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(CNN) – Former Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee said Friday the John McCain made a "huge mistake" by even floating the possibility he would not appear at the first presidential debate as planned. “You can’t just say, ‘World stop for a moment. I’m going to cancel everything,” Huckabee told the Associated Press Thursday. Huckabee, who vied with McCain for the GOP presidential nomination long after it appeared McCain was the party's presumptive nominee, has been an on-and-off critic of the Arizona senator. Earlier this summer he took part in a Washington, DC rally calling on McCain and Obama to highlight...

The Huckster just now on Hannity and Colmes. Colmes: I thought McCain said he was going to take the high road? Huckabee: It's not just John McCain. Frankly I believe they should both stop it and get back to the issues. Thanks a lot Huckster!!! Ugh!

For the second consecutive day, Mike Huckabee made public statements suggesting John McCain ought not pick Mitt Romney as his running mate. “I think there are better choices for Sen. McCain that have the approval of value voters,� Huckabee said today on Fox News. Yesterday, he told CBS that many Republicans are "not necessarily comfortable" with Romney because of his changed positions. At the same time, Huckabee's Michigan supporters met with McCain social conservative liaison Marlys Popma last night in Saginaw. Though ostensibly held to discuss how Huckabee's loyalists can help McCain, supporters of the former Arkansas governor also used...

TOKYO (AFP) - Former US presidential contender Mike Huckabee urged his fellow Republicans on Wednesday not to denigrate Democrat Barack Obama, saying they should celebrate the historic moment of a black candidate. "Republicans will make a fundamental if not fatal mistake if they seek to win the election by demonising Barack Obama," Huckabee told a news conference on a visit to Tokyo. The former Arkansas governor said that, having grown up in the segregated South, he never thought he would see an African-American win the nomination of a major party for the US presidency. "I do not want to have...

Our 2008 Vp Stakes has ended. After four rounds of voting that narrowed the list of possible candidates down from 16 to 1, our readers choose former Arkansas Gov. Michael Huckabee as the choice for John McCain's running mate. In the final round, Huckabee clobbered former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, 81-19 percent. In total, nearly 13,000 voters visited our site in total. A summary of total votes cast per candidate is as follows:

Huckleberry hates freedom May 29th, 2008, 4:20 pm · posted by Steven Greenhut Former Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee always set my teeth on edge, from his hokey folksy manner to his love of big government to his shameless use of his religion for political gain. But now I understand exactly why I found the Huckster to be so offensive (and it’s hard to stand out on that score given the overall quality of presidential candidates this year). Here, hat tip to AndrewSullivan.com, is a quotation from Huckleberry on Huffington Post regarding libertarianism: “The greatest threat to classic Republicanism is...

A "modern-day Moses" who fleeced churchgoers out of more than £3.2million faces jail today. Lindani Mangena, 24, preyed on more than 1,000 worshippers in Seventh Day Adventist congregations across London to feed his appetite for fine living. Mangena posed as a City trader to convince them to invest in a bogus spread-betting formula. Southwark Crown Court heard that, along with two accomplices, he promised profits of up to 3,000 per cent in six months. Many victims, including widows and pensioners, were forced to remortgage their homes. Much of their money was spent on property, cars and holidays. One hotel stay...

He’s more apt to blame America’s problems on a shadowy elite who are out to get blue-collar god-fearers but less apt to blame jihadist attacks on sinfulness. I guess that constitutes progress. Mike Huckabee’s presidential campaign may be nearing its end, but those around him say he won’t disappear and is poised to claim political leadership of conservative evangelicals.Mr. Huckabee’s inner circle says he’s the perfect bridge to re-establish the Christian right, which has suffered over the last decade, as a political force that speaks for millions of voters. “He has become the leader of a new generation of Christian...

