Category: Mike Huckabee

Hillary Supporters, John McCain and Sarah Palin

~ fundyreformed ~ 2 Comments

I’m no great political mind, but I wanted to share a few thoughts, or rather observations.

Like most, it seems a little hard to believe that Hillary supporters are supporting John McCain in large numbers. Both Clinton and McCain do have quite a bit more experience than Obama, and they are much more widely known. Still it seems like the media have created this story out of thin air.

Or have they? In my own neighborhood in St. Paul, Minnesota (known for being quite independent minded), I have driven past a car  which proudly displays Hillary and McCain bumper stickers side by side. I’d put up a picture, but then people could suspect I staged it (and I don’t feel energized enough to go hunt down that car again, with camera in hand). Perhaps it is a married couple dividing up their political support, but I doubt it. It may be evidence of the existence of at least one Hillary supporting McCain backer.

On another topic, somewhat related, I have to laud John McCain for the political move of the year in picking Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska to be his running mate. No other pick could have so thoroughly stolen the limelight from Obama as did this one. Then again, it wasn’t an 11th hour, last minute choice, either. She survived a long vetting process and was one of McCain’s top picks all along.

I don’t know whether she will be enough to keep some Hillary supporters interested enough in McCain’s campaign to overlook many of the issues where he is radically opposed to Hillary’s stance. But I know firsthand that her selection has energized some of the more conservative among the McCain’s party. I spoke with someone at my church yesterday who claimed he was 95% sure he was not going to vote for McCain until the Palin pick. Now he’s pretty sure he will. A close family member (a conservative female), who is not a political nut or anything, called my wife with all kinds of excitement over Sarah Palin.  

Conservatives love that she is a thorough going social conservative. She hunts, opposes abortion — proven clearly by her choice to raise a Down Syndrome baby — and is economically sound. But why I am most happy with her, is that she is not afraid to do what’s right when needed. She has taken on the Republican establishment in Alaska. She has a reformer’s spirit, and is not afraid to make her own choices. That is what endeared me to Mike Huckabee all along, and its why I’m not overly skeptical of McCain. I disagree with how some of his legislation panned out (the campaing finance reform bill which silences grassroots groups like the NRA but has loopholes for wealthy donors and other organizations, for instance), but I agree with the main motivation behind it. I think we need a proven leader who thinks for himself yet listens to others. One who is willing to work in a bipartisan way to serve America first. McCain has proven himself to be that kind of leader. Obama’s voting record and political stances betray the fact that he is not.

Huckabee's Chances and the Party's

~ fundyreformed ~ 12 Comments

I was stunned by Romney’s withdrawal from the race. Pleasantly surprised but stunned nonetheless.

But rather than Huckabee’s chances improving, it seems that the pundits and media are ready to declare McCain the winner. Romney didn’t want to prolong the primary stage of the campaign, and it is feared that Huckabee would just be slowing things down, too.

But did anyone else notice that the Dems are still in a 2-manperson race? And it doesn’t look like either of them are backing off soon.

With Romney in the race, I admit the rhetoric seemed quite high. And the conservative purists or the metropolitan conservatives, or whatever else you want to call the conservative talk show and pundit entrenchment, were all about preserving their last truly conservative guy. But now with Romney gone, Huckabee and McCain can legitimately fight to win the race. And it doesn’t have to be a messy spectacle. Rush Limbaugh has bemoaned both candidates so having them both in the race doesn’t really change much.

Maybe people just want this over. But think about it, if by early March, Huckabee is on an incredible Huckasurge, and the conservatives are beginning to realize he is capable of winning the nomination from McCain, then you’d think another month would seal the deal. Likely the Dems wouldn’t have sealed it on their side any sooner. And more realistically, come March, Huckabee will bow out against impossible odds. Lets give Huck a chance and not call the race too early, now.

As for his chances, Wickle gives an educated guess. It’s a long shot, but it’s still possible. Especially if voter-based realities start to break more toward Huckabee, now that the choices are fewer. Plus, evangelicals now have James Dobson’s endorsement of Huckabee to consider, as well as other reasons for backing Huckabee. It’s a good bet that should they throw their united support behind him, Huckabee would emerge as a very strong alternative to McCain yet!

