Does Huckabee mix politics and religion too much?
November 6th, 2009 Posted in Mitt Romney
Do you think Mike Huckabee mixes religion and government too much? I would love to have your help organizing the debate!
- Identity politics is bad. Huckabee has two identity politics. He says vote for me, I’m an evangelical. and Vote for me, I’m not rich. For instance, Huckabee said, speaking of himself, “for a long time, those of us who are people of faith are asked to support candidates who would come and talk to us. But rarely has there been one who comes from us.” So in other words people should vote for him because he is evangelical. Huckabee also said, “I believe most Americans want their next president to remind them of the guy they work with, not the guy who laid them off”. In other words, vote for Huckabee, he has never been “the boss”. He also said, “I hate to say ‘poor Mitt,’ because a man with that much wealth is hardly ‘poor anything,’”. Again, as always, ready to point out that Mitt Romney made a heck of a lot of money in his life.
- While he ran for president, in Iowa, New Hampshire, and Michigan, he was a guest preacher at many evangelical churches (for an example google “First Baptist North Spartanburg Church and Huckabee”). This is getting people to vote for you because of your religion, and not because of specific government policies. We do not want identity politics in America. People should vote for you over the policy decisions, and when you are a guest preacher at the same time you are running for president, that plays too much to identity politics.
- Mike Huckabee’s official website linked to 4 blogs with the word “pastor” in them.
- Huckabee’s website was a clearinghouse of anti-Mormon information.
- Huckabee told 700 bloggers who support him that they “You’re doing the Lord’s work.” Huckabee thinks that helping him win the presidential election is “doing the lord’s work”. Does he think he is devine?
- At a Republican Governors Association Dinner speech in 2004, Huckabee had a mock three-minute telephone conversation with God. During that time, Huckabee said that “we kind of think you’d hang in there with us, Lord, we really do.”
- In 1998, Huckabee spoke at the National Pastors’ Conference and said he entered politics to “take this nation back for Christ.”
- “[Some of my opponents] do not want to change the Constitution, but I believe it’s a lot easier to change the constitution than it would be to change the word of the living God, and that’s what we need to do is to amend the Constitution so it’s in God’s standards rather than try to change God’s standards.” As a closing statement he asked the room of nearly 500 supporters to “pray and then work hard, and in that order,” to help him secure a victory in Tuesday’s GOP primary.HUCK, THE CONSTITUTION AND ‘GOD’S STANDARDS’, Posted: Tuesday, January 15, 2008 11:19 AM by Domenico Montanaro
- Huckabee tried to push the story that Mormons believe that we are all God’s children, but that Christ is the only “begotten” son of God. But Huckabee pushed the controversial interpretation of this, that if Mormons believe that we are all God’s children, including Satan and Jesus, that that would make them brothers.
- Huckabee ran commercials in Iowa, and South Carolina (very evangelical states), when evangelicals were having problems accepting Romney, who is a Mormon, as Christian. These commercials referred to himself as a “Christian leader”.
- When Romney ran adds that dealt with issues, Huckabee got in-front of a Camera, with silent night playing in the background, in front of a Christmas tree, and with a big cross behind him said, “Are you about worn out of all the television commercials you have been seeing? Mostly about politics. I don’t blame you. At this time of year sometimes it’s nice to pull aside from all of that and remember what really matters is the calibration of the birth of Christ, and being with our family, and friends. I hope that you and your family have a magnificent Christmas season, and on behalf of all of us, God bless, and marry Christmas. I’m Mike Huckabee, and I approve of this message.”
- Huckabee used religion to his advantage, running commercials in Iowa and South Carolina calling himself a “Christian Leader”, and running Merry Christmas, Christ is the reason for the season commercials. However when he got to Florida, and people were less afraid of a Mormon president, he complained in the Myrtle Beach debate that: “Everybody says religion is off limits, except we always can ask me the religious question.” So Huckabee wants to have it both ways. When he is in mono-culture evangelical states he interrupted Rudolph W. Giuliani for a chance to answer a religious question, saying, “Can I help you out, Mayor, on this one?” Mr. Huckabee volunteered. So he interups other people when they get asked religions questions in Iowa, but complains that he gets too many religious questions in Florida. He complains that people asked him too many religious questions, but said in one commercial that, “Faith doesn’t just influence me. It defines me.” This was seen as a slap in the face to Mitt Romney who said that he was able to separate his religious beliefs from his political beliefs, which some evangelicals had problems with. See ”
Between Pulpit and Podium, Huckabee Straddles Fine Line” in the New York Times by DAVID D. KIRKPATRICK and MICHAEL POWELL January 19, 2008 - Huckabee said that social conservatives need a candidate who speaks “the language of Zion as a mother tongue.”
