Huckabee weighs in on GOP's future
(CNN) - If the Republican Party wants to get back on track, former presidential candidate Mike Huckabee says GOP leaders must first restore voters' confidence in the government.
"People will forgive you for being a little left or a little right, but they won't forgive you for not taking them up instead of down," he told CNN in between appearances on his 56-city tour to promote his new book, "Do the Right Thing: Inside the Movement That's Bringing Common Sense Back to America."
Huckabee said Republicans have lost their reputation as people who believe in curtailing spending and attempting to balance the budget and have a new label: the "budget busters," who spend more than they can pay back while priding themselves on not raising taxes.
Watch a post-campaign Huckabee on the road
"But it's not that they do it by curbing spending, they just kick the can down the road and put the burden on our grandchildren," he said, adding that he considers it "morally wrong" to indebt future generations.
Following big losses in the 2008 elections, the former Arkansas governor is urging Republican leaders to get back to the party's core values and "govern well" if they hope to win back the trust of voters.
Those in office, he said, "have to show that they are competent to lead," whether at the governors' level or city council. That way, Republicans can point to those people as examples to justify why they should be given a chance in the future.
Related: I'm not settling scores, says Huckabee
"If we don't live up to our own principles, then we can hardly criticize the other party for not living up to our principles either," he said.
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Who cares about this hillbillie anyway.
This is to Karen, Arkansas,
I wanted to make a comment on this blog, but when I got to yours I could not stop laughing long enough to make a coherent sentence.
I guess I'll just say "DITO"
forget ABOUT GOP they are crooks
Bob November 24th, 2008 3:06 pm ET Sara Palin is so much smarter then Obama it is amazing you mice voted for him.
5 colleges in 5 years to get a BA in journalism, versus Summa Cum Laude at Harvard Law. That Palin must be a genius to have been admitted to 5 colleges. Bob you are a real comedian
WHY CAN'T HE JUST GO DO THE TOTAL GYM INFOMERCIAL WITH CHUCK NORRIS ALREADY?
I'd like to know who the lucky guy is that gets to try the first sip of water from the new filter system on the shuttle?
i actually thought Huckabee was adorable and likable. dont you just want to pinch those cheeks?
"Re: Raise Taxes and Cut Spending" – You nailed it. There is a lot of waste in government programs, and we are not taking in enough to pay for the programs that would make our country stronger. We will still need to spend, but we should do it wisely. We need to make our country stronger and better prepared to lead and innovate in the global economy. We need to look 30 years down the line. That means investing in real education programs (Yes, that includes actual science, not theology, which belongs in church) We need a health care system that keeps workers well and able to stay on the job. pork barrel spending funnels money to projects that enrich very few instead of funding nation wide priorities that will keep our nation trucking.
And as far as taxes go, the more wealth one has, the more one has to lose, so if you pay higher taxes, you get more back, in form of a stable society that lets you retain your wealth.
I think Huckabee is likeable. But in general, GOP needs to be open-minded in order to march into 21st century. They basically need to be knowledge-liberal. No.. Wait, then they will not be called conversatives anymore..
Gov. Huckabee; people have no lost faith in the government. They have lost cofidence in a bunch of arrogant politicians who think that their claim to be "conservative' exempts from following the rule of law. We now know that these people were liars and cheats.
It is the Republican party that needs for people to have once again have confidence in the "Party of Lincoln: and certainly not the "Party of George W. Bush and Dick Cheney".
I'd like to see the Republican Party go down in history... as the ineffective party that celebrated it's Culture of Corruption openly and embraced that lack of intelligence in its party leaders. It might even make a few noteworthy chapters in some 5th graders History books.
It's no wonder why they have become a casualty of evolution... the Republican party is going the way of the Dodo bird!!!
And the best party about it is? Nobody will miss their party...
the american dream was alive and well until the republicans caused this nightmare.
Mike Huckabee is the last person on earth who should be giving advice to the Republican party. If this man is ever our nominee I will abandon the party.
ROMNEY/JINDAL 2012
until the gop moves into the 21st century and puts some distance between themselves and the religious right, it will never have a chance in h*ll of regaining its former glory. as long as republicans continue to see mike huckabee and sarah palin as the future of their party, they can kiss their party's chances goodbye. you want conservative, get back to financial conservatism and chill out on the social conservatism.the gop has become the party of fanatics.
The movement that's bringing common sense back to America? Are you saying that we have no common sense now?
Huckabee doesn't believe in evolution.
Enough said.
He's a religious zealot, and until the GOP embraces the libertarian ideals of Ron Paul, etc it will never win another election.
Mike Huckabee and Sarah Palin are the future of the republican party. Of course the future isn't very bright for them, but that makes it brighter for America. Ohio is the "buckle" on the Bible Belt. We voted for Obama. If the republicans can't take Ohio, they have no shot at the presidency. Mike and Sarah can take the republicans as far to the right as they want. The further right they take the party, the less chance they have. I keep wondering when they are going to realize that they already have the evangelical vote. Independents and moderates decide the elections and they are ignoring them. They must have an OCD disorder. They keep appealing and appealing to voters they already have. They are so myopic that it just doesn't register that not everyone else shares their view.
Discussing the future of the Republican party is like discussing the Easter Bunny........there ain't one!
We're just hoping he doesn't come back to Arkansas! When he left the governer's mansion( to a Democrat, Yea!) Huckleberry and his wife registered at the stores in Little Rock so people could help buy them things for their new home. I guess it's a good thing Fox hired him before they ended up in the poor house. Very tasteless!
Thomas-
Separation of church and state is not a part of the constitution. It became a legal precedent during the 1940s in an age of judicial activism. The phrase "separation of church and state" is taken from a letter Thomas Jefferson wrote and is taken in poor context. By the way if you think separation of church and state comes from the Bill of Rights you are also wrong. The government cannot interfere with the practice of religion or set up a FEDERAL religion. The Bill of Rights does not prevent religious ideas from being put into the policies of the state. To do so would allow someone to use the ideals they gained from all of their life experiences except those of religion, which is an inherent violation of the right to freedom of speech and expression. If you want to use the phrase separation of church and state, lose the mob mentality.
This info is the cats paaajms!