Quoting Royals great George Brett, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee bowed out of the Republican presidential race Tuesday night.
"We kept the faith," Huckabee said from Irving, Texas, "and that for me has been the most important goal of all."
Huckabee said he hustled every day of his campaign the same way Brett did during his years as a Royal.
Of Brett, Huckabee recalled Brett's statement that he wanted to end his career not with a home run, but by hitting a routine ground ball to second base and then "running hard to first so everybody knows that’s how the game is supposed to be played."
Huckabee said that's what he tried to do himself in his presidential bid.
Reached in Arizona where the Royals are in spring training, Brett said he was flattered by Huckabee's reference to him.
"I didn't know Huckabee had even heard of me," Brett said.
First off the bat, Huckabee did more to take special interests out of politics than did McCain-Feingold. How, pray tell? He proved that one doesn't need a lot of money to go far in politics. On a shoestring budget, Gov. Huckabee beat Rudy Guiliani, Mitt Romney, Fred Thompson---men who raised and spent between the three of them well over $100 million.
Secondly, Gov. Huckabee ran the cleanest campaign of any candidate in the race. Yes, he did go negative for a little bit in Iowa, and some of his debate comments were pointed. But he never got as nasty as say Obama and Hillary--or for that matter, some of his opponents.
Finally, he knew how to have fun. Politics should be about getting out in the crowd and engaging the dialogue. The Governor enjoys this. And why? Because he truly cares for the people he wants to represent.
Richard Nixon once said that what separates the men from the boys in politics is that boys want to be great, while men want to do great things.
One who is only concerned about his own glory will stop fighting when the chips are down. But one who is concerned about a larger vision will keep fighting even when defeat is inevitable.
Other candidates claimed to don the mantle of Ronald Reagan. However, only Mike Huckabee demonstrated the courage that Reagan showed.
Mike Huckabee is, too.
Just like they did with Ronald Reagan in 1976, the Republican establishment has rejected an eloquent candidate with broadbased appeal and fresh ideas. ... And just like they did in 1980, I predict that the establishment will one day embrace this governor when he leads the party to victory.
Gov. Reagan... um, I mean, Huckabee.... your next to bat.
35 comments:
PUHLEEZZZ.... I see little similarity between Huck and Reagan. I must argue that if there was that much similarity, Huck would be the nominee and not somebody else. Hopefully Huck will retire or go flip burgers or something. He's not Reagan! Not even close!
Following your logic, then, Reagan should have beaten Ford in 1976.
PLEASE! MAKE IT STOP! OMG! I'm rolling on the floor laughing! LOL
Comparisons of Huckster to Regan are asinine. Take a look at a number of his decisions and policies while he was Governor of Arkansas...clearly NOT Reaganesque. Granted, he is more conservative than John McCain, but NOT Reagan. I wish we could have cryogenically frozen reagan in a glass case, with a sign that said, "In Case of Republican Party Identity Crisis, Break Glass."
Huckabee does not cater to special interest groups?
To me, the born-again evangelical special interest group is one of the most vocal and demanding in the country...and is also one closest to the heart of Huckabee since he is one of their own.
Huckabee is not the nominee because he represents the interests of born-again evangelical Christians. And no one else. Hate to tell you, but most people do not want to see Jesus Christ in the White House. Nor would He want the job, I'm sure.
Mike Up-Chuck-abee was trying so hard to be the next Jimmy Carter or the next Bill Clinton. Up-Chuck-abee is a pathetic joke and good riddance. We finally know that God does not yet want to punish us for our wickedness with one of the dumbest men who ever got into politics. I am not kidding when I say that I would have left the country if Up-Chuck-abee would have been elected President. He is neither a Conservative nor a Republican. And ryan is wrong when he says that Up-Chuck-abee is more conservative than McCain. In what area? Other than in regard to embryonic stem cell research, which is important, please let me know what area that Up-Chuck-abee is more conservative than McCain.
Obviously, my point above was that Up-Chuck-abee is no Reagan.
Ryan, I am glad that I have brought humor to your day.
