern Baptist minister who has support from many evangelicals, said they have received the letters, which have no return address. They have arrived in the weeks leading to Thursday's precinct caucuses.

Two letters were sent to the Rev. Brad Sherman, of Solid Rock Christian Church in Coralville. The first arrived a couple weeks ago and warned that he could be prosecuted for his support of Huckabee.

"I just laughed. No one lands in jail for this," Sherman said. "Somebody is trying to intimidate Christians from getting involved."

A second letter came Wednesday. It alleged that the Internal Revenue Service is looking for churches that back candidates in violation of tax rules and mentioned Iowa Sen. Charles Grassley, a Republican who has sought information about spending by high-profile ministries.

The Rev. Kevin Hollinger, of First Baptist Church in Algona, has received three similar letters. Although Hollinger has endorsed Huckabee, he hasn't urged his congregation to support a particular candidate.

"I just encourage people to get out and vote and use their biblical principles," Hollinger said. "I don't tell people who to vote for."

Hollinger said he doubted the letters would intimidate anyone.

The Rev. Rex Deckard has received nine letters, including three on Wednesday.

Deckard, of Calvary Apostolic Church in Des Moines, said he wondered about the motive of the letter writers and assumed they must think pastors are ignorant of the rules regarding church involvement in politics. Regardless, he said the letters won't change his intention of caucusing for Huckabee.

"I'm very impressed with him as a person and I think he's a tremendous individual," Deckard said.

Jim Harris, a Huckabee spokesman in Little Rock, Ark., said the campaign was aware of the letters but did not know how many pastors have received them or whether they were just being sent in Iowa.

"We are gathering more information even as we speak," Harris said. "I would not rule out that we would ask for a criminal investigation, and people who would send such threatening letters to ministers for purely political purposes are cowardly and reek of desperation."

Just amazing.  What else can you say.  As everyone else as already stated all over this forum, these are just a "sign of the times".  It's amazing to see it all actually happen and never fails to make my jaw drop.

(http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r108/MirkoM/Fish.gif)

Brothers and Sisters,

I'm beginning to think that it's time for churches to forget about tax exemption and kick the IRS out of the church. First, I would say that I think this is terribly wrong, Unconstitutional, and a horrible abuse of power by the IRS. Taxes have already been paid on money given to the LORD'S Work, but the government - IRS - should have NO business trying to dictate what a pastor can say or not say unless the pastor is advocating overthrow of the government of some sort of other violent example.

So, I would say that it's either time for the courts to get the IRS out of the churches or the churches to utilize other means to regain freedoms that churches have always enjoyed. The modern use of the IRS to restrict freedoms in churches is ILLEGAL. Their means to use strong-arm tactics against churches has been MANUFACTURED and DOES NOT EXIST under the Constitution. However, this appears to be a handy time for the devil to use the IRS. After all, some way must be found to shut up those pesky Christians. Things are headed toward freedom of thought and speech being REMOVED FOR CHRISTIANS! THE ANSWER IS NO! - WE WON'T TOLERATE THIS! WE WILL NOT! SHUT UP AND SIT DOWN!

If you make any money, the government shoves you in the creek once a year with it in your pockets, and all that don't get wet you can keep.  ~ Will Rogers

Brother, when tithes are given they are given freely. As you know, I pay taxes so the IRS can't say a word how I deliver a sermon. Time is coming where Christians/Churches will be attacked for any word about Christ. We are already seeing the beginnings of this happening through the IRS, on some Churches.

My only question is, who watches the watchers...... In this case the IRS? I think it would be a wonderful time for the people to request an audit of the IRS.  ;D ;D ;D

Have you ever notice that when you put the words "The" and "IRS" together, it spells "THEIRS?"

The supposed "tax exempt" status of some churches are still not tax exempt. Churches are still required to with hold and submit with holding taxes for any employee. Even when a church does not use the tax exempt status, paying taxes on all monies and with holds/submits employee taxes, the IRS still goes for churches that get politically involved under a little known law that is in regards to being a grass roots organization instead of a church.

Yes, it is in odds with the Constitution. It is however being done and it is nothing more than an effort to silence the churches.

Brothers,

All I can say is that things are getting more ridiculous by the minute. I firmly believe that the time must come when many Christians MUST stand up and say NO! I'm not talking about wasting time and effort on something small, rather something large and significant. They might try to put us all in jail, and that would be fine also if the issue was large enough.

I don't think that Christians will be here to accept or deny the mark of the beast, but let's assume that we are still here. I will not take the mark of the beast. I would die first. When that time comes, it will be very plain what is being done. In other words, it won't be a big secret that something evil and anti-CHRIST is being done. Further, I will never be ashamed of the GOSPEL! I have had free speech and freedom to worship for all of my life, and I will practice THE SAME for the remainder of my life. I hope that everyone understands what I mean by saying NO! to a large and worthy issue - not nit-picking. If they make a law that a Bible can't be carried into a public building, that isn't worthy of dying for - even though that would be an illegal and Unconstitutional Law.

There might be a time soon for Christians to stand up and say NO! Each individual Christian might have different ideas about what circumstances should lead to saying NO! NOW - I'll go back and say that I don't think that we'll be here that much longer anyway. There is nothing Biblically left to happen before CHRIST can Rapture HIS CHURCH HOME to GLORY! The RAPTURE could be tonight, and I hope it is. If my beliefs about the RAPTURE are wrong, my time for saying NO! would come pretty quickly, and I would NOT submit to anything approaching denial of CHRIST or significant removal of freedoms to worship. The arguments about rendering unto Caesar would NOT apply to the circumstances I'm thinking about. An appropriate  rendering unto GOD COMES FIRST!, and I will do just that until I physically die.

Love In Christ,
Tom

 

Huckabee denies anchor-baby challenge
Says he would not press for amendment to deny birthright citizenship

Gov. Mike Huckabee issued a statement today denying a report that he wants to amend the Constitution to prevent children born in the U.S. to illegal aliens from automatically becoming American citizens.

A Washington Times story cited his top immigration adviser, Minuteman Project founder Jim Gilchrist, saying Huckabee promised him he would force a test case to the Supreme Court to challenge birthright citizenship and would press Congress to pass an amendment.

But Huckabee denied it.

"I do not support an amendment to the Constitution that would prevent children born in the U.S. to illegal aliens from automatically becoming American citizens," the former Arkansas governor said. "I have no intention of supporting a constitutional amendment to deny birthright citizenship."

The Time said Gilchrist also received a promise from Huckabee that his first act as president would be to pardon imprisoned Border Patrol agents Ignacio Ramos and Jose Compean, who are serving 11- and 12-year sentences for shooting a fleeing drug smuggler at the Mexican border.

Gilchrist said Huckabee explained his positions in a half-hour conversation last week while campaigning in Iowa.

"I read back my notes to him twice, and I told him I did not want to put words in his mouth," Gilchrist told the Times. "The guy looked me right in the eye."

Campaign spokeswoman Kirsten Fedewa affirmed Huckabee intended to review the Ramos and Compean case as one of his first acts as president. The paper said she did not dispute Gilchrist's quotes as provided by the paper.

Fedewa said Huckabee and Gilchrist are "united by a mutual desire to end illegal immigration and are political allies toward that end."

But the Times noted that as governor, Huckabee "pressed for illegal aliens to gain college tuition benefits, complained about federal immigration raids in his state and declined to have state police enforce immigration laws, although the state legislature gave him the authority to do so."

