What Huckabee's Rise MeansOver at Power Line, John Hinderacker wonders whether Huckabee may be the Howard Dean of 2008. Ultimately he comes down against it, but I think Huckabee's got some Dean-ish qualities. No, he doesn't have the legion of online supporters, or the fund-raising prowess.
Remember the old bumper snicker from 2004: Dated Dean, Married Kerry? That's what's going on here, and you can see it in Fred Thompson as well. The Republicans are doing everything they can to avoid marrying the logical candidate, John McCain. They want to be swept off their feet, and so they swoon at the new face. Fred, of course, has turned out to not be the man of their dreams and so they're flirting with the next beau. But inevitably Huck turns out to have feet of clay as well.
I'm not saying that the rise of Huck is good for McCain. It certainly indicates that even at this late date, the Republicans are looking around for dessert rather than eating their peas. But it's even worse news for guys like Thompson and Romney. Huckabee's not going to be the nominee, but he could help trim the field a little.
Note: When the Democrats finally turned to Kerry, it was because he was the "electable" guy. Now, I thought that was a little odd, since when have liberal senators from Massachusetts been electable nationally? But McCain is genuinely electable; all the polls have shown that.
Labels: 2008 Candidates, John McCain, Mike Huckabee
