Huckabee Speech to CPAC

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My 5 Smooth Stones – Mike Huckabee

We are in this race to win despite the desperate efforts by the Romney campaign to try and say that “a vote for me is a vote for McCain”.  Actually, a vote for me is a vote for me!

We have outlasted Rudy, Fred, and others who were supposed to be the winners.  Only 8% of the Republican delegates have been selected, and we have about the same number of delegates as McCain or Romney.  We are in it to win. 

The Romney campaign knows this and they are running scared.

So far the media has with a few exceptions, been content to sell this sham of a story to their viewers and listeners.  You would think that under this coordinated assault, we would be sinking in the polls nationally.

Not so.  FOX News has us tied with Gov. Romney in 2nd place nationally in a new poll of registered voters.

What’s more, in Tennessee, Georgia, Missouri, Alabama, Arkansas and Oklahoma, recent polls have us in first or tied for first.

We can win.  We will win.

To close this gap from 2nd to 1st and shock the pundits and more importantly our rivals I need your immediate financial support.  I am counting on you as I always have, because you are the five smooth stones in my pocket.

Make an immediate contribution of $25 or more today and watch us soar.

I am counting on you for victory.

With deepest gratitude.

Mike

The Only “Catholic” On the Ballot: Mike Huckabee?

From http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=26620&page=1

Guest Commentary:The Only ‘Catholic’ On the Ballot: Mike Huckabee?

Faced with a more colourful line-up of candidates touting a wider array of viewpoints than ever before, an unprecedented number of voters remain undecided.

On the Democratic side, the race for the White House pits the first viable African-American candidate against the first viable female candidate, while the Republican field includes a bona-fide war hero running against a former Baptist preacher, a multi-millionaire business executive, a prime-time TV actor, and a guy who likes to be called “America’s Mayor.”

This time around, however, Catholics have been given extra-help in making wise choices at the ballot box. In a recent document entitled “Forming Consciences for Faithful citizenship” (2007), the US Conference of Catholic Bishops provided the faithful with a voter’s guide that can help them exercise their democratic responsibilities in accordance with the Church’s social teachings.

Of course, the Bishops of the Church offer no detailed social program; they claim no expertise in the finer points of economics or foreign policy. What they do provide, however, is an outline of general moral and social principles, clearly laid out and prioritized in a way that can enable Catholics — and, indeed, all people of good will—to apply those principles to the great issues of the day.

Here is a salutary exercise for every Catholic who wants to cast a well-informed vote this year: go to each candidate’s website, and read over their public statements of where they stand on the issues. Then, immediately after that, read the Bishops’ statement on “Faithful Citizenship.” Compare and contrast what you find.

When this exercise is done fairly and without prejudice, many Catholics will be surprised to discover that the presidential candidate whose viewpoints seem most “in sync” with the Church’s guidance is none other than the most devout Evangelical in the race: Mike Huckabee.

Read the rest: http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=26620&page=1

Huckabee shines in CA debate

January 30, 2008

Schneider: The night’s big winner: Huckabee

Posted: 09:49 PM ET

Huckabee, I think, stood out in this debate as the one who made sense, talked as ordinary people do, and rose above politics. They may have scored. He connected. And that’s a problem for Romney, who would like to become the alternative to John McCain among conservatives who oppose the Arizona senator. But he has very tough competition from Huckabee, who’s forcing people to re-think his run at a time when he was supposed to be out of the game.

But this has always been the way he’s worked: Romney uses money to stay competitive. Huckabee has debates.

I don’t think McCain made many gains – and I think he may have caused people to re-think the race. I don’t think this was his strongest night, not because he was under attack. But because he wasn’t a straight talker. He talked very much like a politician. He was making a lot of charges at Romney – some of which, like the timetable charge, seemed very questionable.

A couple of Romney’s answers were quite good, particularly on the Iraq timetables issue. I don’t think he did himself any harm. But I think the one who really helped himself was Huckabee.

All in all: Huckabee gained ground, McCain probably lost ground, and Romney didn’t help or hurt himself – although he did effectively defend himself. McCain sounded petty – and that’s not the McCain voters know and like.

But to the extent that Huckabee may have made any gains from his performance, Romney’s got bigger worries out of tonight than the Arizona senator.

– CNN Senior Political Analyst Bill Schneider

Several candidates dropping out

The race is just about down to two Democrats and three Republicans.  Obama and Clinton are left in the Democrat race, and McCain, Romney and Huckabee are still in through Super Tuesday on the Republican side. 

