Dave Talan: Why I’m Supporting Mike Huckabee For President
The Republican Party has an embarrassment of riches, when it comes to choosing our nominee for President. Every one of the candidates on our GOP Primary ballot on Tuesday is outstanding, and deserves our support in November if he is running against Hillary or Obama.
Senator John McCain is a war hero, and a respected and principled leader. Congressman Ron Paul has contributed to the discussion of the proper role of government in today’s society. Ambassador Alan Keyes is a passionate spokesman for protecting life and family. Dr. Hugh Cort is a knowledgeable author about national security and terrorism. Governor Mitt Romney (who is still on our ballot) did a fine job running our neighboring state. And the candidates who are no longer in the race (Fred Thompson; Rudy Giuliani; Duncan Hunter; Tom Tancredo) made us proud to be Republicans.
But I have decided to support GOVERNOR MIKE HUCKABEE for President on Tuesday. Let me tell you about some of the reasons that I LIKE MIKE.
* GREAT COMMUNICATOR. Nobody is better than Mike Huckabee at explaining our Republican issues to the general public, in ways they can easily understand and support. If you close your eyes when you listen to Mike speak, you would swear you were listening to Ronald Reagan.
* GENUINE AND SINCERE. I have had the chance to talk personally with Mike Huckabee the 2 times he has been in Rhode Island: last June when he spoke at the Health & Fitness Fair at R.I.C.; and last Monday, when I was able to ride with him all day to the 10 events he went to in our state. In person, he is the same honest, passionate, funny and compassionate man that you watch on TV. What you see is what you get with Mike Huckabee.
* CARES ABOUT ORDINARY PEOPLE. I am the GOP Chairman in Providence, where I live on the poor side of town. Most of my neighbors are Blacks or Hispanics, many of them 1st-generation immigrants. All of the GOP candidates agree on most issues. But I admire Mike Huckabee’s emphasis on remembering that the people served by our government are “real human beings”. In his career as a minister, and as Governor & Lt. Governor for 12 years, Mike Huckabee has helped ordinary people to deal with day-to-day problems. This is a pretty good background to bring to the Presidency.
* GET GOVERNMENT OFF OUR BACK. Mike Huckabee’s plan to abolish the income tax and the IRS is just the change we need. (He would replace it with a sales tax, where people of all incomes would pay no more than what they do now.). Too many decisions in our lives now are based on how tax policy affects them. Under President Huckabee, we will make decisions based on what is best for us as individuals and as citizens.
Let me respond to some questions that people have asked me.
“Isn’t this race already over? Why doesn’t Mike Huckabee just quit?” The race is not over until some candidate wins 1,191 Delegates, which nobody has done yet. Only 5 months ago, John McCain was dead in the water, and people suggested he get out of the race. To his credit, John McCain refused to quit, and kept on fighting. Now Mike Huckabee is doing the same, and is fighting for what he believes in.
“But isn’t Mike Huckabee hurting the eventual nominee’s chances of winning in November, by continuing this campaign?” The GOP convention isn’t for another 6 months. The election is still 8 months away. If Mike Huckabee quit now, before anybody had clinched the nomination, then the Party’s nominee would disappear from the news until September. Just ask Rudy Giuliani what happens when you are out of the news for just 2 months. Mike Huckabee’s positive campaign helps whoever the GOP nominee turns out to be (hopefully Mike himself) by continuing this race.
So, if you believe as I do, that MIKE HUCKABEE is the best man for the job of President; and that MIKE HUCKABEE has the best positions on the issues; then join me in voting for MIKE HUCKABEE on Tuesday.
Dave Talan is the chairman of Providence’s City Republican Committee.
Dave may have had the advantage of hearing Mike speak before the disinformation campaign began last December. I would suggest any one having doubts about Mike [or any candidate for that matter] at this time visit his web site including the truth squad part of it. This has been one crazy and disjointed campaign season. Mike was a governor for 10 and one half years and left with extremely high approval ratings. After careful consideration and much investigation over some period, Mike is now my candidate of choice. I had supported another good candidate earlier in the campaign.
Huckabee has my family’s vote.
If you are in the 1st Congressional District- Richard and Christine Wilford would appreciate your vote for delegates!