Be that as it may, Huckabee and Reagan have an awful lot in common.
**They both ran against the Republican establishment in primary races where they were both told to get lost.
**In 1976, Reagan kept running even after Ford was anointed the nominee apparent. (Same with Huckabee)
**They both have the uncanny ability to connect with the average person. Of this year's batch of Republican candidates, was there anyone as eloquent and charismatic in debates and speeches?
My point vis-a-vis Reagan is that Huckabee is doing exactly what Reagan did in 1976. And just like Reagan, he now has four years to consolidate his base of support and begin fundraising for 2012.
I apologize for commenting on your post before I actually read it.
After reading it, I realized that your claim was even dumber than I originally imagined.
First of all, explain to me how Up-Chuck-abee beat Mitt Romney as you claim? Romney got out of the race weeks ago, yet still Romney ended up with more delegates than Mike Up-Chuck-abee. If you're saying that Up-Chuck-abee somehow beat Romney because he stayed in longer than Romney, then you must be saying that Ron Paul beat Up-Chuck-abee because Ron Paul is still in the race. That's just a ridiculous claim. All Up-Chuck-abee did was make sure the McCain got the nomination.
And if you think that Up-Chuck-abee was such a clean candidate that wasn't beholden to any "special interests groups" then explain to me why he appointed so many people who donated to his campaigns to high positions while Governor of Arkansas.
An independently wealthy person would seem to be less beholden to special interests because that person doesn't expect anything in return. Another corrupt former Governor of Arkansas sold away military secrets to the Chi-Comms for campaign donations. Up-Chuck-abee is no better. There was nothing clean about Up-Chuck-abee's scummy campaign. When a cadidate attacks another candidate's religious beliefs, how could it possibly be argued that he ran a clean campaign?
Up-Chuck-abee also ran a campaign of class envy. He constantly whined about how Romney was wealthier than him. Cry me a freakin river!
And Up-Chuck-abee "truly cares for the people he wants to represent?" What kind of crap is that? He only cared about himself. He was on some kind of a quest for personal glory. The best thing is that Up-Chuck-abee will go down in history as one of those "also-rans" with hardly any mention at all in the index of any book on American Presidential Elections.
Also, what separates men from boys in politics is a person not acting like a child, and Up-Chuck-abee acted like a child throughout his pathetic campaign. He constantly resulted in name-calling or childish analogies. He didn't seem to have one original thought & may have been the most simple-minded candidate to ever run for high office.
Nothing like trying to rewrite history. Romney FAR outperformed the Huckster and came within just a few points of winning florida which may have been enough to send him to the nomination. Romney showed he was able to compete nationally. Huckabee barely registered in many parts of the country (and in many of the battelground states!). Except for a segment of evangelicals, Romney was the conservative choice! Huck was able to draw just enough support to ensure McCain would win (while having NO CHANCE himself).
Finally, saying the Huckster ran a clean campaign is laughable. His was the dirtiest campaign possible. He intentionally tried to belittle another candidate's religion and try to appeal to evangelicals as the "true christian." It is really sad that some evangelicals do not understand the line that Huckabee crossed. The ironic thing is that by doing so he marginalyzed himself nationally as the "right wing evangelical/baptist preacher" candidate who had no chance of appealing to a broader segment of the population -- even most republicans.
The next Reagan?? Huck would have been criticizing Reagan for his past pro-choice stance like he did with Romney! Huckabee would have been opposed to Reagan much the same way he tried to tear down Romney. That is why the insightful Peggy Noonan (Reagan's speechwriter) considered Romney NOT HUCKABEE to be a "serious" candidate. No one who lacks such a fundamental understanding of the founding of our nation and the principles of religious liberty like Huckabee could be a serious candidate for President.
Charles Krauthammer labeled what Huckabee tried to do to Romney as "Un-American." And you believe that Huckabee ran an honorable campaign? Sure McCain always tried to be nice to Huck -- why do you think that was? It is you folks (so blinded by your fellow evangelical) that won the nomination for McCain.