- Huckabee compared himself to “the prophets of old, the ones who spoke truth to power.”
- Huckabee held a closed-door breakfast with 50 local pastors in Grand Rapids. (New York Times, ”Huckabee Splits Young Evangelicals and Old Guard” January 13th 2008)
- Huckabee used church directories to make phone calls, courting local pastors and leafleting church parking lots. (New York Times,
“Huckabee Splits Young Evangelicals and Old Guard” January 13th 2008). - Just as small-government and foreign-policy conservatives could not win a primary without evangelicals evangelicals can not win without most of the rest of those coalitions.
- Huckabee said, speaking of himself, “for a long time, those of us who are people of faith are asked to support candidates who would come and talk to us. But rarely has there been one who comes from us.” Really? So Bush was not someone of Faith? Clinton was not someone of Faith? Reagan was not someone of faith? Carter was not someone of faith? Ford was not a person of faith? John F. Kennedy. What the hell is he talking about?
- At a Michigan pastors’ meeting, Huckabee encouraged his aids to “mobilize people of like mind and spirit” by tapping their e-mail lists and phone lists. That strategy helped him in Iowa, where about 80 percent of his voters identified themselves as “born again” or “evangelical.” His views on many policy issues, such as health care, are not specific, but he supports constitutional bans on same-sex marriage and abortion, and has suggested that he would be comfortable displaying the Ten Commandments in the White House.
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- Mike Huckabee’s official website linked to these websites:
- Witness Daily
- Pre Law Christian
- Pastor Mike
- Daily Thoughts on the Bible
- Christian Conservative
- Fundamentally Reformed
- Pray for Mike
- A Son of God
- God, Politics, Lessons Learned
- I Pray For Mike
- Sermons from the Pew
- Christian Financial Radio Network
- Gospel Fellowship Pastor’s Blog
- Ministers for Huckabee
- A PoliChristian Point of View
- Virginia Christian Conservative
- Southern Baptist for Huckabee
- Christians for Huckabee Mobilize
- NJ Christians for Huckabee
- A True Believer’s Blog
- Active Christian Media
- Liberty University for Huckabee
- An Evangelical With Guts!!
- Evangelical Outpost
- Mere Orthodoxy
- Christianity Lived Out
- ISawTheLight
- Christian Events
- Pastor Dave Mason
- The Evangelical Ecologist
- Prayerfully Penned
- Missions Minded
- Shed His Grace On Thee
- Faithbase: Huckabee 08
- Christianity Live Out
- A Young Pastor’s Perspective
- Pastors for Huckabee
- We Want A Christian President
- The Christ Follower
- Saved By Grace
- Jesus Is Extravagant
- Praise And Coffee
- The Christ Follower Blog
- Pastor Steve Weaver’s Blog
- Pastor Jon
- Mike Huckabee’s official website linked to these websites:
- Huckabee let people who said they were “born again” out of jail, like Wayne Dumond, who raped and killed at least one other person, after Huckabee let him go. (LA Times, Richard A. Serrano, Dec 8 2007)
- Groupism. Promoting Mormonism, by promoting Mitt Romney, who was Huckabee’s main rival.
- Groupism. Promoting someone who is not from a mainstream protestant religion, if they are not mainstream prodistant.
- The desire to be seen as unique, by evangelicals who agree.
- The desire to reform the evangelical’s image, by evangelicals who agree.
- Promoting more interaction of religion and politics.
- Groupism. Opposing Mormonism, by Opposing Mitt Romney, who was Huckabee’s main rival.
- Opposing more interaction of religion and politics.
November 6th, 2009 at 11:01 pm
At first I was disgusted, but after a little thought, I reckon it’s a good thing that Huckabee leads the GOP poll (see USA Today this week) by a hair over Romney, followed by Palin. Now Huckabee can’t claim to be the poor underdog fighting for a chance to say his bit. Let the world listen to his gobsmack and see him as a poor man’s Obama. And I hope Palin stays in the race. With Huckabee and Palin fighting for the ignorant evangelist vote, Romney may just slide in there with a victory the way McCain did when Romney and Shmuckabee split the vote.
November 7th, 2009 at 7:48 pm
I’m sorry, Neither Huckabee or Palin can touch Mitt Romney’s expertise, brilliant business knowledge, and seasoned years of experience.
Huckabee does mix too much religion with politics, in my opinion… Romney 2012…I hope he runs….
November 8th, 2009 at 12:41 am
I agree Paulee, Mitt Romney is one of a kind when it comes to his capacity to lead and inspire. I really hope our country doesn’t pass him up when we need his expertise now more than ever.