On the Democrat side:

AP reports John Edwards will drop out today

Former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards, the 2004 Democratic vice-presidential nominee, is dropping out of the presidential race, the Associated Press has just reported. According to the AP, Edwards has told advisors that he’ll make the announcement at 1 p.m. EST today, at a speech in New Orleans that was originally supposed to be about poverty. He has no immediate plans to endorse any candidate, the AP says.

― Alex Koppelman

And on the Republican side:

  

In speech, Giuliani sounds ready to drop out

He hasn’t made it officially official yet, but the speech Rudy Giuliani gave after his drubbing in Florida’s primary was official Tuesday night sounded very much like an exit speech. Early reports suggest that Giuliani will be dropping out as early as Wednesday and endorsing rival John McCain, who won the evening.Fittingly for him, Giuliani began his speech with a reference to his beloved New York Yankees. “I think that comes from the great American philosopher Yogi Berra: ‘It’s not over until it’s over,'” Giuliani said. But from there, he went into the parts of the speech indicating that, for him at least, this race is over.

“I don’t back down from a principled fight, but there must always be a larger purpose: Justice for an individual, hope for a city, a better future for our country,” Giuliani said. “Elections are about a lot more than just candidates. Elections are about fighting for a cause larger than ourselves. They’re about identifying the great challenges of our time and proposing new solutions.”

Then Giuliani gave the real signs, congratulating himself and his supporters on having run — past tense — a clean campaign. “The responsibility of leadership doesn’t end with a single campaign. If you believe in a cause, it goes on, and you continue to fight for it, and we will. I’m proud that we chose to stay positive, and to run a campaign of ideas. In an era of personal attacks, negative ads and cynical spin, we ran a campaign that was uplifting. You don’t always win, but you can always try to do it right, and you did.”

Two things seem key there: First, the “we,” shifting to the campaign, rather than himself, and second, the “ran,” as in “we ran.” As in, of course, “we are no longer running.”

― Alex Koppelman

Thirty Pieces of Silver

If you have listened to talk radio or perused a conservative column in the last 60 days, you know two things. Mitt Romney is a true conservative and the next best thing to Ronald Wilson Reagan and Mike Huckabee is either a dangerous liberal that would tear the GOP apart or, he’s a one-trick pony that appeals to right-wing religious weirdoes only. More on the contradictory descriptions of Huckabee later, first let’s examine the Republican media establishment’s exuberant adoration of the man they call Mitt.
Originally, there were to be three acceptable choices the right-wing media elites would champion. All three had large corporate backing and each had their group of insiders on K street. Unfortunately, once the posturing was over and the voting began, the Republican primary attendees had the unmitigated gall to vote for someone who wasn’t one of “The Chosen.” Things were further complicated when one of the triumvirate decided he would rather play the part of a District Attorney on TV then a presidential candidate in real life. Another acceptable candidate took a cue from his fellow New Yorkers and retired to South Florida rather than run a national campaign. This left Mitt Romney, the one-term governor from Massachusetts as the only viable candidate in the eyes of the chattering class. One problem. The former governor was a brie cheese and wine-class, socially liberal, flip-flopping politician from the most far-left state in the union. These folks had spent all of 2004 convincing people that John Kerry (who fit that exact description himself) would be a disaster for the country. What is a principled political wag to do?

Read the rest HERE

Huckabee: The New Face of Conservatism? – Nathan Tabar

After the South Carolina primary and the subsequent withdrawal of Fred Thompson and Duncan Hunter’s presidential bids, the Republican field has narrowed considerably. Barring a Giuliani victory in Florida, the nominee will almost certainly be Romney, McCain, or Huckabee. As none of the remaining candidates can lay full claim to the conservative mantle, how do conservative voters select from among these three without splitting the party and dividing the base?
In the past, the various factions that compose the GOP made common cause based on a set of principles; a muscular foreign policy, free market economics, and promoting a culture that values life.

After spending decades in the political wilderness, Republicans chose Ronald Reagan to turn these principles into policy. The order of events was no accident; the man (Reagan) met the moment (the Cold War and the supply-side boom) once Republicans were united in purpose.

In 2008, party unification (and subsequently, electoral victory) hinges on one thing: internalizing the lessons of the past. It is for that reason that conservatives and Republicans must approach the primaries from a different angle. Rather than viewing a choice between the current candidates as a series of trade-offs (Huckabee the social conservative vs. Romney the economic conservative), we should look at the principles beneath the positions. In that light, the current choice is between two conservatives (Romney and Huckabee) and a moderate who leans right on foreign policy (McCain).

