Why Mike Huckabee Can Win the General Election

Back in August I wrote the following reasons why Huckabee can win the general election. Now with Huckabee leading the polls in Iowa, SC and even in some national polls, he is starting to gain name recognition, traction, and is even better positioned to win it all.

Mike Hucakbee can win the general election for the following reasons:

• With a Republican party lagging in morale and political viability, the best chance Republicans have for winning must be a united front. They would need a candidate who appeals both to their base and to middle-of-the-roaders. Huckabee is that man. Conservatives have nothing to fear, and moderates will warm to Huckabee's optimistic emphasis on vertical politics.
• Who can say what it takes to win on the big stage, but a healthy dose of charisma, charm, and a quick witted humor never hurt anyone. Huckabee has that and more. He has consistently over achieved in the debates, and displays a presidential tone.
• Huckabee is not connected to Washington. And he's a governor -- a governor's governor, really. With 10 1/2 years of executive experience to leverage, Huckabee will convince the public that America needs a proven leader.
• Since Huckabee isn't a Washington insider, he isn't in Bush's back pocket. He's been loathe to openly criticize the sitting president, but one can tell he has some significant differences and disappointments with Bush. Republicans and Democrats alike will need to be assured that Huckabee doesn't represent more of the same.
• Huckabee is also one of the few Republican candidates with a full-orbed political plan for change. He emphasizes vertical politics and the importance of actually governing and getting things done (see this video clip of Huckabee on this very point).
• What's more he is extremely believable and likable. The media love him. He has a great story of losing 100 pounds, and he would also have an underdog turned contender storyline going into the general election.
• And Huckabee is not a cookie-cutter Republican. Sure he is solidly pro life, but he emphasizes the need to support life from the womb to the grave and everyplace in between. He also is calling for Republicans to take the lead in the stewardship of our environment, and the fighting of corporate greed. He even advocates an emphasis on art & music education in public schools. As for his faith, he stresses that it will influence him to "do what's right" in office.
• Early media reports have tried to paint Huckabee as a member of the radical right, with him being an ordained Southern Baptist preacher and all. They've made much of his personal belief in God's creation, over and against evolution. Yet Huckabee's record will prove them wrong. He won election twice in a solidly democratic Arkansas, and worked with Democrats to get things done.
• He has a clear across-the-aisle appeal. Huckabee, his bass guitar, and his quick wit proved enough to win applause and more in a must-see interview with Jon Stewart of Comedy Central's "The Daily Show".
• To sum it all up, Huckabee is the only conservative who can genuinely appeal to his party's base as well as reach out to independents and moderates. It's like Huckabee says, although he's a conservative, he's not mad at everybody!

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