"As governor of Arkansas, Huckabee dramatically increased state spending. During his two-term tenure, spending increased by more than 65 percent — at three times the rate of inflation.

The number of government workers increased by 20 percent, and the state’s debt services increased by nearly $1 billion. Huckabee financed his spending binge with higher taxes. Under his leadership, the average Arkansan’s tax burden increased 47 percent, according to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, including increases in the state’s gas, sales, income, and cigarette taxes. He raised taxes on everything from groceries to nursing home beds.

Huckabee answers these complaints by pointing out that he "cut taxes 94 times" while governor. True. But most of those tax cuts were tiny, like exempting residential lawn care from the sales tax. Some cuts reduced overall state revenues by as little as $15,000. On net, Huckabee increased state taxes by more than $500 million. In fact, Huckabee increased taxes in the state by more than Bill Clinton did.

On its annual governor’s report card, Cato Institute gave Huckabee an "F" for fiscal policy during his final term, and an overall two-term grade of "D." Only four governors had worse scores, and 15 Democratic governors got higher grades, including well-known liberals like Ted Kulongoski of Oregon, Rod Blagojevich of Illinois, and Ed Rendell of Pennsylvania.

But Huckabee doesn’t just embrace big government in the form of big taxes. He truly appears to believe that if something is a good idea it should be a federal government program.

For example, having become health conscious while losing more than 120 pounds, he now calls for a national smoking ban. Because he believes that "art and music are as important as math and science" in public schools, he wants these programs funded — and thus, directed and administered — federally.

Huckabee is, incidentally, the only Republican candidate for president who opposes school choice.

He is the only Republican candidate who opposes President Bush’s veto of the Democrats’ proposed expansion of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program, and he is skeptical of most conservative proposals for entitlement reform.

Calling himself "a different kind of Republican," Huckabee rails against high corporate profits and attacks free trade agreements. As governor, he raised the minimum wage and increased business regulation. He says it is "a biblical duty" to pass more regulation to fight global warming.

Perhaps Huckabee’s only claim on conservative credentials is that as a former Baptist minister, he is more anti-abortion and anti-gay than the other candidates. In many ways, he has been running an overtly religion-based campaign. But even here, his preference is to increase and centralize federal government power.

On election night in 2006, 55 percent of voters leaving the polls said they believed the Republican Party had become the party of big government. Mike Huckabee is doing his best to convert the other 45."

Posted By Val Davydov, Agawam, MA : December 15, 2007 10:43 pm

America is a free country – you are entitled to your own beliefs that the earth is billions of years old and that human beings were monkeys ages and ages ago. Contrary to your beliefs, I and billions of other people around the world prefer to believe earth was created by the divine force – God. Quit making your silly posts, you sound like a fool repeating yourself over and over again.

Check your own facts before correcting someone else's. You state the "GOP nominates a Republican and a Democrat. Not two Democrats."

Uh, the last I knew, "GOP" stands for "Grand Old Party" - the Republican Party. They nominate one REPUBLICAN for president, one for vice president.

We should require people to pass a civics exam before entering a voting booth in this country. The stupidity evident in the threads on this site continues to amaze me.

Since Bush became President, about 6500 Americans have been killed by terrorist actions or in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"During that time more than 40,000 Americans have died from the use of aspirin, 175,000 from gunfire, 156,000 from automobile accidents, 510,000 from alcohol use, and 2,500,000 from tobacco use. Tobacco company executives have killed 350 times more Americans than Osama bin Laden and his friends."
from
http://www.LiberalAndProudOfIt.com

I am more worried about people who speed on the freeway than I am about terrorism, which ranks considerably below aspirin in terms of its threat to American lives.

Bush has accomplished one of the longtime goals of Conservatives. He has bankrupted the federal government. Our government will not be able to properly address our needs and protect the country for decades, while we labor to work of the national debt. I suspect sometimes, in more paranoid moments, that the destruction of America's federal government was the real reason for the War in Iraq in the first place. I know that sounds paranoid (even to me) but some members of the Conservative leadership are very bright and very underhanded in their methods.

YES A RISK!

forum.hucksarmy.com

Wow. The Democrats have elegance and intelligence in every one of their candidates. None of them is religiously crazed, none think Bush et al have done anything but a criminal, traitorous job screwing up this country.

Nice contrast for the voters.

In response to Elizabeth in AZ, you really need to educate yourself about the electoral process. Here is a brief summary: the GOP nominates a republican and a democrat. Not two democrats. So, when a candidate is elected from the republican party, the base of voters want that candidate to represent them. See where I am going??? Huck obviously doesn't represent the base he is appealing to and needs to nominate him. How did you put it...that is right...why don't you leave the thinking to someone else. Zing!

Not to mention this will come back to bite him hard in the general election if he wins the primaries. The surge working? Bush keeping us safe? It's like he's in some fantasy land.

"As governor of Arkansas, Huckabee dramatically increased state spending. During his two-term tenure, spending increased by more than 65 percent — at three times the rate of inflation.

The number of government workers increased by 20 percent, and the state’s debt services increased by nearly $1 billion. Huckabee financed his spending binge with higher taxes. Under his leadership, the average Arkansan’s tax burden increased 47 percent, according to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, including increases in the state’s gas, sales, income, and cigarette taxes. He raised taxes on everything from groceries to nursing home beds.

Huckabee answers these complaints by pointing out that he "cut taxes 94 times" while governor. True. But most of those tax cuts were tiny, like exempting residential lawn care from the sales tax. Some cuts reduced overall state revenues by as little as $15,000. On net, Huckabee increased state taxes by more than $500 million. In fact, Huckabee increased taxes in the state by more than Bill Clinton did.

On its annual governor’s report card, Cato Institute gave Huckabee an "F" for fiscal policy during his final term, and an overall two-term grade of "D." Only four governors had worse scores, and 15 Democratic governors got higher grades, including well-known liberals like Ted Kulongoski of Oregon, Rod Blagojevich of Illinois, and Ed Rendell of Pennsylvania.

But Huckabee doesn’t just embrace big government in the form of big taxes. He truly appears to believe that if something is a good idea it should be a federal government program.

For example, having become health conscious while losing more than 120 pounds, he now calls for a national smoking ban. Because he believes that "art and music are as important as math and science" in public schools, he wants these programs funded — and thus, directed and administered — federally.

Huckabee is, incidentally, the only Republican candidate for president who opposes school choice.

He is the only Republican candidate who opposes President Bush’s veto of the Democrats’ proposed expansion of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program, and he is skeptical of most conservative proposals for entitlement reform.

Calling himself "a different kind of Republican," Huckabee rails against high corporate profits and attacks free trade agreements. As governor, he raised the minimum wage and increased business regulation. He says it is "a biblical duty" to pass more regulation to fight global warming.

Perhaps Huckabee’s only claim on conservative credentials is that as a former Baptist minister, he is more anti-abortion and anti-gay than the other candidates. In many ways, he has been running an overtly religion-based campaign. But even here, his preference is to increase and centralize federal government power.

On election night in 2006, 55 percent of voters leaving the polls said they believed the Republican Party had become the party of big government. Mike Huckabee is doing his best to convert the other 45."

Vote for some real change. RON PAUL!

The thing that blows me away the most is his tax policy...I looked at it. My federal tax bill would be so much bigger under his 24% sales tax than under the current system. I don't make a lot of money and I would get no breaks for having a family, a home and other American-dream things.

Hucks a space cadet. I want a president, not a preacher.