Gilchrist has been campaigning with Huckabee since endorsing him last month, sparking controversy among border security organization leaders and Minuteman activists who oppose the candidate's policies as governor.

Huckabee has adopted a stricter immigration platform that apparently satisfied Gilchrist, proposing illegals return home and apply for immigration through legal channels.

Gilchrist told WND in an interview last month, "Nothing I can find in Huckabee's plan indicates he is going to let the illegal immigrants back into the country the next day after they go home.

"The illegal aliens, once they are back home, will have to stand in line with everybody else and apply for legal entry at the end of the line," Gilchrist insisted.

But Gilchrist was unaware of a Dec. 9 interview with CNN's Larry King in which Huckabee said his Secure America Plan would allow illegal aliens who repatriated to their homelands to return to the United States in a matter of days.

Huckabee responds well to survey of views on military social issues, says activist

Elaine Donnelly, president of the Center for Military Readiness, says former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee responded well to a military survey sent to all the presidential candidates.

The survey covered a variety of social issues that affect the troops, and while the Center for Military Readiness will not endorse a presidential candidate, she did comment on Huckabee's response. "Governor Huckabee did provide very good answers to the questions that we asked," says Donnelly, who heads the military watchdog group. "Everything from women in combat, gays in the military, the CEDAW treaty, women on submarines. These are very important military social issues."

But Donnelly did find some contradictions in Huckabee's stance concerning homosexuals serving in the military. "A statement made to the Associated Press in April 2007 ... indicated that well ... [Huckabee's] not sure that being a homosexual should automatically disqualify [someone] from the military," she points out. "His campaign, however, said that he supports the law regarding homosexuals in the military."

Donnelly says the campaigns for both Rudy Giuliani and Mitt Romney did not answer surveys. As for Senator John McCain (R-Arizona) -- he sent a copy of a letter; and Fred Thompson responded to the question of homosexuals serving in the military with a statement, says Donnelly. However, she notes none of the Democratic candidates responded to her survey.

Huck takes heat for having CFR adviser
Candidate turns to globalist Richard Haass for foreign policy advice

Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee is getting more heat both online and in person from critics who scold the former governor for consulting the president of the Council on Foreign Relations on issues of international affairs.

Last month, Huckabee confirmed to CNN's Wolf Blitzer that he consults CFR President Richard Haass on foreign affairs matters – a fact that has circulated among bloggers and anti-globalism activists.

"Who are your principal foreign policy advisers, Governor," asked Blitzer.

Huckabee responded: "Well, I have a number of people from whom I get policy. I'm talking to Frank Gaffney. I talk to Richard Haass."

The National Expositor website pointed out Haass penned a column in the Taipei Times that called on sovereign nations to cede power to global bodies.

"States must be prepared to cede some sovereignty to world bodies if the international system is to function," Haass wrote. "This is already taking place in the trade realm. Governments agree to accept the rulings of the WTO because on balance they benefit from an international trading order even if a particular decision requires that they alter a practice that is their sovereign right to carry out.

" … (S)overeignty must be redefined if states are to cope with globalization. At its core, globalization entails the increasing volume, velocity, and importance of flows – within and across borders – of people, ideas, greenhouse gases, goods, dollars, drugs, viruses, e-mails, weapons and a good deal else, challenging one of sovereignty's fundamental principles: the ability to control what crosses borders in either direction. Sovereign states increasingly measure their vulnerability not to one another, but to forces beyond their control."

Haas then argues that sovereignty "needs to become weaker."

Writes the CFR chief: "States would be wise to weaken sovereignty in order to protect themselves, because they cannot insulate themselves from what goes on elsewhere. Sovereignty is no longer a sanctuary."

Haass also strikes a global-socialism note in arguing that world neighbors must provide for one another:

"Necessity may also lead to reducing or even eliminating sovereignty when a government, whether from a lack of capacity or conscious policy, is unable to provide for the basic needs of its citizens. This reflects not simply scruples, but a view that state failure and genocide can lead to destabilizing refugee flows and create openings for terrorists to take root."

The National Expositor railed against the Huckabee-Haass connection, asking, "Who needs individual rights in the techno-futuristic world police state? And you thought liberty was in jeopardy now? Just wait till you see what your children will have to deal with. Get activated, folks. These police state freaks want to shape your future into a control grid enforced through the fear-based reaction to sponsored false flag terror."

On Sunday, a heckler confronted Huckabee at a rally in New Hampshire, shouting out repeatedly: "Why is Richard Haass, the president of the Council of Foreign Relations, your political adviser?"

According to a report in the Boston Globe, Huckabee first ignored the man and then joked, "Don't make me send Chuck back there!" – a reference to actor and WND columnist Chuck Norris, who has been campaigning with Huckabee.

Security eventually ushered the man out, and the candidate emphasized the fact the heckler had a right to speak out.

"The great thing about America is that we're not going to take him out and shoot him," Huckabee is quoted as saying. "You don't have to agree with the politicians and you can throw them out of office. But if you do like them, you can put them in office."

The candidate did not address the issue of why Haass is one of his advisers.

Columnist Chuck Baldwin hammered Huckabee for his CFR connections in a commentary last week, mentioning that the candidate spoke before the Council last fall.

Wrote Baldwin: "As you read Huckabee's speech, you will find that he is George W. Bush on steroids! This is a man who intends to meddle in the affairs of nations around the world like you can't believe. Talk about entangling alliances: Huckabee intends for our State, Energy, Housing, Education, Justice, Treasury, and Transportation departments to spend untold billions of tax dollars on just about anything and everything, including schools, medical facilities, roads, sewage treatment, water filtration, electricity, and legal and banking systems in countries all over the globe. And that is exactly the kind of man the Council on Foreign Relations wants in Washington."

The CFR itself has downplayed the Huckabee-Haass connection, with spokeswoman Lisa Shields telling USA Today Haass has "briefed Huckabee on foreign policy issues as well as [briefing] many other candidates" in both parties. Shields stressed that the relationship was not exclusive and that Haass was not affiliated with the campaign.

Huckabee has seen his share of barbs from his GOP competitors on issues of foreign affairs, including criticism for a line he wrote in an article for Foreign Affairs.

"The Bush administration's arrogant bunker mentality has been counterproductive at home and abroad," the candidate wrote.

Rebutted candidate Fred Thompson at a recent GOP debate: "I think that maybe the governor has rethought his comments that he made about an arrogant foreign policy, because it seems now what he's saying is that we were arrogant because we didn't go in with enough troops. I think that's kind of a different impression than the one that he originally sought to leave."

I'll just say that I'm glad that we have plenty of time to gather information and think about this. I was optimistic, but I have not made up my mind. Regardless, this is something for all Christians to be very serious about and pray about. For Christians who have studied Bible Prophecy, "Global" anything should have an evil ring to it. However, these things are going to happen, regardless of who the leaders are. Bible Prophecy will be fulfilled at GOD'S Appointed time and in HIS Way. So, I think that prayer and guidance from GOD will be all important. Regardless, HIS Will be Done!, and it Will Be!

Love In Christ,
Tom

I agree with you on that part, but I have to say that I am still impressed with him in the sense that he hasn't once apologized for his faith or backed down from it.  Also during the debates last night, Ron Paul was talking about that we should treat Isael as an adult instead of a step child and that we should let them fend for themselves (in so many words) and Huckabee stated that if he were President, we would always give aid to Israel.  That's an important issue to me. 
I'm glad we have time also, but I'm also of a mind that where Huckabee is weak, God is strong.

