Huckabee Ends His Run for the White House

As McCain triumphs by winning the GOP nomination, a determined Mike Huckabee finishes strong. Though Huckabee dropped out following McCain’s win, he did so following a fantastic campaign run. His loss will leave many of us, his firm supporters, sorrowful and disappointed but still firm in our belief that we supported the best candidate running in 2008. Reading Mike Huckabee’s thank you letter to his supporters nearly brought tears to my eyes. The sincerity which has always impressed me shines through it, and reflects a heart that is not broken by defeat.

What is amazing is the fact that we came so far and began with so little. Due to such tremendous efforts by Huckabee and a dedicated army of volunteers we came further than many believed possible. From HucksArmy.com all the way down to individual bloggers and people standing on street corners, we supported our candidate who firmly represented our conservative voice.

Thank you Mike Huckabee for answering our conservative cry for a leader and giving it the best you had. Though I grieve that you lost, I know that God’s plans and ways are far above our plans. May you pick up the pieces and move on and not look back with “what if” but know that God is in control. My sincerest thank you for campaigning in 2008 and giving conservatives a battle flag around which to rally.

Erik B.

I’ll include his “Thank you” letter in it’s entirety.

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Mike Huckabee for President - Faith, Family, Freedom

Dear Faithful Friends,

Last night was a tough one for all of us. While Janet and I stood on the stage, we felt as if we were surrounded by a much larger family than our immediate family. We have been surrounded throughout the process by a large and growing family of faithful friends whose efforts in the campaign have humbled and amazed us day after day. I regularly wept or choked back tears just reading comments on the blog when I realized the sacrifices that so many have made for the campaign.

We had held out hope that we would win enough delegates to keep the contest going, but had vowed that if Senator McCain actually got the 1191 delegates, we would accept the will of the voters. In the end, the relentless hammering of the media that we "couldn't win" influenced enough voters and while we campaigned long and hard in the final states, it simply wasn't enough. I congratulate Senator McCain and will do what I can to assist him and influence him to take strong stands for issues that we conservatives cherish.

I don't see the long journey having reached its destination, but merely taking a detour. As my Marine friend Clebe McLary says, "I didn't lose--it's just that the game ended before I got finished playing."

In the immediate days ahead, we will be transitioning from campaign mode. For 14 months, there have been a lot of things put on hold in our lives. We have to join the many incredible people on our staff to figure out "what's next?" But this much I can tell you---we want to stay in touch and start now building a platform to continue addressing issues that brought us together in the first place.

Throughout my life, I've found that there are sometimes three possible answers to our prayers--"Yes," "No," or "Not Now." I would like to think our prayers were answered with a "Not Now."

We will keep our website up and as we transition, will want to create a way to keep in touch and continue the battle for our families, our freedom, and our future. We will also focus on assisting conservative Senate and House candidates, in places where we know our investment of time and energy can make a real difference. You can expect us to be active online as we do this and to regularly solicit your opinions and support. Too many big issues are at stake for us to sit on the sidelines.

In the immediate time, we have to make sure that we help our staff find ways to earn a living, and make sure that we don't lose the momentum of the past 14 months, but instead follow the plan:

REFLECT, REST, RENEW, and RE-BOOT!

I really welcome your input and thoughts during these coming days. Pray for us as we seek wisdom as to what steps we take now. Despite what some have thought, we really didn't have a "Plan B' in the wings--we always thought we'd be in this until the inauguration in January of 2009!

God has been so good to us! We can never fully express our gratitude for all you have done and how you have touched and blessed our lives. I truly hope I didn't let you down. I promise to you that I gave it all I had to the last minute and left it "all on the field." What is more amazing is how you were willing to be "poured out" to the point of empty in order to be with us all the way. I stand amazed by it all and overwhelmed with gratitude.

We will dust off, pick ourselves up off the canvas, and answer the bell for the next round, whatever that may be. We love you all, and trust that the journey has just begun!

