Politics

Huckabee Leads Romney by 22 Points in Iowa

If you are a poll-watcher, then you know that Mike Huckabee has been steadily gaining on Mitt Romney in the polls in Iowa. In fact, one poll this week had him with a 3 point lead over Romney (though two other polls showed Romney leading Huckabee by 1 point).

Well, something gigantic has just happened. The new Newsweek poll has Huckabee leading Romney by 22 points! The jump is so dramatic that one wonders if the poll is a fluke. That kind of margin just seems so unlikely, but there it is. Whether the big jump in poll numbers has something to do with Romney’s speech on religious liberty remains to be seen, but I’m sure many eyebrows are raised in the Romney camp tonight.

By the way, if you have not added RealClearPolitics.com to your favorites, you should do so. RealClearPolitics.com keeps a running tally of the latest polls, and it’s really helpful if you’re in to following this kind of thing. Three links that will help to get your brain around the presidential race are the polls tracking National Averages, Republican State-by-State, and Democrat State-by-State.

Update: This just in. Huckabee attributes his rising poll numbers to the power of prayer. Watch the video below, which pictures a Q & A session at Liberty University. HT: MSNBC’s “First Read“.

38 Comments

  • Tony Kummer

    He has really come on strong, I have a poll in our sidebar at SAS asking for people to pick their top 3 republican candidates and everyone has selected Huckabee as top 3.

    But he is not tracking well in the important states like Florida, Michigan and California. Do you think he is running for VP?

  • Trish

    Denny,

    I too have concerns about Huckabee and my reasons are because of his association with Kenneth Copeland, a man who causes me great concern for other Christians.

    Mike Huckabee just recently spent a week with Kenneth Copeland doing a series on integrity and character. Kenneth Copeland made it clear upfront the Huckabee was not there as a presidential candidate, that he was only there as an ordained minister.

    My concern is that Huckabee’s association with Copeland legitimizes Copeland’s ministry, it lends him credibility. I am very concerned that this will lead more people astray, that they will learn a false gospel.

    I don’t ask people to take my word for this, but to investigate this for yourselves. Find out what Kenneth Copeland teaches, all of it and don’t just go to his website and read what he has there. Find a way to actually watch presentations that he has done. I know I’ve said this before and that is you can go to http://www.justinpeters.org and watch a demo video about the subject of Word of Faith teachings. There will be some clips of Copeland in there.

    Anyone interested can contact Justin themselves and ask him questions. He has studied this topic extensively and has a seminar presentation of this. There is also a link on my blog to an article Justin wrote about Word of Faith and what it teaches.

    Please, go investigate this and then decide what you think about Huckabee and his Christian credentials. If you don’t see a problem then fine, great, but at least you will have made an informed decision. Be a Berean, search the scriptures, then decide.

    Blessings,
    Trish

  • D. Taylor Benton

    First of all A Huck I Be….

    that said…he wasn’t “governor of Alaamaber” (Brian L)….he was Governor of Arkansas, and Second, How can so many Christians be concerned about him?

    it seems this is a situation when we critique our own more than we critique other candidates…..

    Who elso holds the Bible to be true and trust in Christ as their personal Lord and Savior?!?!! not Guiliani…definitely not Romney….McCain, i think now….Hunter? nope…DING DING DING! we got a winner, Huckabee…

    Immigration…
    http://www.mikehuckabee.com/?FuseAction=Issues.View&Issue_id=26

    there you go for the people that say they don’t know what where he stands on immigration…

    And who else is proposing a Flat tax for America? I don’t know about you but I like to keep my money and be a good steward of it in how I spend it and where i decide to support things. The less I spend, the less taxes I pay…that sounds pretty good to me.
    http://www.mikehuckabee.com/?FuseAction=Issues.View&Issue_id=5

    For the people that say “He is liberal on taxes”

    lets take the example of his closest competitor Mitt Romney,
    In four years, Romney raised taxes 4%…
    in 11 years as Governor with an all democratic state government, Huck only raised them 1% over what was previously imposed…man that sounds like a liberal to me…not!

    Seriously people, stop watching what the Dinosaur media is purporting and do your own research, you will find amazing differences..

