The Huckster
I read the NYTs Magazine piece on Mike Huckabee this weekend. Many commentators see his rise as a distinctly evangelical phenomena and attribute his success to his fundamentalist religious beliefs and social conservatism. I think it goes farther than that. Huckabee has articulated a very cogent critique of the GOP's ties to big money interests on Wall Street, to defense contractors, and to oil companies. He spills a certain Main Street economics that are a powerful counterpoint to the Supply Side message the party has relied upon and that has left so many behind. I suspect Huckabee is not the only Republican who believes the GOP has left behind its middle class constituency and thus his appeal may go beyond evengelicals.
Mind you, there are many reasons Mike Huckabee should not be President, not the least of which is the fact that he believes the Bible to be the inerrant word of God, believes in creationism, speaks about foreign affairs in a scary and apocalyptical way and thinks homosexuals are inherently immoral. He is every bit the finger pointing blowhard moralist we have suffered so much and his faithiness implies a lack of intellectual heft. But I give the man credit for providing his party with a useful antidote to their supply side orthodoxy.
I also give credit to Huckabee for drawing a sharp contrast between his Christian beliefs and the GOP platform. You see, Christians are supposed to be about Christ and his message. Read that message and you will find little to support the wealth oriented, darwinian beliefs enshrined in the Republican program. Many Christians prefer to ignore this and thus the GOP has turned into exactly the gaggle of "business first" babbits the gospels had little use for. In contrast, Huckabee recognizes this tension and engages it. Thus, he is willing to call the pro business Club for Growth the "Club for Greed" and his record in Arkansas reflects the glimmer of a belief that government should better the lives of its citizens. If you do not think this is remarkable, try to name another GOP contender in the last twenty years who dared part ways with Uncle Milton, Laffer Curve, and the primacy of the market.
Mind you, there are many reasons Mike Huckabee should not be President, not the least of which is the fact that he believes the Bible to be the inerrant word of God, believes in creationism, speaks about foreign affairs in a scary and apocalyptical way and thinks homosexuals are inherently immoral. He is every bit the finger pointing blowhard moralist we have suffered so much and his faithiness implies a lack of intellectual heft. But I give the man credit for providing his party with a useful antidote to their supply side orthodoxy.
I also give credit to Huckabee for drawing a sharp contrast between his Christian beliefs and the GOP platform. You see, Christians are supposed to be about Christ and his message. Read that message and you will find little to support the wealth oriented, darwinian beliefs enshrined in the Republican program. Many Christians prefer to ignore this and thus the GOP has turned into exactly the gaggle of "business first" babbits the gospels had little use for. In contrast, Huckabee recognizes this tension and engages it. Thus, he is willing to call the pro business Club for Growth the "Club for Greed" and his record in Arkansas reflects the glimmer of a belief that government should better the lives of its citizens. If you do not think this is remarkable, try to name another GOP contender in the last twenty years who dared part ways with Uncle Milton, Laffer Curve, and the primacy of the market.
posted by Jack Reed at 12:54 PM
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