As for the party, Joe Carter gives some helpful thoughts on how to “save” conservatism. And to him, as with me, the Party doesn’t come first, conservatism does. I’d go one step further and say my commitment to Christ trumps conservatism. Still, I hope Joe’s wrong about McCain’s inevitability.

Anyway, this political cycle has been fun and interesting. And who knows, maybe Huckabee will prove to have some more magic up his sleeves!

Why Evangelicals Support Huckabee over Romney

~ fundyreformed ~ 23 Comments

No. It’s not because Romney’s Mormon and Huckabee’s Baptist. I contend Huckabee’s evangelical support goes deeper than that. The roots of his support are grounded in concepts the political punditry and main-stream media can’t seem to comprehend.

Evangelicals are a multi-faceted bunch. We are controlled by a Scriptural, and highly moral ethic. And politics is just a side-focus to us. We’re mainly about the Gospel and Jesus, and so political ties are held somewhat tenuously. It’s not enough to just slap “pro-life” on your chest, evangelicals do care about the whole package that comes with that.

I recently stumbled across a post by Josh Reighley which sums up this point very well:

Huckabee’s primary support has come from Evangelical Christians. In the past, we have voted for candidates based on one or two issues. Knowing this, the Republican party has outright pandered to us on these two issues, and earned a lot of support. We care about a lot more issues, and the Republican party largely ignores them.

There is a biblical mandate to protect life. The GOP attempts to do this, but they tend to do it in a cold and heartless way, causing the country to look at the proponents of life as theocratic tyrants.

There is also a biblical mandate to protect the poor. There is a biblical mandate to be good stewards of the environment. There is a biblical mandate to fight greed and corruption. These are part of the true evangelical heart.

He goes on to claim that Romney is a “plastic candidate” blatantly pandering to Evangelicals based on his pro-life and pro-family stance. I totally agree. Josh goes on to explain just why Huckabee appeals so much to us Evangelicals.

We don’t have to choose from the lesser of two evils. We have a very articulate, warm hearted evangelical who cares about the same things that we care about and doesn’t have to pander to anybody. He cares about the environment. He cares about the poor. He is not beholden to corporate interests or to political interests. He knows the struggles of the everyday American family, and he wants to make their life better.

This is why I and others I know support Huckabee. And this train of thought is why several prominent Christian bloggers do as well: Justin Taylor, Matthew Anderson, Joe Carter — (see joint endorsement here) and Randy Alcorn.

Alcorn in particular illustrates the Biblical mindset that favors a candidate like Huckabee:

Today, I am less enthusiastic about political parties than I’ve ever been. I’m a Republican largely because I adamantly oppose abortion. But my concern for the poor, racial justice and the environment””all of which have a strong biblical basis””make me sometimes identify more with the concerns of Democrats (though I don’t always agree on their proposed solutions). But I could never be a Democrat as long as that party remains hostile toward the rights of unborn children. Yes, there are prolife Democrats, but they are a small minority. And by the way, if I had a choice between voting for a prolife Democrat and a prochoice Republican, I’d vote for the Democrat in a heartbeat….

In my opinion, Huckabee doesn’t just know the words; he knows the music. You can see the authenticity in him. I heard him say, “I do not spell G-O-D G.O.P.” That means he’s a follower of Christ before he’s a follower of the Republican party. He’s not overbearing in his spiritual beliefs, but he never apologizes for them. He’s humble and self-effacing. He’s not in your face, yet he’s firm in conviction. I actually think this guy says what he believes and believes what he says. And I have to say, I don’t think that about most politicians. He says some things that are unpopular and will lose him votes and he says them anyway””I love the courage that reflects….

And evangelicals shouldn’t be afraid to support Huckabee. The political pundits are wrong: Huckabee is McCain’s toughest competition–and Romney is just siphoning votes away from him. (You’ve got to read Joe Carter’s excellent post on pundit-based reality vs. voter-based reality.)

Personally, I’d much rather cast a vote for McCain than for Romney– because McCain at least has integrity and is honorable. So chalk me up for one who wouldn’t mind a McCain-Huckabee ticket. I just wish Huckabee was on the top of that ticket!