What happens in Vegas doesn't always stay in Vegas -- especially if you're the wife of presidential candidate. Just ask Janet Huckabee, who attended a middleweight prize fight this last weekend in Vegas -- where she stayed at the Hooters Casino Hotel. That eye-opening combination -- a title bout in Sin City, which celebrates gambling, drinking and all things wild, along with a hospitality chain favoring buxom waitresses in low-cut garb -- could potentially shock the armies of evangelical conservative Christians who have made her husband, the former governor of Arkansas, the only remaining GOP opponent to party front-runner John...

..."I didn't major in math," said the Baptist preacher, "I majored in miracles." Good for Huck. Why should he drop out? For too long conservatives have suppressed their convictions or meekly submitted, so as not to oppose a Republican president or get out of step with the party leadership.... ...For his party's and his country's sake, as well as his own, Mike Huckabee should keep the conversation going. Because right now, his party is looking at Hillary, Obama -- or Bush's third term.

Huckabee At CPAC February 09, 2008 12:22 PM ABC's Kevin Chupka reports: Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee received a very warm welcome this morning at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) here in Washington DC. The reception lasted the entire length of his speech as a crowd full of Huckabee supporter repeatedly cheered for their choice for the Republican nomination. Huckabee was, of course, speaking at the same event that just days ago saw Mitt Romney tell his supporters he would discontinue his bid for the GOP nomination. Huckabee took his turn at the CPAC podium, however, to tell his...

Republican Mike Huckabee on Saturday said he won't quit the presidential race and rejected suggestions John McCain is the party's inevitable nominee, saying the voters in remaining states deserve an election, not a coronation. "I didn't major in math," the former Arkansas governor told a cheering crowd at the Conservative Political Action Conference meeting. "I majored in miracles, and I still believe in them." Huckabee, who trails in the nomination race with 198 delegates to McCain's 719, said he was aware there had been rumors that he might quit the race, but assured conservatives: "Am I quitting? No." "There are...

Huckabee top in Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Missouri, Minesota, Oclahoma, Tennessee, West Virginia, etc.+ !!! ------------------ People and Value-powered Governor Mike Huckabee apparently does even BETTER than initially expected ! (And despite unprecedented Censorship, even at many Internet Fora, and despite huge amounts of Money spend by his competitors)... - Huck is given 1st in Alabama (with 34% reporting) - 1st in Arkansas - 1st in Georgia (with 61% reporting) - 1st in Missouri (with 23% reporting) - 1st in West Virginia (100% reporting, OK) - Tied in Minnesota, neck to neck with Romney, McCain following closely. - Tied in Oclahoma,...

Mike Huckabee, who has won in Alabama, Arkansas, and West Virginia and is competing for several other states, declared tonight that he -- not Mitt Romney -- and John McCain are competing for the Republican nomination. Saying there's been a lot of talk about a two-man race, Huckabee said, "It is, and we're in it." He told supporters in Little Rock, Ark., that he is doing well "to the amazement" of a lot of pundits. "And I also want you to know, that as long as there's still votes and delegates to be won until that magic number of 1,191...

By far, the most significant story of the 2008 Republican primaries has been the unlikely candidacy of Mike Huckabee and his_single-handed_resuscitation of Christian conservatives as a force to be reckoned with in the Republican_Party. Yet, regardless of how he fares on Super_Tuesday_and_beyond, Mr. Huckabee will perhaps be best remembered as the man who, however unintentionally, helped persuade evangelicals to vote a Democrat into the White House in 2008 – and possibly in future races, as well. Since the 1970s, conventional_wisdom has held that evangelicals are driven by a single-minded_concern with defending "moral values," while mainline Protestants focus on issues of...

TUSCALOOSA, ALA. -- Mike Huckabee has changed his mind and will sign an Alabama senator’s immigration pledge for presidential candidates - an effort to defeat the McCain-Kennedy proposal in the U.S. Senate. In Birmingham last week, Huckabee said he was almost ready to sign the pledge put forth by Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., but was on the fence regarding one of its aspects. "Which one?" a reporter asked. Huckabee said it had to do with the 13th point of the 15-point pledge, one to “eliminate the visa lottery program and change current preference categories that guarantee automatic entry for aging...