In order for the GOP to usher in four new years of conservative governance, its voters must have one priority: to pick the candidate who 1) best embodies conservative principles and 2) is able to put those principles into practice so that they fully address the needs of the nation and its citizens.
Read the rest at http://www.theconservativevoice.com/article/30434.html

Here’s a great article from WND

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Hillary vs. Huckabee

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Posted: January 20, 2008
8:45 p.m. Eastern

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Sitting at another full-throttle World Combat League event in San Antonio, Texas, on Friday night, I caught myself momentarily reflecting back upon the previous two days of campaigning with GOP frontrunner Mike Huckabee. As the contestants combated in the WCL ring, I thought to myself, “The fight of the century would be Hillary vs. Huckabee in the presidential ring.”Unless Barack Obama’s surge shatters everyone’s expectations, or he manages some strategic alignment with John Edwards as a dynamic duo, it seems Hillary will win the nomination. And the question that continues to loom on everyone’s mind will remain: Who can beat Hillary? Which GOP candidate has the background, experience and savvy to wage war against the Clinton machine?

I know unequivocally who that man is. It is Mike Huckabee. I’ll tell you why.

The problems with other GOP punches

I’ve trained fighters for nearly four decades now. I was a six-time world champion. I pretty much know what it takes to create a winner. And I believe there are similarities between making winners in the fighting ring and the presidential one – only the strong survive.

Right now the Clinton machine (which Huckabee calls “the sausage grinder”) is planning how to slice and dice each of the GOP candidates if they make the nomination.

Ron Paul would battle Hillary with substance, but I believe he would ultimately bow to her shrewdness. Her prowess would prey upon his constitutional cries. He simply lacks the finesse to handle her fortitude.

Fred Thompson is a good man with a fairly conservative record. However, I believe the Clinton-malevolent marketers would aim at his lack of personality or passion and score a direct hit with the public.

John McCain would put on a strong battle against Hillary, though I fear he would be crippled simply on account of the age factor (72 in August). If the presidency ages one at 3-1 year rate, one term could advance McCain into his 80s.

Rudy Giuliani, if he survives this strategy to jump start his campaign in Florida, would be sized up and found wanting as the “New York senator vs. the New York mayor” battle began. Trumping his 9/11 apprentice through trite compliments, Hillary will accuse him of being more Democrat than he is Republican and undervaluing middle America by ignoring the initial primary states.

Mitt Romney might be able to match Hillary’s advertisement monies, but the Clinton character assassins will shoot at the series of flip-flops in his platform. And who better to understand how to attack a waffler than one married to Bill Clinton!

Mano a mano from Hope

The person the Clinton sausage grinder fears most is Mike Huckabee. Why? Because …

1) He has the longest and largest executive experience running government among GOP candidates – three years a lieutenant governor and 11 years as governor of the State of Arkansas – more experience than even Bill took into office.

2) Hillary can’t belittle Huck’s origins because they are theirs too – Bill and Mike were both governors, both from Hope, Ark.

3) Mike has far more passion and personality than Hillary, and he is the only one who can persuasively outlast, outplay and outwit her in any debating ring or campaign arena.

4) Mike has a record she can’t punch. She can’t even swing at the false allegations against Mike on immigration, taxes or pardons, primarily because the Clinton legacy has a record of condoning illegals, raising taxes and releasing criminals!

Though I’m sure Bill is now regretting the compliment he offered Huckabee when Mike was nowhere near the top tier of candidates, let me remind the world. Bill said Mike was the “only dark horse that’s got any kind of chance … He’s the best speaker they’ve got.”

The fact is Mike is the best opponent to fight Hillary, because, most of all, as he has reminded us in many occasions, “I’ve already taken on the Clinton machine and beat it twice.”

The only resource Clinton has that could combat Mike is more money – and in this ring we all know the muscle in that fist. But we can prevent that, and must by financially joining Mike’s army before it’s too late.

So can a man who was raised in a poor background from Hope, Ark., become governor then president? As Mike says, “Our country has already proven that!” What I would say is: Give Hope another chance! This time they want to send in the real cavalry.

Keep Hope alive! Join my wife Gena and me in electing Mike Huckabee!

Link: http://worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=59782

Huckabee Back on Top

Huckabee is back in front in the Nation.

Huckabee 23%

McCain 20%

Romney 18%

Thompson 12%

Giuliani 11%

To see the complete Rasmussen Reports daily tracking poll click here.

BREAKING POLL – South Carolina: Huckabee 24% McCain 24%

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In speeches following Tuesday’s Michigan primary, GOP candidates John McCain and Mike Huckabee both predicted victory in Saturday’s South Carolina contest.  At the time, McCain was leading in the polls there by a 9% margin; but as of today, Rasmussen Reports announced that McCain’s lead has melted and the two frontrunners are tied with 24% support apiece. 

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Read report:   http://rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/election_20082/2008_presidential_election/south_carolina/election_2008_south_carolina_republican_primary