Far right dubs Huckabee the `Big Government' candidate
By Bill Berkowitz, Talk2Action, January 4, 2008
Owing to his convincing victory in the Iowa Republican Party caucuses, former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee has become
"viable." Over the next few weeks expect the mainstream media to both welcome the folksy/friendly Huckabee with open
arms, and slice and dice his record and past statements.
Huckabee's victory was largely attributed to the support he garnered from a brigade of conservative evangelical
Christians. According to The Nation's John Nichols, "A CNN survey of Republican caucusgoers Thursday found that six in
10 identified themselves as 'born-again' Christians. Huckabee won the support of 46 percent of them, while just 19
percent backed [former Massachusetts governor Mitt] Romney."
To his credit, Huckabee was successful despite suffering from a shortage of resources; Romney, who finished a
disappointing second, outspent Huckabee by a 15-1 margin.
In their post-Iowa wrap-ups, mainstream media pundits recognized both Huckabee's popularity amongst conservative
evangelicals, and his populist appeal.
Now it's Huckabee's turn in the spotlight. If you think the hubbub regarding his recent comment about Pakistanis being a
threat to America's border security and his blatant use of a well-lit cross in his pre-Christmas campaign television
advertisement, or his past comments about quarantining AIDS sufferers, was grist for the mill, imagine what might be
coming down the pike.
As he moves on from Iowa, will Huckabee be able to blend a toned-down social conservatism with a populism-lite?
'A candidate with a lot of liberal views' says the Media Research Council
A People for the American Way e-mail dated January 4, maintained that "Huckabee has pledged to support every item on the
Radical Right's wish list: a constitutional ban on abortion, a veto of legislation to protect gay and lesbian Americans
from discrimination, support for a bill to keep federal courts from intervening when local officials violate the
separation of church and state, and most importantly, a far-right Supreme Court."
So why are many on the far right hating on Huckabee? It's not like he's the second coming of John Edwards!
Some of Huckabee's right-wing critics may have righteous political disagreements with him, while others may be concerned
that should he snare the nomination, he could not only lose the general elecftion, but bring down a slew of GOP
candidates as well.
A post-election report from L. Brent Bozell's Media Research Center characterized Huckabee as "a candidate with a lot of
liberal views." Ann Coulter slapped Huckabee around a few weeks back for being soft on just about everything from taxes
to immigration to the criminal justice system.
Baldwin's complaint
Huckabee is "a global government elitist [who] wraps his Big Government ambitions around the Cross of Jesus Christ?"
Chuck Baldwin declared in a column dated January 4, 2008.
Baldwin, the pastor of Crossroad Baptist Church in Pensacola, Florida, the former State Chairman of the Florida Moral
Majority, vice presidential running mate of the Constitution Party's Michael Peroutka in 2004, a radio talk show host
and syndicated columnist is one of the former Arkansas governor's most persistent critics.
In his January 4, column titled "We Desperately Need the `Confessing Church'," Baldwin maintains that "Issues such as
trade, climate control, health and education--and even war--are the tools globalists use to construct their One World
Order":
"Have you wondered why Mike Huckabee is suddenly getting so much favorable attention from the mainstream media (who
themselves are controlled by this gaggle of global elite)? To find the answer as to why a professing pro-life,
conservative Christian would suddenly become the darling of the media, look no further than the fact that just a couple
of months ago, Mr. Huckabee appeared before the globalist-minded Council on Foreign Relations. And when he did, it
became abundantly clear that Huckabee was a man globalists could trust.
"By the way, 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 (CFR) wants in Washington."
Baldwin pointed out that Huckabee has named Richard Haass, President of the CFR "as his advisor on foreign policy."
According to Baldwin, Haass "believes that the United States (and every other country) must surrender its sovereignty to
international or global entities." Baldwin cites a February 21, 2006, Haass column for the Taipei Times entitled, "State
Sovereignty Must be Altered in Globalized Era," which "is nothing more than an explicit solicitation for global
government."
While Baldwin claims he has no interest in heading up the Constitution Party's ticket this year, but he has said that he
"is always open to God's will." In a column dated August 30, 2007, entitled "Conservative Republicans have only one
choice," Baldwin basically endorsed Ron Paul's candidacy:
"Let's cut to the chase: conservative Republicans have only one choice for President in 2008: Congressman Ron Paul of
Texas. Unlike the GOP frontrunners, Paul is the real deal."
In mid-December he released a video endorsement of Paul.
On to New Hampshire
According to The Nation's John Nichols:
Huckabee arrived in New Hampshire Friday morning with new literature that drops the religious references used in Iowa
and plans for a television advertising campaign that will eschew the crosses and fish that meant so much to his Iowa
base.
Huckabee is nothing if not consistent. Sure, he losing the religious trappings that served him well in Iowa, but he's
remaining every bit the crassly calculating and cynically manipulative politician that he has proven himself to be from
the start of this campaign.
As the campaign rolls along, will Huckabee -- favored by more conservative Christian evangelical leaders than all the
others combined -- continue to proclaim to be the most authentic Christian in the field, or will he soften his Christian
image? Will he continue to talk about being a fighter for regular folks; a plain-speaking populist with compassion for
the least among us or will he harden his position as he has done on such issues as immigration?
Stay tuned.
ENDS