A broad coalition of black conservatives from across the country are holding a press conference to urge former Governor Mike Huckabee to stay in the presidential race for the Republican nomination until the convention. "Governor Huckabee should not be intimidated to stop his bid for the Republican nomination," states Don Scoggins, veteran GOP activist and ... president of Republicans for Black Empowerment, a DC-based national grassroots organization. The concern of the group is the pressure that is mounting by Republican talking heads to push Governor Huckabee out of the race. The consensus is that Huckabee's campaign was deliberately sabotaged by...

I am disappointed in the tactics and statements of almost all the presidential candidates, both Democrats and Republicans. My grandmother used to say that you can tell just as big a lie with a half-truth and sometimes a bigger one. Take the half-truths said about Mike Huckabee and taxes. I lived in Arkansas when he was the governor. He did away with the marriage tax penalty and the capital gains tax on the sale homes. He doubled Arkansas' standard deduction and the child care tax credit. He slashed the capital gains tax for both individuals and businesses. In 2001, Mike...

Mike Huck : the only Value-oriented Conservative able to win Hillary or Obama ? After Brownback, Dunkan and Thomson withdrew, to be soon followed by Paul, while Romney stil doesn't convince the People, Guliani thanks God appears lost, and McCain a too old Liberal, => Governor Mike HUCKABEE obviously remains the only real Conservative, Value-oriented Presidential hopeful able to win against Liberal Dems like Hillary or Obama. He's also the Youngest of all 2008 GOP candidates, and could be able to run also on 2012. The most important thing is that Huck attracts the Voters mainly motivated by Values :...

This past week, investors experienced a sizable economic tremor as Wall Street's fortress shook. From a Dow that dropped more than 200 points in the first 10 minutes of trading to the Federal Reserve's biggest "emergency" slash of interest rates in a quarter of a century, even the experts are confused as to whether these are signs of an unhealthy economy or birth pains of an American recession. Just as fluctuating and fickle is this presidential election. With political surges, primary bypasses, midstream startups and blended politics, there are still no clear front-runners in either party. Super Tuesday is on...

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee skipped out of campaigning in Florida a day before its primary in hopes of laying claim to Fred Thompson's backers in Tennessee. He also squeezed in some time in a Music Row recording studio, playing bass guitar with a group of country music stars and session musicians. Huckabee said those who backed the former Tennessee senator's presidential run should now turn to him because he's consistently shown he's a conservative — supporting anti-abortion measures and tax cuts while governor of Arkansas. Thompson withdrew from the presidential race last week after a disappointing...

Listen to Huckabee say that the first amendment gives us freedom of religion AND freedom FROM religion. Sorry Huck, but freedom FROM religion isn't a right. If it was it would be a right to suppress the free exercise of other people's religion.

A brand new WarrenPiece1 video -- Go Mike! http://www.mikehuckabee.com/?FuseAction=Blogs.View&Blog_id=1276

That's the name of a new anti-Huckabee web site started by former Thompson staffer Darrel Ng. Jonathan Martin has more on the site: Now that his candidate is out of the race, one Thompson staffer has gone the next stop and is actively working against Huck. Sorta. Darrel Ng, perhaps the heartiest and most dogged of Thompson's aides and somebody who logged many a mile on the Fred bus, has launched a website called "Boycott Chuck Norris." Yup, Ng now wants people to show their disregard for Huck by not patronizing any companies that use Norris as a pitchman. The...

Less than a month after a huge upset victory, and promises that fundraising would be ramped up, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee is asking his senior staff to keep working for him without pay, while lower level campaign staff are seeing their salaries cut dramatically or eliminated altogether. "The goal is to get a leaner, meaner campaign structure moving into Super Tuesday," says a senior campaign adviser. But many of those being asked to take the cut are refusing, and walking away, leaving the campaign with holes to fill.