With tired bodies and grateful hearts,

Mike and Janet Huckabee

McCain In Trouble

I just found this today. It's a really good point. If McCain can't spend much more cash, he's going to find it far more difficult to bring up his delegate count to 1,191.

Erik B.

Folger: McCain In Trouble

Janet Folger explains why Huckabee is the only candidate who can spend your donation:

Don't count your delegates before they're hatched.

Let me tell you why the race for the Republican nomination is not over yet. Notwithstanding Saturday Night Live skits and political pundits, Gov. Mike Huckabee doesn't need to reach 1,191 delegates to win the nomination – all he has to do is keep John McCain from doing so. And that may have just gotten easier.

A Huckabee nomination isn't so "mathematically impossible" when you consider that he may be the only one who can spend any money in the race from here on out. Highlights from a Friday Washington Post article explain:

* McCain cannot spend without risking violating the Federal Election Commission matching grant rules (he helped create). The limit is $54 million (until the convention in September), and he's "already spent $49 million."
* He can't get out of the matching grant program because there isn't an FEC quorum to vote on it.
* Knowingly violating the spending limit is a criminal offense that could put McCain at risk of stiff fines and up to five years in prison.


Don't you hate it when your ideas come back to bite you? Maybe now he's starting to understand that government regulations that stifle free speech are a bad idea. Maybe this personal lesson could turn McCain around on his McCain-Feingold gag rule, too.

Excerpt found here

The Best of Mike Huckabee video. I encourage you to distribute this clip to your friends, it's a great way to get people interested in supporting Mike Huckabee.


http://www.hucksarmy.com/videos/best_of_mike_huckabee.mov

Also, this on this page you can find all the video clips you'll ever need of Mike Huckabee.

Huckabee on Government Spending.

I agree 100 percent that government spending is out of control. We need to get some people in Washington who are going to respect for our money and not act like it belongs to them. By the way, being in debt to Communist China is NOT good business. I hope the Chinese don't decide to call the loans; they might bankrupt the US government (Just Kidding). ;)

Erik

cbsnews.com
WINDHAM, N.H. -- Speaking to a packed gymnasium Sunday, Mike Huckabee sounded off on how politicians in Washington, D.C. had spent beyond their public mandate. He then threw in a line about money printing that could have come out of Ron Paul’s mouth.

“We sent them there to cut spending, and they didn’t do it. They’ve spent more money than has ever been spent. Guess where that money is coming from. Your pocket," Huckabee said.

"Just remember this, when government says we’re giving you things, remember before the government can give you something, the government has to take it from you first. And the handling charge is extraordinary.”

“We need to say no to government spending when it’s wrecking our grandchildren’s futures. Nine trilllion dollars worth of debt on your credit card that somebody transferred to the next several generations. That’s irresponsible. And what’s their answer? Spend more. Print more, spend more.”

Interestingly, Huckabee’s words sound like an issues statement on fellow candidate Ron Paul's campaign website. It's not plagiarism, but their points are quite similar: “Today, too many politicians and lobbyists are spending America into ruin. We are nine trillion dollars in debt as a nation. Our mounting government debt endangers the financial future of our children and grandchildren. If we don’t cut spending now, higher taxes and economic disaster will be in their future — and yours. In addition, the Federal Reserve, our central bank, fosters runaway debt by increasing the money supply — making each dollar in your pocket worth less.”

At the Jan. 5 GOP debate, Ron Paul said “We run up the deficits. We tax. We borrow. We borrow from the Chinese. We can't borrow enough. Then what do we do? We print the money.”

Paul has consistently accused the government of feeding inflation by printing more money to pay debt.

Huckabee didn’t venture into the subject of inflation today, but rather continued on to revisit his own record as governor. He noted that as governor he had balanced the budget every year, transforming a budget with a $200 million deficit into an $850 million surplus when he left office.

