Please do not try to convince me that the religious right is not still playing a major role in Republican politics. And definitely do not try to convince me that a very conservative, white, deeply religious viewpoint has not played a pivotal role in Governor Mike Huckabee’s rising poll numbers among prospective Republican voters.

Roughly four in ten white evangelical Christians have made a change in who they say they will vote for since November, similar to other Republicans who shifted candidates. But 56 percent of evangelicals who found another candidate flocked to Mike Huckabee, an ordained Baptist minister, giving him 36 percent of the support of one of the GOP’s heavyweight voting blocs, well ahead of all his rivals.

The intensely religious were even more restless—and thus even more taken with Huckabee’s openly religious appeal. (He is running ads in select states that are all but evangelical sermons! He is using these in Iowa and South Carolina but not in New Hampshire, where his ads are quite different if there are run at all these days.) Among evangelicals who are conservative and attend church weekly, 54 percent switched candidates last month—and 61 percent of the switchers moved to Huckabee. The strategy is working, so far.

"He believes in what I believe in. I’m a Christian," said truck driver Jerry Steadman, 53, of Inman, S.C.

Yet even Huckabee is not immune to the voters’ evolving tastes—83 percent who moved to him said they were still open to changing again. I believe if these voters really understood his actual record in Arkansas on issues like taxes and the use of personal perks (and this is without getting into his intemperate tirades against the press), they will rethink his candidacy and fitness to lead the nation. Much of this is only now being flushed out by his opponents due to the fresh enthusiasm that he has garnered over the past month or so.

But there are quite a few white Christians in America like Jerry Steadman. If a candidate believes in the basic, conservative and “religious right” interpretation of the Christian faith then Huckabee is likely to be their man. He sure can talk their talk, as evidenced by his appearance with the famous, and often controversial, television preacher John Hagee this past weekend. This visit gathered some serious protest against Huckabee from another religious group, Roman Catholics. Catholics rightly see Hagee as evidence of a continuing strain of rather virulent anti-Catholicism.

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Comments

  1. Danny December 29, 2007 at 6:44 pm

    I find Huckabee such an interesting candidate. I don’t think he can win, but I definitely think he was underestimated up to this point. We certainly will see the dirt fly from all sides in the near future.

  2. Anonymous December 31, 2007 at 11:37 am

    Danny,
    I do not want “dirt to fly”. Nor do I want to make unfair personal attacks either. But the facts need to be told.
    A Huckabee presidency would be very damaging to our country.
    Huckabee’s theology is very poor because he often confuses the kingdom of God with the kingdom of man. He has openly advocated for the government to neglect its God-ordained function (see Romans 13) of punishing evil and enforcing laws. He misquotes Scripture often when he appeals to a vague notion of “compassion”, in order to justify his unbiblical positions on releasing convicted murderers early and rewarding illegal aliens with the gift of USA citizenship. I believe this article reveals some important facts concerning a future Huckabee presidency:
    http://ace.mu.nu/archives/247835.php
    Huckabee has released more convicted murderers than 6 other states combined. His sense of “compassion” is not biblical. For documentation, please see this:
    http://hotair.com/archives/2007/12/05/huckabee-granted-more-clemencies-than-six-neighboring-states-combined/
    http://hotair.com/archives/2007/12/05/huckabee-on-dumond-the-parole-board-members-who-said-i-lobbied-them-are-lying/
    As a matter of fact, one Arkansas prosecutor actually begged Mike Huckabee to stop granting clemencies. See below:
    http://www.arkansasnews.com/archive/2004/07/16/News/257786.html
    Furthermore, there are some serious ethical questions surrounding Governor Huckabee’s character. See below:
    http://www.spectator.org/dsp_article.asp?art_id=12205
    http://www.tnr.com/politics/story.html?id=0f9a4c7e-8215-47ca-8847-4beeaf747b8e
    Again, I do not want to make personal attacks against Huckabee. I used to be a fan of his. But the documented facts, combined with his unbiblical positions, have convinced me to not support him for the GOP nomination.
    I am not questioning Mike’s salvation or anything else. I am only commenting on his candidacy.
    Ultimately, I believe the main problem with a Huckabee Presidency is his unbiblical theology. He wants to erase or remove the Biblical distinctions between the church and state. He wants the state to ignore its God-ordained functions in the name of “compassion,” which he then defines unbiblically.

