buzzz worthy. . .
"I grew up blue collar--not blue blood," said Mike Hukabee yesterday in his hometown of Hope, AK when announcing his candidacy for President of the United States. In an interview he said he did not run in 2012 because he thought it would be hard to defeat a sitting president. In 2008 the Republican minister and former Arkansas governor campaigned for the presidency, but lost the Republican bid to John McCain. Huckabee said he is more prepared the second time around.
Hope, AK is also the hometown of former Pres. Bill Clinton. Clinton served as governor of AK for 12 years before taking root in Washington. Huckabee understands winning support from his own state will be challenging. To keep the support of the conservative base he is positioning himself as a regular man who has not forgotten where he came from. To expand his base he is pitching himself as the best Republican to defeat Hillary Clinton, the presumed Democrat forerunner. Huckabee is selling t-shirts on his Web site that read, "Defeat the Clinton Machine."
Huckabee and the Clintons are amicable, but the smack talking has already begun for Mr. Clinton. He said in an earlier interview that Huckbee is the Dark Horse and can not beat his wife.
A Hillary take down won't be easy, however.
According to statements on the website of the local ABC affliate KATV, he has defeated numerous Clinton allies in the past. . .
“Every opponent Huckabee faced in 1993, 1994, 1998 and 2002 was a Clinton ally who was endorsed by, supported by, or had fundraisers held by Bill and Hillary Clinton – and he defeated them all,” the memo says.
Huckabee made it clear in his speech that he will run against the Democrats and their likely nominee Hillary Clinton, not the growing field of declared GOP candidates - at least for now.
“It was 8 years ago that a young, untested, inexperienced and virtually unknown freshman senator made great speeches about hope and change. But eight years later, our debt's more than doubled, America's leadership in the world is completely evaporated and the country is more polarized than ever in my lifetime," Huckabee said. "93 million Americans don't have jobs, and many of them who do have seen their full-time job with benefits they once had become two part-time jobs with no benefits at all. We were promised hope…but it was just talk. And now we need the kind of change that really could get America from hope to higher ground.”
Holly Shulman, National Press Secretary for the Democratic National Committee, released the following statement after Huckabee's announcement:
“Mike Huckabee's decision to throw his hat into the GOP ring tells us all we need to know about who the Republican Party is and what they believe. This Republican candidate for president said that being gay is a lifestyle choice akin to using profanity. He opposes a woman's right to make her own health care decisions, and wants to repeal the Affordable Care Act and return control to the insurance companies. It's one thing to spout off nonsense on his TV show, but for Mike Huckabee to present his ideas as legitimate policies for a presidential campaign is insulting to the American people, though I can't say I am particularly surprised. I mean, have you heard the rest of the Republican hopefuls? Mike Huckabee's vision for America is out of touch, in many cases completely out of line and would take the country backwards."
On Wednesday, Huckabee begins the in Iowa, which he won in the 2008 caucus.
"I grew up blue collar--not blue blood," said Mike Hukabee yesterday in his hometown of Hope, AK when announcing his candidacy for President of the United States. In an interview he said he did not run in 2012 because he thought it would be hard to defeat a sitting president. In 2008 the Republican minister and former Arkansas governor campaigned for the presidency, but lost the Republican bid to John McCain. Huckabee said he is more prepared the second time around.Hope, AK is also the hometown of former Pres. Bill Clinton. Clinton served as governor of AK for 12 years before taking root in Washington. Huckabee understands winning support from his own state will be challenging. To keep the support of the conservative base he is positioning himself as a regular man who has not forgotten where he came from. To expand his base he is pitching himself as the best Republican to defeat Hillary Clinton, the presumed Democrat forerunner. Huckabee is selling t-shirts on his Web site that read, "Defeat the Clinton Machine."
Huckabee and the Clintons are amicable, but the smack talking has already begun for Mr. Clinton. He said in an earlier interview that Huckbee is the Dark Horse and can not beat his wife.
A Hillary take down won't be easy, however.
According to statements on the website of the local ABC affliate KATV, he has defeated numerous Clinton allies in the past. . .
“Every opponent Huckabee faced in 1993, 1994, 1998 and 2002 was a Clinton ally who was endorsed by, supported by, or had fundraisers held by Bill and Hillary Clinton – and he defeated them all,” the memo says.
Huckabee made it clear in his speech that he will run against the Democrats and their likely nominee Hillary Clinton, not the growing field of declared GOP candidates - at least for now.
“It was 8 years ago that a young, untested, inexperienced and virtually unknown freshman senator made great speeches about hope and change. But eight years later, our debt's more than doubled, America's leadership in the world is completely evaporated and the country is more polarized than ever in my lifetime," Huckabee said. "93 million Americans don't have jobs, and many of them who do have seen their full-time job with benefits they once had become two part-time jobs with no benefits at all. We were promised hope…but it was just talk. And now we need the kind of change that really could get America from hope to higher ground.”
Holly Shulman, National Press Secretary for the Democratic National Committee, released the following statement after Huckabee's announcement:
“Mike Huckabee's decision to throw his hat into the GOP ring tells us all we need to know about who the Republican Party is and what they believe. This Republican candidate for president said that being gay is a lifestyle choice akin to using profanity. He opposes a woman's right to make her own health care decisions, and wants to repeal the Affordable Care Act and return control to the insurance companies. It's one thing to spout off nonsense on his TV show, but for Mike Huckabee to present his ideas as legitimate policies for a presidential campaign is insulting to the American people, though I can't say I am particularly surprised. I mean, have you heard the rest of the Republican hopefuls? Mike Huckabee's vision for America is out of touch, in many cases completely out of line and would take the country backwards."
On Wednesday, Huckabee begins the in Iowa, which he won in the 2008 caucus.