In Christ,
Grammyluv

Ron Paul is like those Christians that pull back into the walls of their church or homes and have nothing at all to do with the rest of the world. Paul wants us all to pull back within the borders of the U.S. and to ignore what is going on around us not realizing that what happens in the rest of the world does and will in fact have a great effect on us all. Being an ostrich with our heads stuck in the ground will not change the fact that we are a part of what is happening throughout the world and that we must do something about it. Being such an ostrich will only get our heads cut off without our seeing it coming.

Huckabee may be weak in areas but at least he recognizes the error of doing what Ron Paul wants to do.

Canadian fossil makes waves in Huckabee's presidential run

Unlikely as it sounds, an extinct Canadian fish with foot-like fins is set to make a serious splash in the U.S. presidential race.

Tiktaalik roseae -- a 375-million-year-old fossilized "fishapod" discovered on Ellesmere Island in 2004 -- has been hailed as an "evolutionary icon" because it represents the crucial transition from sea to land for some of the Earth's most primitive creatures.

The discovery was announced amid global fanfare in 2006, and Tiktaalik is now the showcase species in a report released last week by the U.S. National Academy of Sciences to promote the study of evolution and counter calls for U.S. schools to teach creationism.

That issue has dogged Republican presidential contender Mike Huckabee, the former Arkansas governor and an ordained Baptist minister, who publicly rejects the idea that humans came from apes.

Now Neil Shubin, the University of Chicago biologist who discovered the High Arctic fossil, is poised to release a populist recounting of his Canadian find -- Your Inner Fish -- in which he traces the primordial origins of the human race to such lowly creatures.

"It is far worse for Huckabee. Before apes, his ancestors were fish, worms, and other creatures," Mr. Shubin told Canwest News Service yesterday. "With jaw bones that correspond to gill bones in fish and sharks, a body plan shared with headless worms, and with parts of a DNA recipe shared with relatives of jellyfish, Huckabee's ties to some of the most humble forms of life on our planet run deep indeed."

The planned launch of Your Inner Fish next Tuesday has already prompted a prediction from the leading U.S. evolutionary scientist Don Johanson -- co-discoverer of Lucy, the "missing-link" ape -- that "creationists will want this book banned" because it so convincingly discredits their world view.

"If you want to believe that you and your family came from apes, I'll accept that," Mr. Huckabee said in an interview last year. "I believe there was a creative process ... I believe that there is a God and that he put the process in motion."

Though he has tried to avoid the issue in recent months, Mr. Huckabee's views about evolution are coming under renewed scrutiny after solid support among evangelical Christians powered his surprise victory last week in Iowa in the opening round of the Republican presidential race.

The influential journal Nature welcomed the publication of Science, Evolution and Creationism this week, applauding its focus on "fossils such as the Canadian Tiktaalik" and noting the book's timely release came "on the same day that Mike Huckabee won the Republican presidential caucus in Iowa."

And in its latest issue, New Scientist magazine editorializes warmly about the pro-evolution push by the U.S. National Academy Sciences, arguing that the effort is "unlikely to be enough to convince Huckabee" but "will help to highlight the idiocy of a political position that calls for America to lead the world while denying one of the foundation stones of scientific progress."

Mr. Huckabee has said he doesn't oppose the teaching of evolution and wouldn't expect U.S. schools to promote creationist ideas, such as Intelligent Design, "as if it's the only thing that they should teach."

Polls in the U.S. routinely show that nearly half of all Americans discount the theory of evolution.

Tiktaalik was a predatory species that hunted in shallow waters at a time in Earth history when Ellesmere Island -- now Canada's northernmost land mass -- was a subtropical swamp situated near the equator.

The fossilized bones of the three-metre-long Tiktaalik (its Inuktitut name means "big, shallow-water fish") showed that it had the scales and fins of a fish but the ribs, neck, head and limb-like bones of a land animal.

"The major bones in our own arms and legs are similar in overall configuration to those of Tiktaalik," notes the report by the National Academy of Sciences. "The discovery of Tiktaalik, while critically important for confirming predictions of evolutionary theory, is just one example of many findings made every year that add depth and breadth to the scientific understanding of biological evolution."

The academy, which is congressionally mandated to advise the U.S. government on scientific issues, also states: "Because science has no way to accept or refute creationists' assertions, creationist beliefs should not be presented in science classrooms alongside teaching about evolution. Teaching non-scientific concepts in science class will only confuse students about the processes, nature, and limits of science."

Of course this subject is going to come up in Huckabee's campaign. It was inevitable.


and of course the truth cannot be told on this or any other part of this article. Creationists want this book banned but it has nothing to do with it being convincing but rather because it has already been proven false. Many living Tiktaalik roseae have been found still living today and unlike the proponents of this fossil for evolution it has fins and bones that are nothing at all like a land animal.

(http://i136.photobucket.com/albums/q169/dgriffin4400/ROFL.gif)

Can't wait to read that one!  Now I've heard everything!!

It's not Christians that want books, ideas, etc, etc banned....It's them.  A fool is a fool no matter what he reads and we know that.  We also know that truth is truth and will prevail in the END.

"You're Inner Fish"    Hahahahaha.  What a title!  Can't get over that one.  There's a self help book for everything!
Oh!  My poor inner fish!  I'm just a guppy at heart.  My mother fish died in child birth and I've been lost ever since and fending for myself until one day I pulled myself up by the boot straps and walked on land to a new and better future...
You may know some of my decendents...Magilla Gorrilla and Curious George...
hahahahaha

Sorry guys.  Just entertaining myself!  ;D

and the rest of us, too.

 ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D

I see you are easily entertained sister................... (http://img426.imageshack.us/img426/4317/rotfl9ki.gif)(http://img426.imageshack.us/img426/4317/rotfl9ki.gif)

 ;D   ;D   ;D    ROFL!



THANKS! - I needed this laugh this morning. You can also consider that new ROFL Graphic Snagged.

That was classic.  I think I need stitches.

HUCK, THE CONSTITUTION AND 'GOD'S STANDARDS'

Huckabee's closing argument to voters here this evening featured a few new stories and two prolonged sections on illegal immigration and Christian values.

These two topics usually feature prominently in Huckabee's stump speech, but last night he got specific, promising to build a border fence within 18 months if elected and elaborating on his belief that the constitution needs to be amended.

"[Some of my opponents] do not want to change the Constitution, but I believe it's a lot easier to change the constitution than it would be to change the word of the living God, and that's what we need to do is to amend the Constitution so it's in God's standards rather than try to change God's standards," Huckabee said, referring to the need for a constitutional human life amendment and an amendment defining marriage as between a man and a woman.

Huckabee often refers to the need to amend the constitution on these grounds, but he has never so specifically called for the Constitution to be brought within "God's standards," which are themselves debated amongst religious scholars. As a closing statement he asked the room of nearly 500 supporters to "pray and then work hard, and in that order," to help him secure a victory in Tuesday's GOP primary.

Tomorrow Huckabee will visit two polling places in the morning before taking off for South Carolina where he will watch Michigan's returns come in.

AMEN!

I was really impressed with this speech myself and I had the same thoughts on this. He is an open taget now and there will be more than just target practice exhibited by those aiming at him.

Not looking good on the home front.  Huckabee took pretty much the entire South East.  But failed up in the North East and most of the Western states.  By the number of delegates McCain is the clear winner.