Thanks
Huckabee is an “evangelical liberal” – conservative on social issues but pretty liberal on everything else.
But I may vote for him in the primary, simply to try to deny McAmnesty a “sure thing” delegate count and force the Republican convention into a “brokered convention.”
At least then there’s some chance of a somewhat conservative nominee emerging from the fray.
Rhode Islanders have a chance to finally put an end to the Clintonistas. Hillary’s last stand is tomorrow, March 4th. You can vote Republican in the general, but we need to put an end to her candidacy by voting Obama on Tuesday.
Yes, I’m sure if Huckabee wins Rhode Island it will throw the political world into a tailspin.
/sarcasm
Hi! I am supporting Mike Huckabee. I got first exposed personally to the Huckabee effort when I went with Bob Tingle to New Hampshire with him last year and was again with him during the New Hampshire primary.Bob and I autographed a guitar presented to the former Governor. Mike Huckabee has an engaging personality. A positive he does for the GOP is he is a candidate with a sense of humanity and understanding people. He comes from a poor background who fought the odds and has done well. The stereotype of the rich Republican is deflated by Mike Huckabee. One possible aspect is Mike Huckabee supports the tax credits for paying health insurance premuims on tax returns making that security more affordable as well as his humble background. Mike Huckabee has been recognized by his peers being elected President of the National Governors Association. Mike Huckabee was elected Governor as a Republican in a state that has not had many Republican Governors in its history and holds the record for service as a Republican Governor of Arkansas. Tomorrow I ask for consideration for your vote for myself as delegate. I have never been a delegate. I am running as a Huckabee delegate candidate in the Second Congressional District.At National GOP Conventions, I was a guest in 1988 and 2004; and an alternate delegate in 1992 and 1996. I did not attend the national convention in 2000. I also ask you to consider Huckabee delegate candidates Robert G. Tingle, who was the Republican nominee for US Senate against Jack Reed in 2002; and U.S. House,Second District, in 2000;. His wife Barbara is also a Huckabee delegate candidate. Each presidential candidate or uncommitted on the GOP side needs 15% statewide to get delegates. It appears Huckabee and McCain will both meet that… Read more »
Dear Ragin’:
Where or where do you get your information? Why is your characterization of him different from his own? Have you visited his website or done your homework? Why do some top conservatives [e.g., Duncan Hunter] endorse him? What do you know that they don’t? Why is the only candidate that has balanced a budget for ten to eleven years in a row–and ended with a surplus–not considered a “conservative?” Why does Huckabee have the endorsement of the founder of the Minutemen [who says he was the only one who had a real plan to secure the border]? Is defense of the IRS a conservative issue? Does a pledge of lower taxes make you a liberal? What have you been reading?
My wife Barbara and I are voting for Mike Huckabee because:
Unlike John McCain, he’s 100% pro-life.
Unlike John McCain, he wants to abolish the IRS.
Unlike John McCain, he’s against amnesty for illegals.
My wife Barbara and I are running to be Delegates to the Republican National Convention. We respectfully ask for your vote on Tues. March 4th.
Thank You; Bob Tingle
The spin cycle sure is alive and well in this thread.
The AP is reporting that Huckabee – as of today – still has fewer delegates than Romney, who has been out of the race for quite some time.
I also understand that it is mathematically impossible for Huckabee to win enough delegates going forward to secure the coveted 1191.
Maybe Huck did major in miracles, but the math cannot be ignored.
This is unfortunate, as neither McCain nor Huckabee can be considered a conservative torch-bearer.
–“Where or where do you get your information? Why is your characterization of him different from his own?”
I place much more stock in actual track records than campaign season platforms – particularly when they are 180 degrees apart. Among other things, while Huckabee was in office:
1) He supported illegal aliens (his current plan is so at odds with his record that I find his credibility overall to be zilch).
2) Raised taxes over and over (hence his “balanced budgets” – he balanced them the Democrat way).
3) His consumption tax / abolish the IRS proposal is appealing on a superficial level – but absent a Constitutional amendment (simultaneously prohibiting the income tax) it is nothing but election year grandstanding.
If he’s so conservative, why did the Republican Assembly in his home state of Arkansas refuse to endorse him????
I’ve nothing against the man personally – but, other than some social issues, he’s no conservative.