    I also want to say that Huck being a Believer in Christ and being indwelt with the Holy Spirit, I would trust him any day over any other candidates…

  • D. Taylor Benton

    one more thing,

    you know He has something going for him when the Dinosaur Media has to go ALLLLLL the way back to 91′ to drag out anything “bad” about him, granted I don’t think it was all that bad, he said he believed homosexuality to be a sin…hmmm that sounds like several areas in the Bible…

  • brian

    Arkansas, my bad, that’s what I meant. Just like Clinton…But yeah, why do you want to mix church and state, do you want another pope?

    And you still didn’t address how he played a major role in pardoinig a rapist who got out and raped/killed two more people. Good move Mike.

    I am telling you, this guy has major baggage. and yeah, Kenneth Copeland the false prophet? Bad ties all around.

  • D. Taylor Benton

    ok Brian, lets look at some of the ties of his alternatives…
    we can even stay on the republican side…that is scary…one of McCain’s buddies has been Mrs. Clinton on several occasions along with Joe “the patriot” Biden…..Guiliani….his personal life speaks for itself…Romney, I honestly think he would be a good choice if he had more history on his moral standings against abortion, gay marriage, but his views on the powers of the government are more liberal than his counterparts….

    No I don’t want a Pope, I would be happy even if Huck didn’t murmur one word about God while in the White House,
    and Yes Copeland is a nut job and I honestly do really mind him showing up at a Copeland event.

    I agree that Copeland’s deception is one of the most dangerous forms of evil we as Christians battle, however,again I do not expect Huckabee to legislate his theological views from the Whitehouse.

    now to the big one….the rapist that was released to kill again…

    if you read the story, three…not one…not two… but three Pastors that had been ministering to this Rapist over several years said he was regenerate and truly was a changed man, so Huckabee (being close friends with two of these pastors) supported his release,

    BUT!!! ultimately Huckabee had no decision or input on this man’s release, it was up to an appellate court, not Huck. I would even give you the point and say even IF he did directly pardon or commute this man’s sentence,

    I honestly could say from all accounts I have read no one in this case saw the tragedy that happened coming…so Huck is human, I don’t mind that

  • D. Taylor Benton

    Brian,

    There is a big difference between wanting a Theocracy, and supporting someone that shares the same worldview. Again, I don’t want him to legislate theology or religion, that would actually (in my humble opinion)work against the true Christian cause in calling people to Salvation in Jesus.

    If Huck were an atheist, or even a Mormon for argument’s sake, I still would lean toward him due to his taxing policies and views on the the power of the Federal government. I am for more power to the states and less government with the exception of Defense and civil duties…but if He were an atheist I may lean towards Romney, however that is not the case and like I said before, I trust the Holy Spirit more than I trust the man, that being Huckabee…

  • Wonders for Oyarsa

    Hi Brian,

    I often agree with you on the theological discussions here, so perhaps that is grounds for an appeal to you on another topic. It strikes me that you are suffering from a case of Bushaphobia here, and I’ll warrant it seems on the surface to be a valid concern. The last thing we need in this country at the moment is another Bush, in my opinion.

    However, I really do urge you to give Huckabee a good look. As far as the rapist case is concerned, listen to Huck’s reply here:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9FhcJr-7cS8

    You might argue that Huckabee’s compassion got the better of him in this case – the rapist had been castrated in an act of vigilante justice. Anyway, I urge you to look deeper into the facts – because Huckabee is under attack at the moment, and he lacks the money and manpower to defend himself well in the media.

    One reason I think he’s a good choice is his foreign policy. If you have time, listen to this speech he gives on the war on terror here:

    http://media.csis.org/csistv/?070928_huckabee

    He makes some excellent criticism of Bush, and seems to have a fantastic grasp of both the threat of the terrorist movement and the need for engagement with the Muslim world, as well as the plight of Muslims in Europe and the distinction between Persian and Arab culture. I especially appreciated his admonition that politics is not as black-and-white as theology, and that we cannot afford to always be self-righteous ideologues.

    Let’s be real careful not to eat one of our own here. Huckabee seems like the real deal – and its amazing how his compassionate heart stands apart from the other GOP leaders:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AZOI3qk-IMs

    Dig a little deeper here, Brian. You may like what you find.

  • Faimon

    DTB:
    A couple of questions/points:

    Didn’t Huckabee raise taxes while governor of Arkansas?

    Hasn’t history shown (speaking very generally here) that when government authorities are hostile, the church is healthier?

    Anyway, it’s too bad that Huckabee torpedoed his own candidacy with his comments about gays and AIDS from 1992. Fine for a fundamentalist Baptist pastor, the death knell for a presidential candidate.

