Our featured Presidential candidate for today is Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, a Republican.
I first heard of Mike Huckabee when he was on Real Time with Bill Maher. Bill Maher is a liberal host with liberal guests and a rabidly liberal audience, so I root for any Republican who goes on his show. Whenever someone is introduced as a conservative or a Republican, I say, "Okay, it looks like you're holding the fort tonight." A Republican who appears on Real Time is entering a lion's den. From what I can remember, Huckabee did all right in debating the liberal guests, but he spent most of his time touting his personal weight-loss program.
Overall, I like Mike Huckabee, though I have questions about some of his policies as Arkansas Governor. He is a solid social conservative with a pro-life record. He opposed homosexual marriage and civil unions, and yet he also worked to reduce the number of divorces in his state. He is a true supporter of traditional marriage. Some conservatives have criticized him for saying that he "respects" homosexual couples, but I think that's just his tact. I believe that the state should uphold the traditional definition of marriage rather than allowing marriage to mean anything and everything, but I also agree that we should respect the dignity of all people, whether or not we agree with their lifestyles.
He is a Christian and a former minister. I like the way that he discusses the relevance of faith to his own life and his policy positions. His demeanor is that of a mild-mannered, gentle soul with the heart of a servant. I remember when I was watching Hannity and Colmes, and I saw him helping reporters take a picture. That probably doesn't impress a lot of people, but I'm attracted to the little things that demonstrate a person's character. He has been ridiculed for not believing in evolution, but he appears able to discuss the issue in an intelligent manner. On the Charlie Rose Show, he talked about a book he read by Francis Collins, a contributor to the Human Genome Project who has tried to reconcile faith with evolution. So Huckabee is a thoughtful Christian who reads books and thinks about his faith.
What concerns a lot of conservatives, of course, is his record on taxes, spending, and illegal immigration. I'm not sure what to make of his record on taxes and spending, and you can read the debate and links about it in the wikipedia article. My impression is that he cut taxes and spending when he first became Governor, but he gradually became more of a taxer and spender as his administration continued. There were taxes that he cut, and there were taxes that he increased. According to his critics, the taxes that he cut were not that significant.
He is proud of a state health insurance program for low-income children that he helped pass, and I do not judge him for his desire to help children. I hope, though, that his tendency is not to see more government spending as the solution to everything. On the Charlie Rose Show, he seemed to have an intellectual understanding of the problems with socialized medicine. He said that socialized medicine would lead to rationed health care, since the government could only allot a certain amount of money to health care each year.
On illegal immigration, he "vehemently opposed a 2005 bill sponsored by Arkansas State Senator Jim Holt which would deny state benefits to illegal immigrants, calling it 'un-Christian'" (wikipedia). He doesn't seem to maintain this stance as a Presidential candidate, however, showing that even principled people can pander. I admire the way that his faith leads him to have compassion for people, whether they be low-income children, illegal immigrants, or the heroes who have returned from Iraq (he has criticized the government's poor treatment of veterans). This quality attracts people who normally would not vote Republican, for he received 48% of the African-American vote when he ran for Governor of Arkansas.
I hope that Huckabee realizes that government is not always the solution, even as he continues to remember that there are real people who need help. I'm against socialized medicine, for example, but the alternative should not be the status quo, since health care costs too much in the United States. The right approach is to develop conservative solutions, and that is hopefully what Huckabee is trying to do. Regarding illegal immigration, I like the way that he sees the humanity of those who come here illegally in search of a better life, but he should recognize that illegal immigrants cost the American people in a number of ways. So Huckabee's compassion is a good thing, as long as it does not lead him to problematic "solutions."