So sorry that those anti-Huckabee dorks got to your site. They just don't understand, nor have a broader historical perspective on current American history. I'm sad Mike is out of the race, but I also know he will be a powerful force for conservatism and commonsense in government for years to come.
radiant times-
I'm so glad that you're wrong. Up-Chuck-abee would first have to be a "Conservative" in order to be a "force for conservatism." Up-Chuck-abee is a left-wing religious nut! That's it. Pure and simple. He thinks that he is the Messiah! He called himself the "CHRISTIAN LEADER." The only "CHRISTIAN LEADER" is one Jesus of Nazareth. So, Up-Chuck-abee's blasphemy is part of what cost him this election. Maybe he should stop comparing himself to ancient prophets and to Deity Himself. By saying that it was a miracle that he got any votes, Up-Chuck-abee was implying that he was endorsed by God too. Up-Chuck-abee is the dumbest of all dumb candidates of all time.
Mike Huckabee is the future of the Republican party.
If the talking heads had done their own homework, instead of mimicking someone else (Club for Growth-ads funded by friends of Mitt Romney), we would not all be choking down John McCain. We have Rush et al to thank for this.
Huckabee, like Reagan, was a Governor of a Democratic state before he ran for President. It is a sign of leadership to move things in your direction not throw a temper tantrum and say you will not participate if it doesn't all go your way.
Huckabee has never claimed to want to raise taxes on Wall Street. He wants to get rid of the Corporate Tax. He just wants to emphasize Main Street because that is most of American jobs are created.
Huckabee is a gifted communicator which we can see from our current President is an absolute necessity for the job.
Dollar for dollar Huckabee wiped the floor with Romney. Romney spent millions and millions of dollars and had THE best organization that money can buy. You just can't buy like-ability.
Hide and watch. Mike Huckabee is going places!
How can you say that Romney outperformed Huckabee when...
(a) Huckabee spent less money,
(b) Huckabee won more primaries (as opposed to caucuses); and
(c) Huckabee now has more delegates
If this is how you measure performance, then, man, we are screwed.
There will not be another Reagan. Mike Huckabee was as close as this contest brought us. Unless Huck is selected for some high position in the next administration, count on the suits at the RNC preempting him in future races. The RNC did all they could to prevent a Reagan presidency in the caucus and primary season of 1979-80. That they now laud him or that they would welcome another like him is laughable. If we are going to have another Reagan or anything close, we cannot look to the RNC. Ed Rollins said it best as Huck persevered. "This is not about the party. Never was."
Mike, Ed, nicely done! Encore!
Wow, there sure are alot of people who disagree with you. I don't. For some reason, people who committed there vote for McCain, Romney, and especially Ron Paul don't see and understand what a great man Mike Huckabee is. I've never seen such integrity in a person running for any government office. The problem is, no one has seen a man of great integrity run for president, so when they saw Huckabee go until the bitter end they had to put a spin on it, such as he wants to charge more for books and speeches, or he just wants to be VP (is that why Reagan didn't bow out in 76' when he barely had a shot at the nomonation). The truth is, Huckabee made a commitment to his party and all of his supporters to run until someone recieved the nomination (1191 delegates or a win at a brokered convention) and he did just that. Guiliane said he'd stay until the end, and quit after Florida. Mitt Romney said he would stay until the end but quit after super tuesday (and the reason he said he quit even the media, that loved Romney, didn't buy; and then he tries to jump on the 'straight talk express' in the most awkward and painful to watch press conference ever). Back to my point, watch the answers the candidates gave at the Reagan Library CNN debate. Mike is definately the next Ronald Reagan.
At the least, we can agree that Huckabee has more integrity that Mitt Romney (don't get me started on Romney's character, it speaks for himself, the guy that spent $50 million of his own money and got nowhere, probably spent it all on negative attack ads which was ripping the party apart).
I'm tired of hearing everybody try to fit their candidate into the Reagan mold. There was only one RR, and Huck aint him. He is his own man, with his own personality and accomplishments. He can proudly stand on what he is without everybody trying to fit him with Reagan's mantle.