The bad thing is that I do not think he has it in him to beat either one of the Democratic possibles.  I could really only see Huckabee doing that.  I think he would have secured the South easily so his focus would have been NE, and W.  And with a strait attitude and honest approach to things I think he could have secured the Republican vote and even swayed some Democrats.

Hello Brother Jerry,

This is a confusing time, and this election is like an episode of the Twilight Zone. I'm firmly convinced that the best thing Christians can do is pray, follow the leading of THE HOLY SPIRIT in what we do, pray some more, and leave the rest to GOD. GOD'S Will be done, and it will be!

I've been doing a lot of thinking and praying about many issues, and I have some thoughts that I would like to share. As Christians, there is NO defeat for us and NO change in what we are supposed to do. We already have VICTORY IN CHRIST!

Love In Christ,
Tom

 

Amen to that.  now more than ever.  Advisors will be trying to urge him to quit.   That he does not have enough of a lead.  We need to pray now more than ever that God will lead the hearts of men to follow in the path He is leading.

Limbaugh pushes McCain-Huckabee ticket
Despite Super Tuesday victories, senator dissed by majority of GOP conservatives

Sen. John McCain may have secured his status as the Republican presidential frontrunner after winning a lion's share of delegates in yesterday's Super Tuesday contests, but exit poll results reveal that he faces a huge obstacle in his quest for his party's nomination: Republican conservatives.

While the Arizona senator has a commanding delegate lead over his rivals, only 32 percent of self-described conservatives — the majority of GOP primary voters yesterday — cast their votes for McCain, according to exit polling.

McCain: 'We Will Unite the Party'

A day after his Super Tuesday victories, the Arizona senator attempted to reassure conservatives about his intentions, previewing his message for Thursday's Conservative Political Action conference, a major gathering held each year in Washington that McCain skipped last year, rising the ire of some conservatives.

"Our message will be that we all share common principles, common conservative principles, and we should coalesce around those issues in which we are in agreement and, I hope, respectfully disagree on the few specifics that there is disagreement on," McCain said in Phoenix today before heading back to Washington.

"We share common principles and values and ideas for the future of this country based on a fundamental conservative political philosophy which has been my record," he said.

The moderate Republican senator has long had a strained relationship with the conservative base of his party, which decries his vote against President George W. Bush's $1.35 trillion tax cut in 2001, sponsorship of the failed bipartisan immigration reform legislation and opposition of a federal ban on same-sex marriage.

In his path toward the Republican nomination, McCain has been continually hammered by conservatives including influential talk show host Rush Limbaugh, commentator and author Ann Coulter, and James Dobson, the evangelical Christian founder of Focus on the Family.

"For all intents and purposes, McCain is the Republican nominee," a defeated Limbaugh said on his radio show today. Limbaugh suggested McCain will march Republicans to defeat in November unless he picks former Gov. Mike Huckabee of Arkansas, who did well among Christian evangelicals last night, as his running mate.

"Here's the thing about McCain: he can't win conservatives in the South by virtue of this primary yesterday," Limbaugh said. "These blue states that McCain won last night are places where he has no chance in November."

Coulter has suggested she will vote for Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., if McCain becomes the nominee, arguing that Clinton has a more conservative record.

Dobson released a statement to "The Laura Ingraham Show" Tuesday announcing that he would refuse to vote in November if McCain is the nominee.

"I am convinced Sen. McCain is not a conservative, and in fact, has gone out of his way to stick his thumb in the eyes of those who are," Dobson wrote. "A spoonful of sugar does NOT make the medicine go down. I cannot, and will not, vote for Sen. John McCain, as a matter of conscience."

Today McCain argued that his support among moderates and independents will help him win the White House, and he urged conservatives to get behind him.

"The quote 'independent' voters and frankly the old [Ronald] Reagan Democrats will come our way because I think we will have a message that will appeal to all of them," McCain said.

"I see, in all due respect, the two Democratic candidates moving further and further to the left which will make for... I think, a very spirited debate and one that we can carry from a philosophical standpoint."

'Join Together'

After last night's victories, including several winner-take-all states, McCain has a huge lead over his rivals in delegates for September's GOP convention in Minneapolis. ABC News estimates McCain has secured at least 561 delegates, to 222 for Romney. Huckabee stands at 172. To win the GOP nomination 1,191 delegates are needed.

Before his victory in the South Carolina primary, McCain's 95-year-old mother, Roberta, advised conservatives to "hold their nose" and vote for her son. But a majority of conservatives, including those in McCain's homestate of Arizona, didn't heed McCain's mother's advice.

On Super Tuesday, exit polling showed McCain narrowly lost conservatives to former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, gaining 40 percent support among Arizona conservatives to Romney's 43 percent. However, those who considered themselves "very conservative" went for Romney by a much wider margin: 53 percent support for Romney to McCain's 22 percent support.

Asked by a reporter to respond to accusations by conservatives like Limbaugh that McCain will push Republicans to the left in Congress, McCain defended his record of working with Democrats and independents like Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman.

I think most conservatives are very proud that we have a guy here that would stand up to his party and argue that we needed to stay the course in Iraq," McCain said of the Democratic-turned-independent senator.

"Ronald Reagan did have a record of reaching across the aisle to Democrats," he added.

"They've made their case against me and I think the majority of Republicans have stated their view and now I hope we can join together for the good of the party and the good of the nation," McCain said today.

Huckabee says he'll accept VP slot
'Nobody ever wants the vice-president's job. Nobody ever turns it down'

Well surprise, surprise!

He danced the complete Kabuki, right down to the mandatory move about considering John McCain for his VP slot. But at the end of the day, Mike Huckabee has admitted the obvious: he'll take the Veep nomination if John McCain offers it.

Huckabee was a guest on this morning's Today.

    MIKE HUCKABEE: Matt, we're still in this until somebody gets 1,191 delegates, the magic number to become the nominee. And until that happens, just ask the New York Giants what can happen near the end of the game.

    MATT LAUER: Yeah, but you did not close the door on me there, Governor. Would you say this morning that you would consider at some point, if you don't think you can reach that magic number of delegates, would you consider the vice-presidential slot on a ticket with John McCain?

    HUCKABEE: Well, let's go ahead and be honest now. Nobody ever wants the vice-president's job; nobody ever turns it down.

Grrrr

With Romney bowing out Huckabee missed an opportunity that McCain picked up on....give a speech.  Now if Huck goes out and does it he will simply appear as copying him.

C'mon Mike...you need to hit an avenue that McCain is not....the Internet!!  get out there and do whatever you can to get some pull in the Inet.  It is usually cheap and easy.
I say this as if he is reading it :)

 :D :D ;D ;D

Huckabee banks
on Texas, Norris
Campaign believes Romney departure helps
unify anti-McCain vote in 27 remaining contests

It's not over till it's over.

That's not just what Yogi Berra believes, it's what Mike Huckabee's campaign chairman is saying about the Republican contest for the presidential nomination.

In a memo to his campaign staff, late Friday, after the dramatic departure of former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney from the race and John McCain's effort to unify the Republican base at the Conservative Political Action Conference here the same day, Ed Rollins said it's too early for a coronation.

"Big mistake on their part," wrote Rollins. "They are wrong. We know that we are running an underdog campaign, but that's nothing new – we have always been the underdog. And yet a whole lot of onetime 'overdogs' are now on the sidelines, licking their wounds. The Republican National Convention is seven long months away; a lot can happen in that much time. A lot will happen."

