Values Voters Heart Mike Huckabee

[rusethorcain]

The only law beside love God with all your heart is love your brother as yourself The greatest virtue is LOVE and the only unforgivable sin is a sin against the spirit. We are essentially spirit. To forbid marriage of soul mates based on external gender denies spirit LOVE it is entitled to. God can forgive mercy - NOT vengeance. Cain killed Abel yet God promised punishment 7X over to whoever took revenge on Cain. How much more he must hate your smug & merciless judgment on these, His children.

[RockyBalboa211]

God bless Huckabee!

[chukmaty]

Finally Karen,

You do not take note that taxes in Arkansas were extremely low when Huckabee took office and that they were extremely low after he left. Also, when taxes were levied, Huckabee was able to demonstrate that the funds were used wisely. Roads went from worst to most improved, schools went from second worst to top ten, nursing homes were on the brink of disaster and Huckabee fixed much of the issues, 50% reduction in welfare recipients...

Oh yea, Reagan raised taxes more in Cali.

[karen32862]

Oh please. Didnt these people learn anything from the last election? Can we please have a REAL fiscal conservative candidate the next election? No more Mclames, no more hucksters.

[chukmaty]

Hate to break it to you, but Huckabee was more fiscally conservative than Romney, Hunter, and probably even Thompson.

[karen32862]

Exactly, and that isnt saying much about the huckster.

[chukmaty]

Who would you consider to be a "real" fiscal conservative if Huckabee, who kept taxes in Arkansas far below the national average when the overwhelming democratic majority wanted them much higher, is not good enough?

Don't say Ron Paul, he is after all a big time sponsor of earmarks and pork projects.

[karen32862]

I dont see anyone in the GOP right now that is fiscally conservative with the ability to lead. However, huckster is not & never was a real fiscal conservative. He was TERRIBLE on taxes. He raised the tax burden over 40%. He raised sales taxes, taxes on food, the gas tax, and taxes on nursing homes. He fought for an internet tax. His philosphy is big government, not small government. He may bave been most conservative of the bunch, but the bunch wasnt conservative to begin with.

[chukmaty]

You raped the numbers there, and saying "the bunch wasn't conservative to begin with" is baloney.

Reagan raised taxes as Governor of California, and the libertarians whined about it like crazy (I am serious, check late 70s Reason back issues) but he was the most conservative President since Calvin Coolidge.

Huckabee took the circumstances he had and made the best of them. Education improved, and yes part of that was because of spending increases as well as intense accountability measures.

[chukmaty]

Also a big expenditure was on road building, do you have a problem with a state building and reparing roads? I do not. I appreciate that while Minnesota's liberal legislature broke middle class family's gas budget with the Gas Tax here that will not go towards transportation directly, at least one state could levy a tax that actually accomplished what it set out to do (pay off the dept on the road construction).

Huckabee is not liberal just because he got shit done in Arkansas.

[karen32862]

I do have a problem with taxing the elderly (nursing home beds), and with taxing food. Obama is getting "shit" done too, so does that make him fiscally responsible? I never said huckster was a liberal. However, he is NOT a fiscal conservative. There HAS to be a better alternative out there than huckster or Mclame.

[chukmaty]

The tax burden on nursing homes would have been much higher if Huckabee had not acted quickly, things do not happen in a vacuum Karen. I am sure that if we sat down and talked about our principles, we would hardly disagree on anything and that we would have a lot of mutual respect for one another. But you are taking Huckabee on rather unfairly by not looking at the issues for what they were. I am sure he was not perfect, but taxes would have been higher if he had not been gov.

[karen32862]

I am sure we would agree on much. I just dont agree about huckabee. I do not see his record as fiscally responsible or conservative. I also do not like him personally. I see him as a shady, insincere character. In any case, I sure hope we can do better than McCain in the next election. And no, I do not think Romney would make a good candidate either.

[chukmaty]

I actually think either Huck or Romney would be a great candidate, like Huckabee more as he seemed like a bi partisan Governor who looked at the bottom line before anything else and didn't get locked into partisan silliness.

How would you say Huckabee could have performed better in resolving the nursing home care crisis, the transportation needs, and the horrid education standards from the Clinton/Tucker era with a 90% Democrat control of the state? What would make you think better of him?

[chukmaty]

Finally, do you consider Reagan a conservative even though he raised taxes as Governor of California significantly?

[karen32862]

Yes, I do consider Reagan a conservative. He didnt JUST raise taxes. He also FROZE hiring of gov employees, and cut spending in other areas. He raised taxes to balance a budget, not to enable more spending and create bigger government.

[chukmaty]

See, that is were you have Huckabee wrong. He cut government a ton were it neeed to be cut. Also remember that not all states are the same, Arkansas was/is leaner to begin with. Most of their budget was required for prisons, federally mandated medicare, and for schools. And Huckabee still found a way to cut the budget and only raise taxes marginally.

[chukmaty]

Remember that slanderous and completely out of context clip of a much fatter Huckabee "asking" for tax hikes? Try and find the whole speech, I think it might have been taken down, but if it is still up you will see what Huckabee is really all about. He cuts government spending first, and only raises taxes for specific purposes as needed. He also is exceedingly persuasive as a conservative even in an ultra hostile environments.

[karen32862]

Ill be honest & say I have no idea what he could have done better. However, I think there must be alternatives before taxing food and the elderly. As for education, I live in Milwaukee and I know from experience more money NEVER fixes the education problem. Were spending cuts tried? I question politicians who run to taxing as their first solution. I cant stand huckabee personally. There is somethin about him that comes off as insincere and shady. Like he should crawl back under his rock.

[nrobyar]

I dont know where you formed this opinion of Gov. Huckabee but it couldn't be further from the truth! Everyone who knows Gov. Huckabee agrees he is the real deal. You couldn't find a more "real" candidate. He was voted one of the 5 best Gov. in the US so he must have done SOMETHING right. Remember, he was in a democratic state with democraic majority yet he was STILL able to get much done for Ark. and win the title one of the best....