And another thing... When Ronald Reagan first ran for president in 1976, he had been thinking, writing, and speaking about conservatism for over 20 years. And at a time when it was not in vogue. We need a new RR, but he or she won't look like the old one. New times call for a new ideas that fit the situation. Huckabee is a good guy, let him stand on his own merits and drop the ridiculous comparisons!
--foutsc
Now this certainly is enough to make one give up their lunch. Huckabee is probably the singular reason why we are stuck with McCain. He pealed off large chunks of voters that would normally go to the most conservative candidates. He never had much penetration beyond gullible God seekers who confuse Jesus speak with electability. I've never seen a more self centered politician who was steeped in opportunism and chicanery pretending to be above negative campaigning while relying on phone banks to slander the records of others in the race.
The man of 1000 pardons will never be President or Vice President. Thank God.
Thank you for what you wrote. There's similarities between Huckabee and Reagan, but Huckabee is his own man. There will never be another Ronald Reagan. If anyone would think back to the Reagan Library debate in January, remember Huckabee's response to the "would Ronald Reagan endorse you?" question?
(from http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/01/30/GOPdebate.transcript/)
"I think it would be incredibly presumptuous and even arrogant for me to try to suggest what Ronald Reagan would do, that he would endorse any of us against the others.
Let me just say this, I'm not going to pretend he would endorse me. I wish he would. I would love that, but I endorse him, and I'm going to tell you why.
It wasn't just his specific policies, but Ronald Reagan was something more than just a policy wonk. He was a man who loved this country, and he inspired this country to believe in itself again.
What made Ronald Reagan a great president was not just the intricacies of his policies, though they were good policies. It was that he loved America and saw it as a good nation and a great nation because of the greatness of its people.
And if we can recapture that, that's when we recapture the Reagan spirit. It's that spirit that has a can-do attitude about America's futures and that makes us love our country whether we're Democrats or Republicans. And that's what I believe Ronald Reagan did -- he brought this country back together and made us believe in ourselves.
And whether he believes in us, I hope we still believe in those things which made him a great leader and a great American."
Huckabee's his own person -- with similarities to Reagan's spirit and electoral path, and I hope, for the sake of our nation's future, that he continues on in the public forum and debate.
Huckabee's is his own person. Ronald Reagan is his own person. This is like calling a young basketball player the next Michael Jordan. Or anointing the next young golfer the next Tiger Woods.
Let Mike Huckabee be Mike Huckabee and let go of the past in Ronald Reagan.
The ad hominem character assassination attacks on Mike Huckabee are illustrative of why the GOP is not cohesive and united. And perhaps it's not meant to be. I don't know. I support the free speech rights of the anti-Huckabee crowd, but I firmly disagree with them. Yell slanted, unsubstantiated epithets if you want, but the name-calling won't earn you my respect.
Huckabee finished 3rd in a two man race!
What surprises me is how dilusional (perhaps simply politically ignorant) Huck supporters are. Guiliani supporters recognized he would have problems in the primary. Romney supporters were pleasantly surprised with how well he did and that he was the conservative choice among republicans (except for a segment of evangelicals). But Romney supporters rightly knew he would face long odds against the democratic nominee and that McCain actually stood the best chance in the geneneral election.
Huckabee supporters, on the other hand, are simply dilusional if they believe he would have stood a chance in the general. Huckabee was viewed nationally as the sideshow -- the fringe candidate who could come up with a few good lines but had zero support outside the evangelical community. He had higher negatives among conservatives than McCain! You really think that the candidate viewed as the ultra right-wing evangelical preacher who believed his candidacy was inspired by God was going to win? Simply NO sense of reality as to electability.
I do see your point but what i think that huck was running at the wrong time. in the next 4 years things may be better for him but i doubt that. I think that he is an amazing man and polititian simply born too early or too late.
Anonymous on 3/07/2008 @ 08:57:00 AM said:
"How can you say that Romney outperformed Huckabee when...