Specifically what Rollins expects is a Huckabee win the big southern state of Texas and close contests with McCain in Pennsylvania and Ohio.

"So don't let anyone tell you that it's over!" warns Rollins. "In fact, as of today, no fewer than 27 states, districts, and territories have not yet had a chance to vote. That includes such big states as Texas (Chuck Norris' home state, 'nuff said), Ohio, and Pennsylvania. All the Republicans and Republican-minded independents in those states want to be part of the process, too, and they deserve to have a choice put before them. Folks don't want the Republican Establishment to pick the nominee for them, through a premature rush to judgment, and they sure as heck don't want the media to pick the nominee!"

What makes Rollins so giddy?

"We note that in many of the hottest contests so far, the vote has been divided into thirds – typically, about one-third for Governor Huckabee, one third for Senator McCain, and one third for all the other candidates," he says. "And as you know, typically, Governor Huckabee has done best among hardcore Republicans – the activist base."

He believes many Romney voters will go to Huckabee rather than McCain.

"We are confident that we will get most of the activists, the folks who work the hardest because they care the most about the issues," Rollins says. "In addition, we note that many of the jurisdictions that have already voted have merely had the first round of their delegate-selection process. To be frank, there's still plenty of time for politicking, as Republicans really focus on the question of who should lead their party into the November election. Who's the most stalwart champion of Republican and conservative values? Who's the most articulate and effective campaigner? We know the answer to those questions – that's why we have been working our hearts out for Mike Huckabee. But soon, everyone paying attention will know that, too. As the campaign season grinds on – and let's again remember, this is just February! – there will be plenty of time for reflection and reconsideration, especially among those hundreds of delegates pledged to candidates who have now dropped out."

Huckabee sure didn't seem like a candidate looking for a vice presidential selection at CPAC today. He electrified the crowd with a rousing speech designed to galvanize support among conservative voters.

"I know the pundits, and I know what they say, that the math doesn't work out," he said. "Folks, I didn't major in math. I majored in miracles, and I believe in those. Am I quitting? Let's get that settled right now. No, I'm not."

Huckabee concluded with a story from a supporter from Kentucky who had recently lost her house in the tornadoes that ravaged the South.

"Despite damage to her home there was one thing that was pretty remarkable," he said. "She had a Mike Huckabee yard sign ... When the tornado had gone through, standing pristine, without a hint of damage, or even meaning, was that yard sign. Across America, everywhere there is still a vote to be cast, I am still standing."

Huckabee handily defeated McCain in today's Kansas Republican caucus, taking 60 percent of the vote to the Arizona senator's 24 percent.

Against all odds, Huckabee vows to hang in there

John McCain's campaign says it's mathematically impossible for Mike Huckabee to win the Republican presidential nomination, yet the former Arkansas governor is vowing to "march on" and continue challenging McCain until the presumptive nominee reaches the required total of 1,191 delegates.

Despite losses in the Potomac primaries Tuesday night, Mike Huckabee is vowing to remain in the Republican presidential race. Huckabee says it would be a "disservice" to voters in upcoming Republican presidential primaries in Wisconsin (February 19), in Texas and Ohio (March 4), and beyond if he chose to drop out of the race now.
 
Huckabee's national campaign co-chairman, former Arkansas Senator Tim Hutchinson, says conservatives and the Republican Party still have "a lot of issues" with Senator McCain (R-Arizona).
 
"Governor Huckabee's presence as an authentic conservative, as somebody who has not spent the last 25 years in Washington, DC, as the only chief executive still in the race -- that's given an opportunity for some of those concerns to be expressed at the ballot box," says Hutchinson. "And one of the reasons Governor Huckabee has determined to stay in this race is because he believes ... Republican [primary] voters deserve to have a choice and to have an option to have their voice expressed."
 
Hutchinson says Huckabee will be spending the bulk of his time campaigning in Texas the next few weeks, a state that Hutchinson calls a "must-win."
 
"Clearly much of the focus is going to be on Texas and Ohio," he states. "I think Texas is almost a must-win state to keep mathematically alive and to keep [viable] the possibility of sending this to an open convention. [We] gotta win Texas. I mean, it's a neighboring state to Arkansas, [it's] a culturally conservative state, and there will be a lot of effort put into Texas."
 
Following the Potomac primaries, Huckabee told reporters: "I've not been one who believes that you leave the field because it's gotten difficult. You stay, and you keep playing until the last second of the clock has sounded."

Hi Everyone
I live in AZ. and i'm going to call Sen. McCains office and tell them the only way me & My Family will Vote for him, is if he nominates M. Huckabee for V.P...
Thats 5 Votes!
My mom & sisters usually listen to me too... That's 3 more!
I CAN'T BELIEVE I"M CONSIDERING J.McCAIN FOR PRESIDENT! OUGH BOY!
YLBD
Illegal-Immigration!
Gay Marriage!
A fense with NO funds!
UNrealistic veiws towards God!
78 yrs old!
The only good thing thats come out of his mouth is his veiw on the War on terror!

And even that is questionable because of his stance on illegal immigration is allowing the war on terror to move to within our own borders.

Hello Littleboy,

This is a very wild and strange election. I've never seen anything like it. It appears that BIG MONEY George Soros put all of the major players in place. Our choices are limited, and future choices may be even further limited.

Brother, we both know that this world isn't our home, and we also both know that end of this Age of Grace events may be near. Further, Christians might not be here that much longer. I'm ready for the LORD to take us HOME. Today would be wonderful. In the meantime, the best we can do is pray, pray some more, and yield to GOD'S Will until the last moment. GOD'S Will be done!, and it will be!

Love In Christ,
Tom

 

I thank God for you guy's,
I get some sanity, amongst the insanity that is going on right now...
Did you see Mr. Huckabee on saturday night live? What a hoot, he is funny!
What a good natured man...
I told my family that i will not be voting anymore(EVER), If Mike Huckabee isn't on the ticket for President or V. President,
I told them I'm tired of voting for "the lesser of two Evils" and things only being fixed with a Band-Aid...
Our country has been Hemoridging(Godlessness,gay agenda,Murderous,Abortions,Ect.ect.ect.) for a long time now & I'm ready too just let her be Bled to Death by the Demoncrates that think their right, May God have Mercy on us when his Wrath Comes to America, And it will, Just look at all the Natiions in the Bible & how it turned out when they Chose to do Evil And turn from him...
He Promises Utter Destruction to Nations that turn from him & gave us Examples of his Wrath and the Harshness of it...
YLBD
I've voted every time for almost 30 yrs. now, And now I may never vote again, What a trip!

There is always the write-in vote and whether it will do any good or not I will probably go that route myself this time around.

Brothers and Sisters,

I've made up my mind to just wait, stay informed, and watch what happens between now and the election. Any number of things could happen to change our available choices. We must also remember GOD may choose leaders for HIS Purposes. If these are the End Days of the Age of Grace, events will happen according to the perfect Timing and Will of GOD. A TIME was foretold thousands of years ago, and that TIME might be coming. If so, it will be the Will of GOD - GOD'S Will be Done! - and it Will Be!

