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November 26, 2007

Wearing a Gimmick to Tatters: Huckabee to Bring Norris to Debate

I think that if I see much more of Republican Presidential hopeful Mike Huckabee using actor Chuck Norris as a prop, I think I'll upchu- er, vomit:

Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee appears to be milking cult hero Chuck Norris' endorsement for all it's worth.

The former Arkansas governor told reporters on a conference call Monday morning that the "Walker Texas Ranger" star will be joining him at the CNN/YouTube debate this Wednesday night.

"[He] will be part of that experience," Huckabee said. "So it will be fun and hopefully very substantive."

Norris officially endorsed Huckabee last October, hailing him as a "respected and fearless leader" and one who's "not afraid to stand up for a Creator and against secularist beliefs."

Since then Norris has penned a fundraising e-mail on Huckabee's behalf, and even appears alongside the candidate in a television ad running in Iowa.

It's amusing to watch celebrities lend their endorsements to political campaigns, but when a candidate's campaign campaign is starting to look like it exists solely because of celebrity endorsements with little underlying substance, then as a voter, I have to start questioning the suitability of the candidate for even the vice presidential slot on the ticket that he is so obviously running for.

Huckbee, despite the endorsements of cult hero Norris and professional wrestler Ric Flair, has issues of integrity that the folks back home find troubling.

The "pro-life liberal" label seems to be sticking, and apparently, for good reason.

Posted by Confederate Yankee at November 26, 2007 12:38 PM
Comments

To be perfectly honest, the endorsement of someone like Chuck Norris carries about as much weight with me as the endorsement of Barbra Streisand.

Posted by: C-C-G at November 26, 2007 09:08 PM

Considering that “Chuck Norris” has now passed “Jesus Christ” in terms of Google search volume, it’s interesting that Mr. Norris continues to preach the Good Word while his own followers hang on his every word. His endorsement is as good as, if not better, than one from Jesus.

Posted by: Andrew Shaffer at November 26, 2007 09:25 PM

Andrew, I'm not so shallow as to equate Google search rank with the political value of a given endorsement.

However, given that, it's interesting that it's Norris' name that's being searched for, not Huckabee's. One would expect the latter, not the former, to rise in "popularity," if Norris' endorsement was doing anything to assist Huckabee.

By the way, as of right now, the #1 Google search is "Sean Taylor." Do ya think his endorsement would help Huckabee? The top political name searched for is "Trent Lott," (though the search is actually for "Trent Lott gay"), and it's at #3, how about his endorsement?

In short, your argument makes no sense, and therefore I reject it.

Posted by: C-C-G at November 26, 2007 10:19 PM

Old barrister's axiom:
When you have the evidence against you, attack the prosecution's witnesses.
When you have the witnesses against you, attack his evidence.
When both are against you, pound on the table and yell a lot.

Dragging a 'celebrity spokesman' along with you to a debate is the political equivalent of pounding on the table: you're not fighting on your positions or on your background, but on what other people think of you.
Not good enough.

Posted by: DaveP. at November 26, 2007 10:29 PM

I worked in Arkansas off and on for the past few years, and am somewhat familiar with Mike Huckabee. It is not accurate to call him a liberal, as he is not that by any means, perhaps a moderate would be a more appropriate moniker.

As any politician trailing badly in a campaign is like to do, he is using the endorcement of Norris to obtain access and gain stature.

As someone who works in the Oil and Gas Industry, I found Huckabee to be pro-business, even though he was never afraid to raise taxes, particularly the so-called sin taxes.

He grew up in Hope, Ar. near a migrant farm-workers stop on I-40, and along with a number of people in the Hope area became enamored with the travails of the Mexican migrants who used the rest stop, and has a soft place in his heart for these folks. As a matter of fact, I believe he truly cares about these people, and his public policy over the past few years surely bears this out.

He is excellent when it comes to working with people, and I found him to be gifted in his ability to forge coalitions to get things done on the state level, one major project being the complete resurfacing of all interstate highways in the state.

He is extremely stubborn when he thinks he is right. I just don't think he has the national and international experience to handle the Presidency, one indication of that being how easily he was hoodwinked by Fox.

Posted by: templar knight at November 26, 2007 11:12 PM

However, given that, it's interesting that it's Norris' name that's being searched for, not Huckabee's. One would expect the latter, not the former, to rise in "popularity," if Norris' endorsement was doing anything to assist Huckabee.

Posted by: Firma at November 27, 2007 03:21 AM

Yes, Firma, that's exactly--word for word, even--what I said above.

If imitation really is the sincerest form of flattery, I thank you for your compliment.

Posted by: C-C-G at November 27, 2007 09:42 AM