  • Brian L.

    “BUT!!! ultimately Huckabee had no decision or input on this man’s release, it was up to an appellate court, not Huck.”

    WRONG! Look at the case, do some more research. He HEAVILY pressured the parole board with letters, made deals, etc, and they let the rapist go even after many testimonies form the women he had raped, saying, “If you let him go, he will kill and rape again.” Huckabee ignored these women and their pleas, letters, etc, He had a HUGE role in letting this guy go. Then the rapist killed, and raped 2 more women.

    Again, Yay for JHuckabee.

  • D. Taylor Benton

    Faimon, this was from my original post

    “For the people that say “He is liberal on taxes”

    lets take the example of his closest competitor Mitt Romney,
    In four years, Romney raised taxes 4%…
    in 11 years as Governor with an all democratic state government, Huck only raised them 1% over what was previously imposed…man that sounds like a liberal to me…not!”

    Brian,

    I understand that he was an advocated for this rapist, and I do not downplay the tragedy of the situation, but as I said before in my previous post, it was not his final decision that released this man, I would agree with you more if he pardoned him or commuted his sentence, but he didn’t, he let the judicial system decide. In the end, what impact does this issue have on Huckabee as a candidate? I really honestly would like to know, because for me I cannot see a direct correlation between this issue and any major issues of the Presidency.

    to Faimon again,

    I don’t think he torpedoed his candidacy with those comments, i think he may have galvanized more evangelical voters and for someone who wouldn’t vote for him about something he said over 15 years ago, I don’t think he had them in the first place.

    I say that the media having to bring something up from 15 years ago shows how hard the Libs are fighting against him…

    still…. A Huck I Be…

  • D. Taylor Benton

    Brian,

    I still have not heard who you support?

    given the field I am sure there way more scary skeletons in the Closet of Huck’s opponents…I would love to hear who you propose being president…

  • D. Taylor Benton

    also, Faimon, I wouldn’t tip you hand by using jargon from the lib media by calling Huck a fundamentalist…He was anything but a Fundy when he was in SBC circles…. Fudamentalists would never be involved in politics like Huck is…

  • D. Taylor Benton

    Brain,

    another quick note, I think this youtube clip sums up what happened very succinctly in the eyes of Huck. This states his case very well and thanks to Wonders for Oyarsa for pointing that out.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9FhcJr-7cS8

    also to Faimon,

    your statement “Hasn’t history shown (speaking very generally here) that when government authorities are hostile, the church is healthier?”

    First it depends on what you mean by healthier, and there are a lot of points to debate there…second…
    I would agree with what the Bible says about trials producing endurance and faith, but we shouldn’t hope for the worst candidate just so we can say our churches are healthy.

    things like abortion need to be stopped NOW…no… YESTERDAY!…travesties such as abortion are the reason why we need a person with a Christian worldview, they don’t even have to be BAPTIST! oh yes I did say that…because just like I said earlier…

    I don’t want a Theology Professor In Chief, I want a President I agree with on fiscal, governmental, and social issues that shares the same worldview and in Huck’s case….

    like I have said a million times now…has the Promises of God on his side and he is indwelt by the Holy Spirit, I trust the Holy Spirit, not Huck in particular…

  • Brian L.

    Huck is…well….he tried to cove rhis tracks and got caught with the rapist. WHY, WHY, WHY would ANYONE advocate and HEAVILY pressure a board (and make deals w/them) to LET A RAPIST GO, after the WOMEN HE RAPED, CRIED AND TESTIFIED AND WROTE TO HIM, telling him to never let the man out or HE WOULD KILL AND RAPE? He didn’t care. He wanted to make a POLITICAL statement. Huckabee is a politician, thats it. Rapists are NEVER made better by being put in prison…

  • Barry

    None of the candidates is without skeletons in the closet somewhere, but if Huck’s greatest sin is the pardon everyone is talking about and his views on homosexuality, then he’s pretty clean. Seriously, that’s not much baggage at all.

    It would be curious to see a Huck/Romney ticket.

  • Wonders for Oyarsa

    The Huffington Post is the liberal paper that broke the story that the LA times draws some of its information from in its much more balanced version that you reference.