Love In Christ,
Tom

Ezekiel 7:1-9 NASB
Moreover, the word of the LORD came to me saying, "And you, son of man, thus says the Lord GOD to the land of Israel, 'An end! The end is coming on the four corners of the land. 'Now the end is upon you, and I will send My anger against you; I will judge you according to your ways and bring all your abominations upon you. 'For My eye will have no pity on you, nor will I spare you, but I will bring your ways upon you, and your abominations will be among you; then you will know that I am the LORD!' "Thus says the Lord GOD, 'A disaster, unique disaster, behold it is coming! 'An end is coming; the end has come! It has awakened against you; behold, it has come! 'Your doom has come to you, O inhabitant of the land. The time has come, the day is near--tumult rather than joyful shouting on the mountains. 'Now I will shortly pour out My wrath on you and spend My anger against you; judge you according to your ways and bring on you all your abominations. 'My eye will show no pity nor will I spare. I will repay you according to your ways, while your abominations are in your midst; then you will know that I, the LORD, do the smiting.

Amen

Huckabee drops out of presidential race

Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee is calling it a day -- he's dropping out of the race for the Republican presidential nomination.

Huckabee made the announcement to his supporters in Texas after John McCain clinched the needed number of delegates.

Huckabee says he telephoned McCain and offered not only his congratulations, but his commitment to both him and the Republican Party. The former Arkansas governor praised McCain, saying he has run "an honorable campaign because he is an honorable man."

Brother, I got to hear the closing speech from Mike Huckabee. All I can say is "WOW! - what a speech!" It wasn't politics as usual, rather it was REAL! Mike Huckabee didn't win, but he did make a tremendously positive impact on one of the most bizarre elections in history. He was heard, and the people needed to hear him.

I wanted to hear that speech but missed out on it. I'll have to see if I can find it online somewhere.

MIKE HUCKABEE: Thank you very much. Well, George Brett was one of the greatest baseball players of all time. And in his career for the Kansas City Royals, he was asked, when he was nearing the end of his career, how he wanted his last play in the major leagues to go.

Well, everyone assumed that he would say that he wanted to hit a grand slam in the bottom of the ninth to win a game, perhaps even a World Series. He surprised all of the sportswriters, because what he said was, “I want my last play at bat to be that I hit an easy, just one bounce to the second baseman, and they throw me out at first. But I was running as hard as I could toward the bag when they got me.”

And he said, “Because I want it to be said of George Brett that, no matter what, he played his best game, he gave it his best, all the way to the very end.” And he certainly did just that.

Ladies and gentlemen, I called Senator McCain a few moments ago. It looks pretty apparent tonight that he will, in fact, achieve 1,191 delegates to become the Republican nominee for our party.

I extended to him not only my congratulations, but my commitment to him and to the party to do everything possible to unite our party, but more importantly to unite our country, so that we can be the best nation we can be, not for ourselves, but for the future generations to whom we owe everything, just as we owe previous generations all that they have done for us.

Senator McCain has run an honorable campaign because he’s an honorable man. One of the things I’m proudest of is that the two campaigns that I believe have been run in the most civil manner are the two in the Republican Party that have lasted on their feet to the final. And I’m grateful for the manner in which he has conducted his campaign.

And, quite frankly, with your great help, I’m very proud of the way that you have insisted that we conduct our campaign. And it’s been one that we will always be able to say was done with honor.

It’s now important that we turn our attention not to what could have been or what we wanted to have been, but what now must be, and that is a united party, but a party that, indeed, comes together on those principles that have brought many of us not just to this race, but to politics in general.

I have so many people to thank, starting with this lady here to my right, who I still believe…

(APPLAUSE)

And, by the way, I think it’s fitting that she got better applause than me, because she deserves it. She truly does.

(LAUGHTER)

She’s been through so much. She is a magnificent first lady of Arkansas for 10 1/2 years, and I always believed she would be a wonderful first lady for the United States, as well. And I’m grateful for her patience and perseverance through every step of this wonderful journey we’ve had.

I’m grateful for my family. Some of you may have heard me say this, and it’s true: My family didn’t have to be persuaded or begged to give their permission and blessing for me to get involved in this campaign. In fact, they were ready for me to do it before I was. Truth is, I was the holdout; they weren’t.

And what a wonderful, magnificent gift they’ve given me with their loyalty and their dedication, involving themselves with their sleeves rolled up every single day of this effort, giving 110 percent of themselves. And for that, I will always be grateful.

I also want to say I’ve had the best staff that anybody has ever had running for president. And, by the way, I’m pretty sure it’s probably the smallest staff that anybody’s ever had running for president.

Imagine trying to do this with about 30 people. I don’t think it’s ever been attempted. No one has ever gotten this far with such limited resources.

But the fact is what we’ve been able to do was to ask of every one of our staff that they work as if they were two or three people, and they worked as if they were four. And I want to say thanks to them, every last one of them.

(APPLAUSE)

I’m also mindful that the real story of this campaign is going to be in the faces of those of you who are here and the literally millions of faces across this country of people who never made the headlines, never led the 6 o’clock news, but who have been the backbone, the heart and the soul of our campaign.

The apostle Paul wrote that, “I fought the good fight; I’ve finished the race; and I’ve kept the faith.” And I believe tonight that one of the things that we will be able to say is not only that we fought the good fight and finished the race; we’d like to have finished it first, but we stayed in until the race was over.

But I think, more importantly, we’ve kept the faith. And that for me has been the most important goal of all. I’d rather lose an election than lose the principles that got me into politics in the first place.

(APPLAUSE)

We started this effort with very little recognition and virtually no resources. We ended with slightly more recognition and very few resources.

(LAUGHTER)

But what a journey. What a journey, a journey of a lifetime. It is not lost on me where I started. The prophet Isaiah said, and I’ve quoted it often, “Look to the rock from which you were hewn, the quarry from which you were dug.”

I know of the earth from which I have come, the humble circumstances of the son of a firefighter and who worked a second job, barely paying their rent on the rent house in Hope, Arkansas, where we lived, a mother who was oldest of seven kids and grew up in a house, dirt floor, outdoor toilets, no electricity when she was little, parents who, like so many across this country, wanted for their kids to have a better life.

I don’t think they could’ve ever imagined that that better life would have included running for president and getting this close to getting there.

(APPLAUSE)

Let me say, while many among the establishment never really believed I belonged, there were a lot of people in this country who did. And most importantly…

(APPLAUSE)

… these are the people across this nation who gave me a voice over these past 14 months. It was their sacrifices, the sacrifices of a truck driver in Michigan, of a housewife who sold her wedding ring on eBay and gave the contribution to the campaign, a janitor in Alabama who has a wife in a wheelchair who gave $20, not out of his abundance, but out of his poverty, so that our campaign could stay on the track.

Those are the folks who have given me a voice, and I only pray to God that I’ve been able to give them a voice, a voice for the unborn children of this country, a voice for life…

(APPLAUSE)

… a voice for the hard-working people who lift everything every day for the rest of us and who carry food to our tables, who pick up the bags, who make great sacrifices and often work two jobs, for every soldier and sailor and airman who puts on a uniform and keeps us free, for every small business owner who hopes that one day he’ll be able to succeed not having to overcome his toughest competition, his own government, and that maybe one day his government would facilitate his business, not complicate it.

For all of the conservatives of this country and party who want less government and who want what government they have to be a little more efficient, a little more effective, a little less filled with corruption, and a whole lot filled with the kind of competence that we pay for, I also believe that there are people out there for whom I hope I’ve given a voice, and that’s the people who believe that we need to really overhaul our tax system and implement the Fair Tax and get rid of the IRS.

(APPLAUSE)

And I believe that we’ve given voice to folks who are single moms and those guys who are out there working two shifts trying to make sure they can just keep the rent paid and put food on the table for their families.