  3. David December 31, 2007 at 11:28 pm

    http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=26312
    INTERVIEW: Governor Huckabee Addresses Anti-Catholicism and Abortion
    By Deacon Keith Fournier
    12/29/2007
    Catholic Online
    http://www.catholic.org/politics/story.php?id=26206
    EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Governor Huckabee Speaks with Catholic Online
    By Deacon Keith Fournier
    12/15/2007
    Catholic Online
    http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=26186&wf=rsscol
    COMMENTARY: Huckabee and Catholics
    By Deacon Keith Fournier
    12/13/2007
    Catholic Online

  4. Kristine January 2, 2008 at 1:15 pm

    I found your post about the religious right and Mike Hucabee very interesting. However, I also found it very disturbing that each of your statistics dealt with only white evangelicals. Why such a focus on only one race? I find this very disturbing, and am curious the reasoning behind such racist facts to back up your point of view.

  5. ColtsFan January 2, 2008 at 2:16 pm

    I do not want to make unfair personal attacks either. But the facts need to be told.
    A Huckabee presidency would be very damaging to our country.
    Huckabee’s theology is very poor because he often confuses the kingdom of man with the kingdom of God. He has openly advocated for the government to neglect its God-ordained function (see Romans 13) of punishing evil and enforcing laws. He misquotes Scripture often when he appeals to a vague notion of “compassion”, in order to justify his unbiblical positions on releasing convicted murderers early and rewarding illegal aliens with the gift of USA citizenship. I believe this article, written by an Evangelical, reveals some important facts concerning a future Huckabee presidency:
    http://ace.mu.nu/archives/247835.php

  6. ColtsFan January 2, 2008 at 2:20 pm

    I believe when a Christian politician confuses the 2 Kingdoms, then only problems result. Because of Huckabee’s confusion over the 2 kingdoms, he redefines “compassion” differently.
    Huckabee has released more convicted murderers than 6 other states combined. His sense of “compassion” is not biblical. For documentation, please see this:
    http://hotair.com/archives/2007/12/05/huckabee-granted-more-clemencies-than-six-neighboring-states-combined/
    http://hotair.com/archives/2007/12/05/huckabee-on-dumond-the-parole-board-members-who-said-i-lobbied-them-are-lying/
    As a matter of fact, one Arkansas prosecutor actually begged Mike Huckabee to stop granting clemencies. See below:
    http://www.arkansasnews.com/archive/2004/07/16/News/257786.html

  7. ColtsFan January 2, 2008 at 3:26 pm

    Kristine wrote earlier,
    “Why such a focus on only one race? I find this very disturbing, and am curious the reasoning behind such racist facts to back up your point of view.”
    Kristine,
    John Armstrong’s genuine concern for racial harmony and racial equality are well-known to everyone here. Internationally, John is known for building bridges of love and understanding across racial divides.
    When he quotes statistics, he is using them as descriptive only. He is not using statistics in a normative sense.

  8. ColtsFan January 2, 2008 at 3:33 pm

    I too share Danny’s concern about “dirt flying.” I do not want to participate in a unfair, smear campaign against Huckabee myself. But I am very concerned about Huckabee’s character though.
    I think there are character qualification which the Bible speaks about.
    Should I overlook these character qualifications simply because Huckabee is a Christian? Does Huckabee get a “free pass” because he is a Christian? I think all of us would answer “no.” But these documented articles below really concerned me about Mike Huckabee’s character.
    http://www.spectator.org/dsp_article.asp?art_id=12205
    http://www.tnr.com/politics/story.html?id=0f9a4c7e-8215-47ca-8847-4beeaf747b8e

  9. ColtsFan January 8, 2008 at 4:15 am

    Evangelicals, on Biblical grounds alone, do have reason to vote against Mike Huckabee.
    http://kimriddlebarger.squarespace.com/the-latest-post/2008/1/7/mike-huckabee-and-the-two-kingdoms.html

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