3 Myths about Huckabee

It's come to my attention of some foolish rumors floating around about Huckabee. Even general idea's about him, like he's a red-neck, baptist preacher. Some are a little crazy for any politician, like Ron Paul, for example. But for a frontrunner like Mike Huckabee? I'd like to set the record straight on some of these rumors. 

Myth #1: Mike Huckabee is a Baptist Preacher, and not qualified to be a President. 

Truth: Mike graduated from Ouachita Baptist University, a liberal Arts school that is consistently ranked the #1 baccalaureate college in the nation and Top 5 for Top Comprehensive Colleges, both by US News. A college that has also produced 2 governors, a state attorney general, multiple deans and college Presidents, and a lt. Governor (not to mention 6 "Miss Arkansas"). He also served as Governor (basically, President of the State) for 11 years and Lieutenant Governor for 4 years. In short, he is qualified for the Presidency. Heck, running a Church probably requires more "Presidential" qualities than a Senator. 

Even Time Magazine called Huckabee on of the Top 5 Governors. 

And try this on for size (I think we could use a little more of this on the national level):

From Factcheck.org

It’s worth noting, too, that Huckabee, despite facing a $200 million shortfall in 2002, ended his term with a surplus of $844.5 million. A billion dollar turnaround is, we think, a noteworthy accomplishment.

Myth #2: Mike Huckabee Wants to Quarantine AIDS Patients 

Truth: In 1992, when very little was known about the disease, Mike said that they needed a different type of hospital where they could learn more about this disease and keep the public from harm. As he said regarding this: "My first concern was the safety of the people, not political correctness." If you ask me, this is a highly positive thing, as the future no doubt holds new problems directly confronting the public's safety. 

Myth #3: Mike Huckabee is really a "spender" and a liberal in disguise. He may have cut taxes 90 times, but they were all small cuts, while he raised taxes 21 times for almost a 200 million dollar differential. 

Truth: Huckabee is not a liberal in disguise. And the line about him raising taxes about 200 million more than cutting them, although a fact, does not tell the whole story. One of his bigger tax hikes was  a Private Nursing Home Tax. Here's all I have to say about that:

Arkansas Health Care Association President Jim Cooper stated the private nursing home tax was necessary in order to avert future huge tax increases as a result of years of mismanagement.

So clearly, there is more to the story. There were some small tax increases, and a lot of small tax deductions. We also must remember that Huckabee inherited a 200 million dollar deficit, making it a little more difficult for him to hand out tax cuts. Despite this, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette still gives him credit for "one of the largest Tax Cuts in Arkansas history."

Fact is: Mike cut a lot of taxes. Yes, some were very small, but he really didn't leave anyone out.

In conclusion, nobody's perfect. There are going to be a lot of silly rumors floating around. Some are true, some are not. Every politician has skeletons in their closet. In this internet-driven world, you really must be careful, as what you see and hear is not always true.