NY Times Profile on Mike Huckabee

As readers of this blog know, we have been saying for some time that Mike Huckabee could be the best Republican candidate to run for President in 2008 and, consequently, the worst Republican candidate for the Democrats. This is because of his populist message that blends social conservatism with economic populism. This message is one that could appeal to voters who are conservative on issues such as abortion and gay rights, but back programs such as Medicare, Social Security, and increases in the minimum wage.

In the past a lot of these voters voted for Reagan in 1980 and 1984, but many of them voted for Clinton in 1992 and 1996 because of economic issues. They voted for Bush in 2000 and 2004, but voted for Strickland and other state-wide Democrats in 2006. In particular these voters are important for Democrats in the southeastern part of the state, an area that is socially conservative, but needs economic help. It is no cocidence that Governor Ted Stricland comes from that part of the state. Because he came from the part of the state, working class voters who support Democrats on economic issues but disagree with the party's liberal orthodoxy on social issues felt comfortable voting for him.

The New York Times has an article up about Mike Huckabee in which Huckabee is depicted as roiling the Republican establishment by running a populist campaign. Interestingly his principal advisor is Ed Rollins who worked on the Perot campaign in 1992. That campaign, especially in Ohio, was very successful for a third party campaign. Its appeal was built on getting votes from "angry white males" and other so-called Reagan Democrats.

What is ticking off parts of the GOP is that Huckabee is not afraid of attacking the Bush adminisration on foreign policy or how it handled the war in Iraq. He is not afraid of saying that he raised taxes to pay for goverment services such as roads, schools, etc. He is described by Rick Santorum, the former right-wing Senator from Pennslyvania, as a "pairie populist" who would appeal to working class voters in the southwestern part of his state. In short, after years of using such voters to gain power and then screwing them over in favor of giving tax breaks to the wealthy and corporations, the Republican establishment is worried that they are now deciding they want to drive the bus, not just sit in the back. In will be interesting to see what Huckabee does in the Republican primaries.