Fred Thompson the subject of a new book to be released in Aug/Sept tying his entrance into the 2008 Presidential race to the defeat of the Republican Party in 2008. Book will claim Thompson's entrance and later withdrawal, reminiscent of Ross Perot with delegates diverted from more electable candidates.

According to CNN's fancy map of South Carolina, Fred Thompson is sapping votes away from Mike Huckabee in the socially conservative north. If that's the case, Thompson probably has a smile on his face. Thompson's distaste for Huckabee has been apparent throughout the campaign. Thompson often pushes back against Huckabee at debates and regularly sends emails critiquing Huckabee's stances on immigration and taxes. Persona-wise, Huckabee is everything Thompson isn't—charming, funny, and self-effacing. Most importantly, Huckabee possesses the start power that many Republicans hoped Thompson would have in the race. Huck is bizarro Fred. Most importantly, Huckabee has stolen Thompson's base...

SENECA, S.C. -- Thompson took a couple of shots at Romney and Huckabee on authenticity and immigration, respectively, when given the chance here during a radio interview and questions from the crowd that followed. “I haven’t changed positions,� Thompson told about 125 people packed into the Seneca Family Restaurant in the northwest socially conservative reaches of the state. “I have been consistent… I haven’t had to have that long a memory to remember where I stand. All these other fellows, you wouldn’t recognize them from where they were their entire political lives before this.� Later, a man, who is actually...

He’s an open borders drag queen, and he’s piling on the make-up and jewels again to disguise his pro-illegal immigration record in time for the South Carolina primary. The Washington Times reports that he has signed a NumbersUSA pledge to oppose any new shamnesty measures and reduce illegal immigration through attrition. I don’t believe Mike Huckabee:

Marketplace, January 8, 2008—Mike Huckabee is right that our tax system badly needs reform. But his proposed plan, the FairTax, would be a disaster. Sure, the FairTax sounds great. Dump all current federal taxes. Abolish the IRS! And replace them with a simple 23 percent national sales tax. Every household would get an annual "prebate"—Free money!—to help them handle the tax. Only problem is that it really is just too good to be true. First, there's fuzzy math: Say you buy something for $10 and $3 is added to the price. That sounds like a 30 percent sales tax, but...

Oh boy one has to believe that Huckabee will be getting some blow-back from this. These push polls have even brought out the South Carolina Attorney General to make this statement: “Last evening the Associated Press reported that that an out-of-state special interest group, Common Sense Issues, had launched a massive push polling effort disparaging John McCain and other candidates for president. In their push poll, Common Sense Issues makes several misleading claims regarding John McCain’s record.“Allow me to set the record straight. In the U.S. Senate, John McCain has been an unwavering voice for the rights of the unborn....

"Confronted by crying toddler on Tuesday, Republican presidential hopeful Mike Huckabee quipped the child must be for his rival Mitt Romney. "He's not the happiest boy today," Huckabee said, smiling for a picture with the boy and his brother and sister. "I think he must be a Romney voter. Look at him. He's so sad.""

COLUMBIA, S.C. --Automated phone polls disparaging rivals of Republican White House hopeful Mike Huckabee started across this early voting state Tuesday evening and the head of the group making them said that more than 1 million will be made in a three-day span. Huckabee's campaign quickly disavowed the push polling. "We know nothing about that and don't condone it. Anyone who is doing that in an effort to help us needs to stop. This does not reflect the positive spirit of the campaign," said spokeswoman Alice Stewart.

In a piece published on January 9th for Townhall, economics writer Jerry Bowyer posed some common questions about the FairTax. The FairTax would replace personal income taxes, payroll taxes, capital gains taxes, corporate income taxes, and the death tax with a national retail sales tax. The FairTax has become a prominent subject for discussion as Mike Huckabee, its leading advocate among the presidential candidates, has risen to the top of the national polls. In politics, as in life, “context” (which could also be called, “basic point of view” or “the framing of the issue”) trumps “content” (in this case, the...