(a) Huckabee spent less money,
(b) Huckabee won more primaries (as opposed to caucuses); and
(c) Huckabee now has more delegates
If this is how you measure performance, then, man, we are screwed."
On your point (a) Once again, what is it with the class envy of Up-Chuck-abee & his supporters. Romney spent his own money & he also raised multiple times money money than Up-Chuck-abee too. Romney showed how much he cared about America by putting his money where his mouth was. He was beholden to nobody.
On your point (b): RealClearPolitics has the deligate count as follows: McCain - 1260; Romney - 272; Up-Chuck-abee - 270 & Ron Paul - 14. This is even after Romney has been out of the race for weeks.
On you point (c): What is it with you whiny Up-Chuck-abee supporters who just can't get over the fact that your candidate sucked in caucuses. The only Primaries that Up-Chuck-abee won were in racist former Confederate states. Can anybody explain to me why the Union decided to allow those people to vote again?
The sad thing is that Romney spent months trying to build bridges to the evangelical community (with much success)only to have Huckabee come along, blow the bridges up, and highlight religious differences between political candidates. Evangelicals need to put away the conspiracy theories and analyze where they are and what direction they want to go.
The result of Huckabee's tactics is that evangelicals have now built up a wall between themselves and other conservatives. They use to love National Review, Fox, Laura Ingraham, Rick Santorum, Sean, Hugh Hewitt, Peggy Noonan, Rush, Krauthammer, club for Growth, and on and on but now view them as the enemey as a result of Huckabee's candidacy. A little reflection might be in order after the heat of battle dies. Huckabee may have wonderful qualities but, upon serious reflection, many may wonder if it is really the American way to use the religion card.
More evangelicals need to recognize that Huckabee went down the wrong path early in the primary season and really ask themselves what sort of a candidate they really think is best suited to represent the country -- not just evangelicals. It would be nice to hear more evangelicals admit Huckabee made a serious mistake attempting to belittle another candidate's religion. It takes courage to stand up to someone you otherwise admire.
Between pastors Hagee insulting Catholics and Huckabee insulting the Mormons that takes care of the first and fourth largest faiths in America. The elephant in the room is that republicans have an "evangelical problem." Honestly, did these folks never take American Government 101?
Sorry, but I must chime in also.
Huckabee seems to have little support outside the Jesus vote. While I certainly appreciate evangelicals wanting "one of their own" there seems to be a great disconnect when the act as if he had a chance in the general. As has been pointed out, Romney quit weeks ago, and still got more delegates.
Maybe, just maybe, Huckabee will fire Ed Rollins, a Dick Morris clone. Perhaps he will forget his "Wall Street vs Main Street" pandering and give up the populism. If he doesn't he does not have a chance, ever, at National office. Unless by "national office" you mean President of the Southern Baptist convention.
Marshall, your facts are not correct. Huckabee has more delegates than Romney.
Here is CNN's count: Huckabee 267, Romney 255 (See http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2008/primaries/results/scorecard/#R)
Here is FoxNews count: Huckabee 278, Romney 251 (See http://elections.foxnews.com/candidates/)
Zeus, King of the dogs said:
"I am not kidding when I say that I would have left the country if Up-Chuck-abee would have been elected President."
Yet another good reason to vote for Mike in 2012!
Mary-
I give you props! That was actually pretty funny. Now, after laughing with me at the thought of me having to leave the country being another reason to vote for Up-Chuck-abee, please give me a 1st reason to vote for the moron.
And as a test, in your answer, you cannot use the words: "Huckabee is God," "Huckabee is the CHRISTIAN LEADER and the Savior of Mankind," or "Huckabee wants to die for your sins."
By the way, any delegate count that has Up-Chuck-abee beating Romney is based upon the fact that Romney released all of his Michigan delegates to our next Commander-In-Chief, United States Senator John McCain of Arizona.
Otherwise, the idiot, anti-Mormon bigot, religious extremist Mike Up-Chuck-abee loses every time. :D
Afraid not, Zeus.... if this count is based upon Romney releasing ALL of his delgates to McCain, then why would he have any delegates at all?
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