September 11, 2007
Posted: September 11th, 2007 11:58 AM ET

Mike and Janet Huckabee were both 18 when they married in Hope, Arkansas, in May 1974.

WASHINGTON (CNN) - Did you know that Bill Clinton had to buy a house to convince Hillary Rodham to marry him? Or that GOP presidential contender Mike Huckabee proposed to his wife with a pop top from a soda can?

A new Web site is using stories such as these to try to humanize the candidates and provide a forum for brides-to-be to discuss politics and the upcoming elections.

BridesDecide.com, which launched a few weeks ago, targets the "bridal voting bloc demographic." The site says it hopes to attract the 12 million-plus women who frequent the two popular wedding planning Web sites, TheKnot.com and WeddingChannel.com.

Full story 

– CNN Associate Producer Lauren Kornreich

Filed under: Race to '08


David, Gilbert Arizona   September 11th, 2007 6:35 pm ET

Posted By Tim, Madison, Wisconsin: "This just proves that we're running away from issues-oriented campaigns as quickly as our legs will take us. Don't know Huckabee's stance on Iraq/abortion/tax cuts/Social Security? Why should we? We're voting for him because he found a REALLY cute way to propose to his wife!"

Tim,

I agree with you that the news media seems to have completely gotten away from issue based reporting. I would only add that anyone who would rely on the news media as a source of substantive information on a candidate is a fool anyway. Today all the cable news companies are fluff entertainment driven by ratings. CNN advocating BridesDecide.com as a source of political information is a very good example. Real issues aren't ratings grabbers. I've noticed a marked decline in the "real issue" articles posted to the ticker lately.

There are MUCH better sources available on a candidate's stance on issues. If you're interested on Huckabee's views you can find it on the site linked below.

http://www.mikehuckabee.com/index.cfm?FuseAction=Issues.View&Issue_id=2

A.F. Santacroce, Steubenville, Ohio   September 11th, 2007 5:54 pm ET

Ahhhh! Young Love! The picture is great! Really shows the times they were married in? Mr. Huckabee is a kinder, gentler man, holds strong to his constituents and is very fair. I admire that he is putting himself "out-there" among all the other Republican candidates because of his convictions and what he feels he has to offer our country!

Ryan, New York, NY   September 11th, 2007 4:59 pm ET

I should start my own website, http://www.hotenuff4prez.com, to mimick http://www.hotornot.com so that we can decide the next president based on how attractive they are. Maybe the candidates could submit boudoir photos to further help our quest for the "best" candidate.

Then I'll create, http://www.tuffenuff4prez.com, where voters can vote on who's the toughest. We can have videos of Hillary benching pressing, Fred shooting up targets designed to look like Iraqi terrorists (can't use bin Laden since he's irrelevant, right, Fred?), and Rudy in a boxing match.

No issues, no plans for the future, just image.

With these methods, we'll get the sort of president that this country absolutely deserves.

James, Phoenix AZ   September 11th, 2007 3:27 pm ET

What the article DIDN'T reveal was that Hillary made Bill promise it was going to be a Governors Mansion or the White House. Bill did a great job "buying" the White House (campaign fundraising from the Chinese).

Since Hillary and Bill were evicted from the White House – Hill plans on "buying" it back (Hsu, Jinnah).

The question is... are WE buying them (clintons) again?

Marcia New Jersey   September 11th, 2007 2:44 pm ET

Why should "brides" form a voting block? They have nothing in common except the fact that they're getting married around the same time. This idea is both pathetic and ridiculous.

Jorge Manrique - Hagerstown, MD   September 11th, 2007 2:30 pm ET

Do you suppose the site mentions George H.W. Bush's mistress while he was President ?

Going after the "bridal voting bloc demographic" sounds as though they're going after abused women liberated from Warren Jeffs. Surely, women can be though of as intelligent enough voters in their own right, without having to be targeted whilst hunting for dresses, invitations and table centerpieces...?

spinstopper   September 11th, 2007 1:46 pm ET

One women was convinced through a house while the other with a soda can ring. Which is the meaning of love?

Tim, Madison, Wisconsin   September 11th, 2007 1:23 pm ET

This just proves that we're running away from issues-oriented campaigns as quickly as our legs will take us. Don't know Huckabee's stance on Iraq/abortion/tax cuts/Social Security? Why should we? We're voting for him because he found a REALLY cute way to propose to his wife!

We vote idiots into major public office based on what we read on "voting" sites like BridesDecide, and then we wonder why our political system is so screwy.

Mark, Shreveport, LA   September 11th, 2007 12:24 pm ET

I wonder how many brides would say they would stay with their husbands after he repeatedly cheated on her and publicly humiliated her when those affairs came to light?

Hilary Clinton's campaign song should be "Stand by Your Man"!

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