"[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."    — Mike Huckabee, campaigning in Michigan last night. This statement should shock every American to their very core. It is theocracy, pure and simple. To those evangelical Christians supporting Huckabee, ask yourself this: What if Hillary or Obama said this line while...

Brothers and Sisters in Christ, This is addressed to my fellow brothers and sisters in Christ because my point will only make sense if you are a Christian. I am a Christian, Sunday school teacher, deacon, father of four, homeschool dad, engineer, husband and resident of the great state of Michigan. In the past couple of months I have been convicted of the need to investigate the candidates for the Republican primary. Initially I admit that my brief investigation of Governor Mike Huckabee led me to support his candidacy. I did not spend any significant time investigating any of the other...

LITTLE ROCK, Ark., Jan. 14 — Former Arkansas Governor and Presidential Candidate Mike Huckabee has received the endorsement of "America's Outdoor Icon" Ray Scott. Scott founded the Bass Anglers Sportsman Society (BASS) in 1968, which became the world's largest fishing organization with over 500,000 members. The company was bought in 2001 by ESPN. He is also the founder of the Whitetail Institute of North America. "I am pleased to have received the endorsement of Ray Scott - a legendary outdoorsman and conservationist. We share a passion for the outdoors and I was proud to be honored along with him recently...

<p>Gov. Mike Huckabee was supposed to glide to re-election over Jimmie Lou Fisher, a Democratic Party functionary whose job in her 22 years as state treasurer has involved little besides signing government checks.</p> <p>But suddenly he is in a dogfight: a poll for the Arkansas News Bureau gives Mr. Huckabee a lead of only 46 percent to 44 percent. The poll was released last Thursday, the same day a fund-raising letter turned up in which the governor warned that his campaign was in ''crisis.''</p>

As Mike Huckabee gains in the polls, the former Arkansas governor is finding that his record in office is getting more scrutiny. One issue likely to get attention is his handling of a sensitive family matter: allegations that one of his sons was involved in the hanging of a stray dog at a Boy Scout camp in 1998. The incident led to the dismissal of David Huckabee, then 17, from his job as a counselor at Camp Pioneer in Hatfield, Ark. < snip > ... no charges were ever filed. But John Bailey, then the director of Arkansas's state police,...

I'll admit it: I've been critical of Mike Huckabee. Since learning of his record as Governor and of his statements since, I've harbored the opinion that he is more or less McCain Lite - every Democrat's favorite Republican. I've listened to him talk about banning smoking, about federally subsidized art programs, and about the need for federal action to fight "global warming," and what I've thought I heard was the consumate nanny-stater. When he accused our president of having an "arrogant bunker mentality," and said we should close down Guantamnamo, I heard words that might well have been spoken by...

Huckabee campaign shakes up GOP by Ted Roelofs | The Grand Rapids Press Friday January 11, 2008, 4:18 PM A few short months ago, it was Mike Who? Early in the GOP presidential race, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee was best known as the quirky, guitar-playing pastor who had shed 100 pounds. Political experts brushed him off as something of a joke, confident he would be swept aside by the true heavyweights. They're not laughing now. His populist grassroots campaign is shaking up the national GOP race and in Michigan, tapping into support from Christian conservatives and blue-collar voters like...

I was asked in another thread to explain my preference for Mike Huckabee http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1951938/posts?page=191#191 While I expect to receive several negative responses to the following answer, I am posting here in an attempt to raise the bar. Here goes. In 2007, I was looking into the future presidential season with a sense of trepidation because of the contentious nature that it always seems to have. I was anxiously hopeful, but not enthusiastic about the process, or any of the candidates, but I made a point of watching the initial debates and watching a lot of C-Span coverage. Fully expecting to...