All across this country, we’ve stood at rallies and I have looked into the faces of amazing people who love their country, who cherish their families, who work very hard at their jobs, who worship God, and who give very sacrificially to others, even when it would be very easy for them to keep their time and their money totally to themselves.

But they know that’s not what made America a great country. It’s giving that did.

Well, we’ll go home tonight and hopefully bring our team together for the transition. We’ll be working on doing everything we can to help Senator McCain and to help our party, to help those who run for the Senate and the Congress, because there are many battles this year that we need not just to fight; we need to win them, for our country’s sake and our future’s sake.

(APPLAUSE)

It’s time for us to hit the reset button. Sometimes when the computer stalls, that’s what you do: You hit the reset button.

But in doing so, we also recognize the extraordinary privilege that we’ve had and the amazing people who have been there for the journey.

We aren’t going away completely. We want to be a part of helping to keep the issues alive that have kept us in this race.

And, by the way, I know there were many who thought we wouldn’t make it to March ‘07, much less March ‘08. And we’ve done so because so many of you worked beyond your capacity and gave in ways I can’t even begin to imagine.

Neither Janet nor I have the words to say, “Thanks.” We can only thank you with hopefully our future actions, that we will work hard for our country, we will work hard for our party and the nominee, because we love this country and that’s why we got in.

And until our country is all that we hope and pray it to be, we won’t be able to walk away completely.

I’ve said many times here in Texas that I was inspired by the incredible story of that small group of less than 200 volunteers at the Alamo in San Antonio who took refuge in that church mission. And they saw the incredible armies of Santa Ana start massing against them.

On February the 23rd of 1836, 172 years ago this past week, those armies began a 24-hour onslaught and bombardment. On the 24th day of February, Colonel William Barret Travis wrote the letter from the Alamo that should reign and live in all of our hearts and memories, not just for Texas, but for all the world, all who love liberty.

As he said on the incredible occasion, he said, “The enemy has demanded a surrender at discretion. Otherwise the garrison are to be put to the sword if the fort is taken.” He said, “I’ve answered the demand with a cannon shot and our flag still waves proudly from the walls. I shall never surrender or retreat.”

“I call upon you in the name of liberty, of patriotism, and everything dear to the American character to come to our aid with all dispatch. The enemy is receiving enforcements daily and will no doubt increase to 3,000 or 4,000 in four or five days.”

“If this call is neglected, I am determined to sustain myself as long as possible and die like a soldier who never forgets what is due to his own honor and that of his country: victory or death.”

These were people who understood that their battle was not about them. It was about the principles of liberty that they deemed even more important than their own lives.

Tonight, I hope that our battle was never about us. It was about our country and its liberty. And now we join with Senator McCain and the rest in our party to continue that battle, to continue that fight, not for who gets elected, but for what we do in maintaining liberty and freedom when we get elected and when our country’s flag still waves proudly on the wall.

AUDIENCE MEMBER: You’re a great American, Mike.

HUCKABEE: And you’re a great American, as well.

Thank you, folks. God bless you. We love you. And thank you very, very much for going the journey with us. Thank you.

Huckabee website countdown under way
Will he announce website? Or a new career?

Former Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee has an announcement coming – very soon.

You can find out exactly when that announcement will be made by going to his new website – MikeHuckabee.com. And that's all you will find out.

Even those close to the former Arkansas governor swear they know nothing of the details.

Will it just be a website where Huckabee blogs?

Will it be a joke site?

Will he be announcing a new career as a talk-show host or pundit?

Or will be tell the world he is going to be John McCain's running mate?

Huckabee has kept a low profile since conceding defeat to Sen. McCain last month.

The countdown ends on April 15, the deadline to file U.S. income tax returns. Huckabee is known for his support of the FairTax, and has said he wants to do away with the income tax as well as the Internal Revenue Service.

I think he is going to announce that he has filed his taxes :)

But then you never know.  Maybe he could get Perot to back him :)

But then with all the people who are starting to get disgruntled with their current party selected candidates.....you just never know...I know I would put my vote down for him.

I agree with that.  It's a crying shame.  I say run without using a dime and THEN: Let the BEST man win!

Yeah is why I have always been for real campaign reform.  Once you reach a certain level you may participate equally with all the others.  All fund raising money goes into a pot and is divided amongst those that are in the competition.  They each get equal amounts of air time given to them.  They each can raise up to X amount in their own private campaign funds to purchase additional air time or anything like that.  But that amount would be limited to keep things fair.  I would push things back onto the people to get otu and vote....Don't just vote for the person you see more often than the others....but get down and choose one that works best for you.  :)

So is anyone waiting to see what the news is :) ?

1 Minute

It is good to be able to get back to work again. I have been eagerly awaiting the launch of Huck PAC if only to end the media speculation about the “Doomsday clock” that has been running on MikeHuckabee.com for the last week.

Seriously though, Huck PAC is something I am very excited about. As I campaigned across this country over the last fourteen months I met families and individuals eager for change in Washington and the Republican Party.

Many felt that their Party needed to get back to its core principles: less government, a strong national defense and unwavering support for the family and the sanctity of life.

I campaigned to be the agent of that change and while we may have come up short, I remain and I hope you do as well, undeterred, because the campaign was never about me.

If it had been, I can assure you I would have gotten out of the race long before the Ames Straw Poll when generous pollsters had us trolling at 2-3% in national polls. I stayed in the race then because my campaign was always about the issues and the voters. The folks that felt invisible and overlooked and who believed that Washington wasn’t fighting for the same principles they believed in.

Enter Huck PAC.

Huck PAC is founded on the principles that make America great: Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness. And because we believe our Republican Party embodies these ideas and is best suited to lead America forward, we are committed to supporting Republican candidates who are passionate advocates for tax reform, a strong national defense, real border security, life, the family, less government and individual liberty.

We will identify candidates who hold firm to these principles, promote their campaigns and financially support their efforts.

Today I am blogging to welcome you to our website and to ask for your support. If you are eager to help, here are five ways to get involved:

1) Sign up for our email updates.
2) Make a contribution of $25 or more in support of Huck PAC. Identify and encourage 2-3 people to match your contribution.
3) Join the discussion on our campaign blog.
4) Join our Facebook and MySpace team.
5) Add your blog to our blogroll.

Thank you again for your interest. I encourage you to leave a comment and stay involved.

Huckabee set to raise money for other candidates

Mike Huckabee on Tuesday announced he is establishing a political action committee to back Republicans who share his ideology.

The former GOP presidential candidate launched a fundraising organization called "Huck PAC."

The first beneficiaries will be three key supporters of Huckabee's White House bid. Presumptive GOP presidential nominee John McCain will also benefit from Huck PAC, the former Arkansas governor said.

The biggest beneficiary of Huck PAC may be Huckabee himself. Analysts compared his start-up to a PAC that Ronald Reagan launched following his failed 1976 presidential campaign.

Craig Shirley, a GOP strategist who has written about the former president, said Reagan's PAC was adept at supporting conservative candidates while at the same time defining the future president's credentials ahead of his 1980 run.

"That's the best model, and I think if he was wise, he would use it," Shirley said of Huckabee.

Huckabee launched the PAC on Tuesday, following a week-long "countdown" that displayed only a clock on his Web site. Shortly after the clock reached zero, visitors to www.mikehuckabee.com were automatically redirected to www.huckpac.com.

In a post there, Huckabee said he would support congressional campaigns of Rep. John Linder, R-Ga., state Sen. Robert Clegg of New Hampshire and the re-election bid of state Sen. Gilbert Baker, R-Conway.

