Can Mike Huckabee be elected President

He’s an ordained Southern Baptist Minister.  Baptists, for your information,  are not exactly rebels.  They don’t drink, don’t smoke, don’t dance and don’t run around.  What do they do?  If Mike Huckabee is any indication, they are pro-life, pro-gun, pro-Israel, anti-IRS and anti-gay marriage.  This sounds strangely familiar. Yes, I’m sure I’ve heard that before… How does he differ from George W. Bush? For one, he is more articulate than the current President and most of the Republican field.  He concisely states a position and then elaborates with a depth that makes him credible but still likable. 

Extremely confident in his abilities, he even makes appearances where few conservatives dare to go, including “Real Time with Bill Maher” on HBO.  Famously, when Maher asked him about an evolution question during a recent debate Huckabee said, “I believe God created the Heavens and the Earth.  Now how He did it, I don’t know.  I thought the question was utterly silly to be asked in a Presidential debate.  None of us are running in order to be an eighth grade science teacher.  We are running to be President.”  If you like that answer then Mike Huckabee is your guy in 2008.

However likable, however confident  however willing to use the word “silly” on national television, it’s highly unlikely the former Arkansas governor will be elected to the highest office in the land.  He’s too quirky.  He throws his support behind  things like the Fair Tax which would effectively do away with the IRS.  He supports a National Smoking Ban (um, Mike, you may want to brush up on how REPUBLICANS feel about the FEDERAL government passing laws for their own good…I think it will be an eye-opener).  He’s also received some grief in the conservative blogosphere for his programs in Arkansas that were labeled “nanny state” programs (i.e. Body Mass Indexes for every student and banning soft drinks from schools). 

Look, Mike Huckabee seems like a terrific person.  I think most people, regardless of their political affiliation, would enjoy having dinner with him.  He’s bright, funny and charming.  He’s just not electable in 2008.  His platform is bogged down by obscure ideas and too saturated with his personal faith for him to be elected post-Bush II.  I like the guy, but he will make an early exit in the primary or my name’s not Larry Craig.