Ordinarily, I would not vote for Huckabee. However,I am voting for Huckabee b/c I want to keep McCain from getting the requisite # of delegates with the hope that the result of the convention is a better candidate.
Although, I do like the Fair Tax with the provision that the income tax amendment be repealed.
Vote for Clinton, then dissaffiliate.
McCain can beat Hitlary, but not Obama.
We need to be realistic here instead of continuing to allow Mike Huckabee to play this charade. His time will come.
–“Vote for Clinton, then dissaffiliate. McCain can beat Hitlary, but not Obama. We need to be realistic here instead of continuing to allow Mike Huckabee to play this charade. His time will come.”
McCain is a RINO of the worst kind – he delights in siding with the Democrats and sticking a knife in the back of conservatives and in the back of the Republican Party.
Personally I’d rather see McCain lose the general election. Better to have open borders and amnesty etc. committed by a Democrat – then we can run against it (and the rest of the Democrat monstrosities) with a real Republican in 2012.
Huckabee is my candidate. And when McCain does win the GOP nomination, I may still write in Huckabee at the General Election.
Personally I’d rather see McCain lose the general election. Better to have open borders and amnesty etc. committed by a Democrat – then we can run against it (and the rest of the Democrat monstrosities) with a real Republican in 2012.
So you’re willing to bet the next 8 years, if not more, on a MAYBE?
If Obama wins now, the chances of him losing a second term are zero. Winning now means four years to cultivate the cult, as it were. He’ll be unstoppable as an incumbent.
And that’s AFTER he surrenders in Iraq AND Afghanistan!
I really can’t believe that Republicans are willing to just lay an election down- the most important election of my lifetime- on a theory. A maybe. A “If we’re lucky.”
Unbelievable. And you call McCain a RINO? Please.
–“So you’re willing to bet the next 8 years, if not more, on a MAYBE?” Maybe? In the past 8-10 years McCain’s voting record has put him squarely amongst Chafee – Collins – Snow – Specter. This when he should have been courting the conservative base as he intended to seek the Republican nomination again. Juan McAmnesty – Kennedy – Feingold – Leiberman – Gang of 14 will only move FURTHER LEFT as President when he doesn’t have to think about needing conservative support. –“If Obama wins now, the chances of him losing a second term are zero. Winning now means four years to cultivate the cult, as it were. He’ll be unstoppable as an incumbent.” More likely he’ll do a Jimmy Carter (or McGovern) and so alienate average Americans with his leftist wingnut ideas that he’ll go down in flames. AND the Republicans in Congress will be more inclined to filibuster Obama legislation (and so will the more level-headed Democrats) than they would identical “bi-partisan” “reaching across the aisle” legislation coming from McCain-Kennedy. We’ll get more of the Democrat agenda enacted under McCain than we will under an Obama. –“And that’s AFTER he surrenders in Iraq AND Afghanistan!” What’s the difference? Al Qaeda can walk WMD’s across our southern border now because McCain (and Bush) refuse to secure it – and it’ll be the same after the “surrender” you fear. In fact, those WMD’s may already be in the U.S. –“I really can’t believe that Republicans are willing to just lay an election down- the most important election of my lifetime- on a theory. A maybe. A “If we’re lucky.” Unbelievable. And you call McCain a RINO? Please.” I don’t believe that we should “destroy the Republican Party in order to save it.” McCain is the LEAD RINO: McCain-Kennedy;… Read more »
More likely he’ll do a Jimmy Carter (or McGovern) and so alienate average Americans with his leftist wingnut ideas that he’ll go down in flames.
And there’s your maybe, folks. Sorry, I’m not willing to take that chance. Four years of a “leftist wingnut” in the Oval Office is a LOT of damage. Too much.
“Four years of a “leftist wingnut” in the Oval Office is a LOT of damage.”
Unfortunately, the corporate interests that run America have only given us the choice of “White leftist wingnut, black leftist wingnut or woman leftist wingnut”
–“And there’s your maybe, folks. Sorry, I’m not willing to take that chance. Four years of a “leftist wingnut” in the Oval Office is a LOT of damage. Too much.”
Are you referring to Hillary, Obama or McQueeg?
We were talking about Obama vs McCain, so in that reply I was talking about Obama.