About 60 minutes into the debate, fresh from a commercial break, Chris Wallace T-boned Mike Huckabee, calling him on the fact that taxes were higher in Arkansas when Huckabee left office than when he first became Governor, and why did that happen. Huckabee gave a minute and a half answer, and did not deny the Wallace assertion. Instead, he gave a laundry list of what he spent the money on, everything from schools to roads, and how much better the state was for it. But what really frosted me was the fact that he threw a little jab at my...

If it hasn't been written already, it will be before next Tuesday: Michigan is, in the famous words of Rich Bond, "the Beirut of Republican politics." In a state riven by factions and ancient hatreds, Gary Glenn stands out. He runs Michigan's American Family Association, but recently he's focused his efforts on taking down Mitt Romney. Given the events of the past few weeks, that now translates into supporting Huck. Romney's camp shares this email, passed along by a supporter, in which Glenn explains at considerable length how to maximize the church's for Huck and to do so without crossing...

Presidential candidate Mike Huckabee and Minuteman Co-Founder Jim Gilchrist have been documented lying to America by the Washington Times after false headlines ran on Tuesday proclaiming Mike Huckabee would try to remove birthright citizenship from the Constitution. The article confirms that Huckabee lied on CNN about his campaign being contacted about Gilchrist's false statements and Gilchrist lied in a release about Huckabee's immigration stances. Gilchrist put out a press release on Iowa's election eve, under the fake name of "Perry Emerson" that contained several false statements and embellishments of Huckabee's immigration stances. The release claimed Huckabee would try to reverse...

Per his too-cute-by-half line about “the guy who laid them off.” Remember, as long as he doesn’t say Mitt’s name it doesn’t count as negative campaigning.

Mike Huckabee yesterday contradicted his own top immigration surrogate, announcing he will not support a constitutional amendment to end birthright citizenship for children born in the United States to illegal aliens. It was a stark reversal after The Washington Times reported that James Gilchrist, founder of the Minuteman Project, said Huckabee promised to pursue an amendment to the Constitution. In an article in yesterday's editions, Huckabee's spokeswoman did not challenge the former Arkansas governor's statements to Gilchrist...But by yesterday afternoon, Huckabee had backed away..."I do not support an amendment to the Constitution that would prevent children born in the U.S....

How is it that the bar of conservative entry for a presidential nominee lowers for the Romneys and McCains, then rises for the Huckabees? Okay, he is a heterodox Republican on some issues. So what? Who isn't amongst the leading contenders in this primary race? A few years back I recall these anti-Huckabee purists lecturing California conservatives on the need to support Arnold Schwarzenegger over Tom McClintock. Now that McCain has won in New Hampshire, we will soon see this very flexible definition of GOP conservatism resurface and be told that electability trumps all. Much of the contempt for Huckabee...

The Chuckabee facts Chase Cooper IDS 1/8/2008 Chuck Norris doesn’t endorse – he tells America how it’s gonna be.” So says Mike Huckabee , anyway, in a campaign ad featuring his biggest endorser, Chuck Norris. In the ad, Norris and Huckabee, who is known increasingly in conservative circles as the “Huckster,” go back and forth for 60 agonizing seconds telling “facts” about each other, performing a skit patterned after the “Chuck Norris facts” seen in Facebook groups and chain e-mails. Here are a few “Huck Chuck facts” that you may not know about: Fact: Chuck Norris is so corny that...

For all the shots that former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee (R) has taken at Wall Street and soaring executive pay on the campaign trail, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce seems unfazed about the prospect of a Huckabee White House. “My own view is we ought to listen carefully to what the governor is saying — he touches on notes that are worthy of attention,” said the Chamber’s president and chief executive, Tom Donohue, responding to reporters’ questions about Huckabee’s chances. But that’s as far as Donohue would go. He added that populist promises — such as the anti-trade positions Huckabee...