All three were vocal Huckabee supporters this year.

"They did a lot for my dad's campaign when he was running and he wants to try and help them as best he can in return," said Sarah Huckabee, an advisor to her father.

"They are all three strong Republican candidates that have the same principles and values as my dad and it's important for him to see people like this in office," she said.

Some Republicans were skeptical about whether Huckabee could sustain a PAC, given the fundraising struggles of his presidential campaign.

His $15.9 million at the end of February ranked 11th among the slew of presidential candidates. The top money-raiser, Democrat Barack Obama, was approaching $200 million.

Higher contribution limits may help Huckabee's organization. Individual limits for federal PACs are $5,000 annually, compared to $2,300 per election for donors to individual campaigns.

And Huckabee may be better off raising dollars for a cause than for himself, said Ted Welch, a powerful Republican fundraiser from Nashville.

"It depends on, to some measure if I were the contributor, I would want to know what percentage of that money is going to support candidates rather than to cover overhead for Huckabee," Welch said.

Huckabee can pay himself a salary and can take money for operational expenses from the PAC.

He would do better to streamline his financial operation as well, said Welch, who said Huckabee's presidential campaign "didn't have anybody that knew what they were doing about raising money that I know of."

A GOP strategist from Arkansas said Huckabee may be better at building a movement than he is building up himself.

"In essence, you're fronting a cause," said Bill Vickery, of Little Rock. "I would think that we have seen the beginning of Mike Huckabee's national political career and this is just another step in that beginning."

Huckabee hasn't denied he has future political aspirations.

Shirley said the decision to name the PAC after himself may signal a Huckabee-centered focus that could turn off conservative givers. Reagan's PAC was named Citizens for the Republic.

"Even Reagan said it was always about his ideas, not himself," Shirley said. "Without his ideas, he would have been another out-of-work, aging actor."

A key supporter disagrees that Huckabee's name is a negative.

Just this week, at least 3 million people opened a e-mail sent by Huckabee endorsing the upcoming movie called "Expelled," said Dr. Randy Brinson of Montgomery, Ala.,

The movie is a documentary about academics who have been forced out of jobs after proposing to teach "intelligent design" in schools.

Brinson maintains a list of e-mail addresses of tens of millions of Christian conservatives.

"Just on him being the sender, we were shocked that 3 million people would open the e-mail, basically with a message from him," Brinson said.

Huckabee tapped into Brinson's massive e-mail list during his campaign and the PAC will also have access to it, Brinson said Tuesday.

Brinson is chairman of Redeem the Vote, a nonprofit get-out-the-vote organization that targets young Christians.

Huckabee connects with middle-class values voters who are disenfranchised with the state of the economy and the shape of the GOP currently, Brinson said.

In his campaign, Huckabee broke away from his Republican counterparts on economic issues with advocacy of a national sales tax and elimination of the Internal Revenue Service.

The former Arkansas governor said he would support candidates who mirror his economic message as well as his anti-abortion, anti-gay marriage platform.

"I think Gov. Huckabee is going to be the face to really articulate this message and be the spokesperson for this issue," Brinson said. "He's going to be the lead horse, obviously."

Huckabee Tops McCain's Veep List


Mike Huckabee, the former governor of Arkansas and defeated contender for the GOP presidential nomination, is currently at the top of John McCain's short list for a running mate. At least that's the word from a top McCain fundraiser and longtime Republican moneyman who has spoken to McCain's inner circle. The fundraiser is less than thrilled with the idea of Huckabee as the vice presidential nominee, and many economic conservatives—turned off by the populist tone of Huckabee's campaign and his tax record as governor—are likely to share that marked lack of enthusiasm. But here is the logic of picking Huckabee:

1) He is a great campaigner and communicator who could both shore up support in the South among social conservatives (Huckabee is a former Baptist minister) and appeal to working-class voters in the critical "Big 10" states of Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Ohio.

2) As any pollster knows, voters search for candidates who "care about people like me," and Huckabee would probably score a lot higher on that quality than millionaire investor Mitt Romney. Plus, given all the turmoil on Wall Street, 2008 would seem to be a bad year to pick a former investment banker for veep.

3) Economic conservatives and supply-siders may balk, but the threat of four years of Obamanomics and higher investment, income, and corporate taxes might be enough to keep them on board.

Let me add that a top Republican political strategist told me about a month ago that he also believed Huckabee to be the leading veep contender.

IOWA GOP WANTS HUCKABEE VP -- In an informal poll, attendees at the Iowa Republican Party's state convention July 12 picked Mike Huckabee as their favorite to be McCain's vice presidential candidate, IowaPolitics.com reported. Several dozen attendees were polled. Mitt Romney came in "a distant second," the website said.

"He really is a captivating speaker. You listen to him and know he means what he is saying and is passionate in his conviction," attendee Sheila Bright was quoted as saying. "Plus, you look at how he energizes these young people and can't help but be sure that he would be an asset to McCain in getting the youth vote in November."

Dobson says he ‘might’ endorse McCain

COLORADO SPRINGS — James Dobson, founder and chairman of Focus on the Family, said he is rethinking his previous views on the presidential election and that he "might" endorse Republican John McCain, who the pro-family leader has criticized in the past.

“I have considered the fact that elections always involve imperfect candidates ... you always have to choose between two flawed individuals,” Dobson said on his national radio broadcast July 21. But Dobson also said there are several significant issues where he and McCain agree.

"As of this moment, I have to take into account that Sen. John McCain has voted pro-life consistently," Dobson said. "... He says he favors marriage between a man and a woman. He opposes homosexual adoption. He favors smaller government and lower taxes and he seems to understand the Muslim threat, which matters a lot to me. Therefore, I have considered the fact that elections always involve imperfect candidates — there are no perfect human beings — and you always have to choose between two flawed individuals.... I never thought I would hear myself saying this, but it's where I am: While I am not endorsing Sen. John McCain, the possibility is there that I might."

McCain supports embryonic stem cell research and has opposed a federal marriage amendment, although he has have left wiggle room on both issues and implied or said he could change. But he has sought to reach out to pro-lifers during campaign speeches; during one recent stop in Missouri he told the crowd that they could count on his "active advocacy for the rights of the unborn." He also has stated his support for a proposed California marriage amendment, which Obama opposes.

In February, Dobson said he was opposed to Republicans voting to make McCain their presidential nominee and said with McCain and Obama or Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) as the nominees, he would not cast a ballot in November.

"There's no doubt — at least no doubt in my mind — about whose policies will result in more babies being killed or will do the greatest damage to the institution of marriage and the family," Dobson said. "I am convinced that Sen. McCain comes closer to what I believe."

Dobson said that Obama is an intelligent and charismatic candidate who, on the surface, is an attractive candidate. But Obama's beliefs on key issues, the two men said, should alarm conservative Christians.

Dobson said he thinks Obama is "more liberal and more extreme than most Democrats in the Senate." The "best example" of that, Dobson said, is the Born Alive Infants Protection Act, which passed the Senate 98-0. Obama, then an Illinois state legislator, opposed a version of it on the state level. The bill would have given legal rights to babies who survive abortions.

Obama "was chairman of the committee who dealt with" the bill and "spoke against the bill, arguing for the right to kill those babies," Dobson said. Obama has a position that "even his liberal colleagues don't represent. This man is really far, far left."

Dobson said the point of the program was "not to tell people how to vote" but instead "to ask people to think about the issues."