Bonus: for an explanation of why I think Romney is untrustworthy, check this older post, or Joe Carter’s recent one here.

Huckabee's Great Night, and Mine

~ fundyreformed ~ 4 Comments

Huckabee’s Night

Mike Huckabee surprised a lot of people, including me. The polls showed him declining in the south, with either McCain or Romney taking those states from him. Instead he won Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama, Arkansas, and also West Virginia (full results here). He came within a few thousand votes of taking Missouri, and was a close second in Oklahoma.

Sadly, McCain won almost all the delegates in California, took all of Missouri’s winner-take-all count, and added other populous states to his delegate totals. Mathematically, it’s almost impossible for either Huckabee or Romney to win now [HT: Racefor2008]. Huckabee’s best chance is for the party to rally around him instead of Romney as the conservative alternative to McCain. And in truth, Huckabee is more viable than Romney at this point, with Romney’s failure to win in the south and Romney’s failure to win primaries.

I’m suspecting a McCain-Huckabee ticket will eventually emerge. That might be enough to rally all wings of the party around the nominatee. Regardless, Huckabee’s message is getting out and that’s a good thing. Servant leadership, the FAIR tax, standing up against corporate greed — these and other planks of his message are very important for the Republican establishment to hear. I hope the Republican party changes for the better as a result of this election cycle.

My Night

Now Huckabee had a great night, and I had an interesting one. I went to my first caucus and discovered firsthand how important one voice can be.

First of all, I saw firsthand how incredible the voter turnout was. At my caucusing center, we had 3 times the number they expected, and probably more. Still, my precinct and ward (St Paul, Precinct 3, ward 6) only had 5 people attending. I live in St. Paul, in a largely democratic area. At the caucusing center, though, there was at least 100-150 people.

A local Christian high school was volunteering, and had their students read off letters from the candidates. But when it came time for Huckabee’s letter, there wasn’t one. Apparently the other candidates had just emailed letters in, and Huckabee’s campaign didn’t. But because I was there, with the letter in my hand, I was able to read it in front of everyone in my half of the center (we had to split into 2 rooms).

It was rewarding to be able to ensure Huckabee’s message was heard, and I was excited to hear Huckabee do quite well in our room. There was no clear leader, but it seemed McCain and Huckabee did best, followed by Romney and Paul.

I am now one of the delegates going to our house district convention (HD66A), and I and my fellow delegate from my particular precinct/ward will both be casting votes for Huckabee.

I thought the caucus system was great, and it gives people an opportunity to be involved. I am now the chair for our small little precinct, and was able to get a resolution passed for our state party platform to consider needed judicial reform.

I had a fun night, even though it was my daughter’s 2nd birthday, and I rushed home after the caucus to finish the celebration with birthday cake. I encourage everyone to keep supporting Huckabee, and in the process to learn more about how to be involved in local politics. We have a right and responsibility to be involved. And one person can make a difference.

Don't Waver on Your Vote for Huckabee

~ fundyreformed ~ 6 Comments

Huckabee won the first state of this Super Tuesday. West Virginia gave its 18 delegates to him.**

He upset heavily favored Romney to do so, and that may be a harbinger of things to come later tonight.

Romney, and his supporters have everywhere trumpeted the notion that a vote for Huckabee is a vote for McCain. Someone recently claimed this on one of my old posts. But that is not the truth.

Huckabee is not splitting the conservative vote between himself and Romney. The facts, from polling data, are that a majority of Huckabee supporters would actually go with McCain over Romney. I’d probably find myself in that category, even though I have serious reservations with McCain.

Plus Huckabee is only getting 24% of the Republicans who attend church regularly — only 1 point better than Romney. And both of them are getting a smaller support than McCain. [For proof see this post citing recent USA/Gallop polling numbers.]

So a vote for Huckabee is really a vote for Huckabee. It actually helps prevent a landslide McCain victory. That may not be preventable after today, we shall see. But today, you’ve got to get out and vote for Huckabee!

**Note while McCain’s supporters helped in Huckabee’s WV win, the rules of WV’s convention required a majority support for 1 candidate. It’s just simple politics, that’s all. No backhanded deal between Huckabee and McCain, like Romney’s insinuating.