    The devil is in the details here. Huckabee says he didn’t pressure the parole board – three members say they felt pressured. It is obvious to me that the parole board wouldn’t want to claim responsibility for this man’s release any more than the governor – and they would be more directly responsible. And, in a conversation, whether someone “feels pressured” when someone else “doesn’t intend to pressure” can surely be a grey area.

    But, Brian, what would you have done? A man is accused of rape, then castrated and left in a pool of blood for his kids to find, and then sentenced to life in prison. While there he has an exemplary record, meets all the standard criteria for parole, and becomes a Christian. His sentence is commuted by the governor before you. You go to visit the parole board in a meet-and-greet as the new governor, and his case comes up in the conversation. You feel that he probably ought to get paroled, so you mention to the board that you feel his case ought to get special consideration.

    The man gets out, and starts a charity for orphans in South America. He lives a good life for his remaining 15 years. Are you unfit to be president then?

  • Bryan L

    I think the perspective of the article that you linked to Brian is approaching it more from a perspective of whether Huck let’s his faith and religious convictions influence his political decisions and some would look at this story and say yes he does. I guess the question is whether you want a president who does or does not (that’s not a rhetorical question or one that demands a public answer).

    Even though I’m more than likely not going to vote for Huck, I don’t think he should be disqualified by Christians as a serious Republican candidate because of this lapse in judgment or for giving someone the benefit of the doubt.

    It’s a sad story and something that could have happened to any of us who believe that God truly has the power to change people and who believe he has when we see what looks like the evidence of his change in people’s lives. Christianity is messy and this kind of stuff can happen to any of us and any church whether we’re governor or not.

    Blessings,
    Bryan L

  • Drew

    I think Brian is a trouble maker. Infact he himself is a rapist by heart. He has committed the act in his heart/mind many many times. He is casting the first stone!

  • Brett

    Personally I’ve got a crush on Obama.

    And enough with the abortion stuff already, you all were crying this same thing 4 years ago and 8 years ago, and you got your “Christian” vote in the office. What’s happened to abortion? Actually, according to the statistics, it has gotten worse. Bush hasn’t done anything for abortion.

    I’m just astounded at the conception that Christians have to vote Republican. No candidate is the “Christian” vote, all are politicians and I do not trust any of them. I have no problem with whoever you vote for, just don’t tell me it’s the Christian vote. Politics aren’t the way to change people’s hearts anyways.

  • Drew

    Brett,

    In the first 6 months of Bush Presidency, he cut funding for abortion related coverage. He also nominated pro-life judges. Don’t forget what he did with the partial birth abortion work.

    Although, he could have done more but having a pro-choice President would increase funding for abortion, nominating pro-choice judges and other abortion related “stuff” like in the Clinton years.

  • D. Taylor Benton

    Don,

    stop listening to the talking points of the other politicians and go look at the pardon record of all the politicians running, I am sure you will see the same stats bud…also read the first 10-15 posts to get the answers to your lamo unsubstantiated “bad on taxes and immigration” claim, go look at the facts

    Drew, tone down on the personal attacks…while what you say is true, there is no reason to aim at anyone in particular…we are having good conversation.

    Brian, I understand your point as I have said before but the point is a moot one because this honestly has no real tangible baring on his candidacy..It was a bad decision that I am sure all people are sad about…I definitely would regret that decision, but Huck takes it like a champ and recognizes his “wrong” and gives a solution to the answer, like i said…and I am even conceding that fact that he had anything to do with it….which honestly I don’t see because he denied clemency to the same man…

  • D. Taylor Benton

    Brian, obviously Newt isn’t running so you say Ron Paul??? that is hilarious, that guy deserves to be in a psych ward, not the White House. remember He has seen aliens…hahahaha that guy is better suited for Ripley’s or a circus of some sort…

  • Drew

    D. Taylor Benton,

    I am enjoying the conversation as well.

    Talk about toning down on personal attacks check out what you just said,

    >>Brian, obviously Newt isn’t running so you say Ron Paul??? that is hilarious, that guy deserves to be in a psych ward, not the White House. remember He has seen aliens…hahahaha that guy is better suited for Ripley’s or a circus of some sort…

  • D. Taylor Benton

    Lol I knew you were going to say that, I was speaking more about people posting, I didn’t call him anything bad like rapist or murderer, I was merely stating that fact claims to have seen aliens and that most people that say that should probably not be running for the office of the Presidency. Not to mention, Paul is way off when it comes to soooooo many issues.

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