Why aren't we talking about Mike Huckabee?

[downtown]

The GOP 2012 conversation seems have centered almost completely on Sarah Palin, with Romeny and and a few others getting some snippets of news coverage. I suppose the vague consensus between media and politco types is that Mitt Romney is a "soft" frontrunner, but maybe it's time for us to change that narrative.

Public Policy Polling just showed another poll with the Huckster holding a pretty decent lead over some possible rivals...
Huckabee 24%
Palin 14%
Romney 14%
Newt 11%
Field: who cares

Yeah yeah yeah, IT'S EARLY DOWNTOWN, and you're right. A lot can change in a year. Huckabee has lead most 2012 polling for about a year now though, and he seems to get fairly positive numbers from both the highly conservative evangelical wing (which dominates the South Carolina and Iowa primaries), but the more moderate wing too. Only the Wall St crowd seems less than excited about Huckabee.

I'm pretty surprised to learn that Huckabee has the 2nd highest approval rating from "conservative" Republican voters...only Palin's is higher.

We don't know if he's running yet...he's got a cushy Fox News gig and just bought a huge house in Florida...but can this guy win? Why does he lead all the polls? What does everybody see in Huckabee? What helps him or hurts him?

EDIT: crap, the last option SHOULD read, "this is why downtown CAN'T make political threads". This is especially true because it is increasingly obvious I cannot type.

 

[Earthling]

no less than three here really but that poll option still is the best, because I do think he's not a bad guy overall and I also think he's very electable. I would worry if the Republicans nominated him as I think it is quite possible he could win. Hope they won't and on balance I think they'll be too stupid to do so as well (Romney isn't even as much of a threat, and Palin/the crazies out there shouldn't be at all) but they could wisen up.

 

[_random_]

I'd say his religiosity would probably be his biggest weakness. That being said, he's a better contender for the Republican nomination than most of the other names that have been thrown around (being surprisingly not-crazy for a Southern Baptist minister), and could potentially mount some threat against Obama if things go downhill from here. If the nominee winds up being somebody more youthful (like Eric Cantor), Huckabee could be an excellent running mate because of his popularity with older, more religious voters.

 

[Holycannoli]

A Huckabee/Romney ticket could be quite viable, and I'd vote for them.

 

[downtown]

Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee absolutely hate each other.

 

[Theige]

Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee absolutely hate each other.

Why?

Lingering primary battles from 2008?

 

[Left]

I do think he's not a bad guy overall and I also think he's very electable

I think this says it all. He is very, very personable and sounds very reasonable in interviews or debates. But hes also very socially conservative and supports the fair tax. Something for everyone.

 

[Holycannoli]

Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee absolutely hate each other.

You'd be surprised how that doesn't matter when it comes to a presidential election. You think Obama and Clinton liked each other? She swallowed her pride and took the job. Politics makes strange bedfellows.

I also didn't say it would happen, I said it would be quite a viable ticket. We can't even say if Huckabee will run, although he did say today he'll weigh his options over the summer.

 

[Earthling]

Why?

Lingering primary battles from 2008?

Maybe, but I'd say really different takes on major political issues and different outlooks on everything. I wouldn't expect to see them on a ticket together (well, I also wouldn't expect to see Romney as a VP but dunno, that could happen)

 

[NickyJ]

I'd say Huckabee looks the best. He is better than Palin anyday, and he doesn't seem as questionable as Romney.

 

[JollyRoger]

He comes across as too Jesusy for moderates, but too liberal for those that like their candiates Jesusy. If it wasn't for his attachment to the Fair Tax, I would think he would be about as good as I could expect from a GOP candidate.

Rumor is, he isn't running or he will jump in very late if Palin is faltering. I would wait until 2016 if I were in his shoes.

 

[downtown]

Why?

Lingering primary battles from 2008?

Completely different worldviews, and religious differences. Mitt's camp blames Huckabee for anti Mormon robocalls in South Carolina, and Huckabee did throw in some dog-whistle anti-Mormonism stuff in Iowa. Huckabee thinks Mitt is too country club, and represents the exact kind of republican he hates. They won't work together...Huckabee might run JUST to stick it to Mitt

 

[Holycannoli]

I want to know if Ron Paul is considering running again (without googling his webpage or anything). He might make for a viable ticket too depending on who he chooses to run with.

I don't expect to see the same kind of primary or presidential election as we saw in 2008, since now Obama will be running on a centrist platform instead.

Huckabee though at the moment is the 2nd best candidate to oppose Obama, with the 1st being

 

[bhsup]

I have been saying it since 2008. Huckabee spooks me out, big time. If he's ever elected, I am convinced that right after he's sworn in, he'll rip off his mask and reveal himself to be some bug-eyed alien, and he's gonna say the invasion fleet is on the way and we're screwed. Er, the closest poll option for me was "he's crazy"

Also, Romney is superior. So superior.

 

[Earthling]

I would wait until 2016 if I were in his shoes.

I very much agree with this too, if I were a realistic and reasonable GOP candidate with a shot of winning, this is what to do, let some crazy out there on the fringes of the party lose to Obama this time and then aim for a win against the new crop of Dems that will have to be up in 2016. So of course it probably won't happen, not sure if that bodes well or not for the future


edit - no, Zod doesn't have an edge on Obama at all
http://www.angryflower.com/brobam.html

 

[Miles Teg]

Right now, fiscal conservatism seems to be really, really big with the GOP base, so Huckabee's hurting here. So he's got line up social conservatives completely if he wants the nomination, but most of them are gaga over Palin, so she steals oxygen from him.

Also, he really doesn't seem to be gearing up to run. He's got that Fox gig, and his campaign manager has gone off to be Chief of Staff to one of the Tea Party freshmen.

 

[Formaldehyde]

I have been saying it since 2008. Huckabee spooks me out, big time. If he's ever elected, I am convinced that right after he's sworn in, he'll rip off his mask and reveal himself to be some bug-eyed alien, and he's gonna say the invasion fleet is on the way and we're screwed. Er, the closest poll option for me was "he's crazy".

Huckabee freaks me out as well. He reminds me of Elmer Gantry and a multitude of other similar evangelical hucksters.


Link to video.

Well, it's one thing when we have to take our medicine when we were kids. But American voters are grown ups. We expect and demand to be treated like it, and we weren't.

Well, now, we'll do our spanking on the Congress and show them that we still rule in this country. That's the way it's supposed to be. And the way it will be once we get this petition signed.

It seems that some politicians never grow up. They feel they need to "rule" and "spank" those who disagree with them by spewing mindless rhetoric such as this, instead of serving their constituents and all of their varied interests.

 

[SKILORD]

I have no problem with Mike Huckabee, however I predict a Howard Dean style meltdown with significantly more religious tone, it's just like 2004.

The democrats had a female candidate in the wings then, but steered clear of her because they feared for her "electability" (hence the Palin's camp obsession with making everyone they interact it form the words with their mouths, remember how wild they got aout that Alaskan Senate Candidate from the Tea Party refusing to toe the "Palin is electable" line?") Even if she manages, by huge effort, to get all the Republicans convinced that she is electable... does that make her any more electable?

I predict Mitt Romney will get nomiated... for all the same reasons John Kerry and Joe Goddamn Lieberman got on the ticket in 04.

I predict the election to go about as well for the out party.

 

[SKILORD]

huckabee HAS already been contorting hisn ideology in tasteless ways in an appeal to "Jonny Right Wing" though, that goes without saying. Howard Dean... at least that guy stood for something...

 

[NickyJ]

Howard Dean... at least that guy stood for something...

Yeah, he stood for all the people that shoot their mouths off with shotguns.