“That’s how it’s supposed to work. Not to leave debt to your children, but leave things in better shape, not worse,” Huckabee said.

Immigration

I have been looking into Huckabee's stand on Immigration. What I find is encouraging to me. Read his stands on immigration on his official site.

He made a lot of points there and I will give you a brief synopsis.

Huckabee states that the currently unsecured borders are a top priority and that he supported the bill to appropriate money for border security.

Immigration is a national security issue that must be addressed.

He opposes amnesty to illegals currently in the states, strikes down hard on sanctuaries and places of refuge for illegals, and stands against giving driver's licenses to illegals.

This is a short condensed list but it gives you a feel for what he will do as president. I totally agree that unsecured borders are a top priority. We are spending tons of money in Iraq and around the world fighting a war on Terror. While the war on Terror is important, ( I believe in fighting terrorist on their own ground ) we are currently neglecting a massive gap in our defenses. It is deplorable that people can so easily slip into the United States. How hard would it be for a terrorist to sneak in through the Mexican or Canadian borders with a Nuclear bomb?

Who is on the top of the list of terrorist targets? America. Then why on earth can't these people in our government get their priorities straight? We need our borders secured and secured now.

All the fuss about what to do with people who are already here is silly. They broke our laws, came here wrongly, and neither they nor anyone else should complain if they are deported. Hey guys, if I went to Mexico illegally and the Mexican government said, "Get out" then I would not be mad at the government. After all, it would be my fault and I'd be in the wrong for being there!

I am tired of watching people act like they don't know what to do about the immigration problem. The answers are crystal clear, unfortunately, people in government often do not want to implement and enforce their own laws.

I Really Like This one

I really like this story. Huckabee is a Christian and he pulls no punches when questioned about his faith and beliefs. He refuses to back down and devoutly defends what he believes to be the truth. He is unashamedly, an Evangelical Christian who is in politics.
Go Huckabee!
Erik B.




AP Texas News

Dec. 23, 2007, 1:36PM
Huckabee makes no apologies for Christmas ad in sermon

By ELIZABETH WHITE Associated Press Writer
© 2007 The Associated Press

SAN ANTONIO — Republican Mike Huckabee made no apologies on Sunday for a recent Christmas ad with a religious tone and said it's important to find Jesus at this time of year.

"You can find Santa at every mall. You can find discounts in every store," Huckabee said while speaking at the Cornerstone Church in San Antonio. "But if you mention the name of Jesus, as I found out recently, it upsets the whole world. Forgive me, but I thought that was the point of the whole day."

Huckabee was apparently referring to a recent ad that shows him sitting next to a Christmas tree as the carol "Silent Night" plays in the background. In the ad, Huckabee says this is the time of year to "remember that what really matters is the celebration of the birth of Christ and being with our family and friends."

Last week in Houston, Huckabee brushed off criticism of the ad. Huckabee also said that if someone can't offer wishes for a Merry Christmas, "then we're really, really in trouble as a country."

When he delivered his speech at a second service Sunday, Huckabee said: "I got in a little trouble this last week because I actually had the audacity to say 'Merry Christmas.' Isn't that an odd thing to say at this time of year?"

Also in the ad was a cross-like image created by a white bookcase in the background. Huckabee said the bookshelf is just a bookshelf.

The surging candidate, an ordained Southern Baptist minister and former Arkansas governor, offered a more than 30-minute sermon to the nearly full 5,500-seat auditorium. The sermon focused on the meaning of the Christmas story, which he said is really the "remarkable story of an unwed teenage mother."

"The great truth of Christmas is that no matter how good we are, we're not good enough to know God without the Christ," Huckabee said. "And no matter how bad ... we are not so bad that He can not find us."

Thanks to chron.com for this article.

Hillary Not Funny

I just saw this video of Huckabee. It's not recent, but it's pretty good. Huckabee is commenting on the rather disturbing possibility a of Clinton Administration. Enjoy.

Erik B.