The Evil Genius of Mike Huckabee

12/19/07, 4:44 am EST

I gotta give the Huckster credit.

When’s the last time we saw a member of the religious right who was fluent enough in the touchstones of the 60’s left to pull off a one-liner like this:
“I will confess this: If you play the spot backwards it says, ‘Paul is dead. Paul is dead.’

Seriously. Here he is with a vote-for-me-and-baby-Jesus ad — a spot that has even religious conservatives with their noses out of joint — and Huckabee defuses the tension he’s created with a joke about the White Album?

As if to say, how much of a Jesus freak can I be if I also know how to play “Jesus is Just Alright”?

On a purely political note, whatever you think of the man, his team is doing an all-time great job of generating earned media from its ads. Between this and that Chuck Norris spot, I can’t think of anybody else whose ads even come close to this level of meta analysis and free Internet life.

UPDATE: It didn’t even occur to me in my post midnight blogging that the Paul in question is probably Ron Paul — who yesterday suggested Huckabee was a fascist — not Paul McCartney. Forget double entendre, it’s like a triple-backflip innuendo. Damn… I mean, darn, he’s good.


Comments

whyzguy | 1/8/2008, 9:24 am EST

Mike Huckabee would not make a decent President for any one of the thousands of reasons. But perhaps this reason is one of the most important: YOU DONT MIX DEMOCRACY AND RELIGION. If you elect a preacher as your president the country will be his church and his rhetoric will be shoved down our throats. And alot of Americans are ignorant enough to believe him. Hey if they believe Bush who wont they believe?

I would vote for him | 1/4/2008, 1:06 pm EST

I would vote for him. His faith does not intimidate me as it does for many. I loved his “paul is dead” comment. It looks like you can be spiritual and have a sense of humor. Who would of guessed it. Those who are “scared” of Huck are just empty souls that are spiritually empty. So sad.

Chris | 1/3/2008, 11:17 pm EST

“What is it that you believe in that makes you so high and mighty?”

That people like you are just deluding yourselves and not talking to the creator of the universe. What could be more “high and mighty” than believing that?

Anonymous | 12/28/2007, 11:11 am EST

Jay Goodness, you are just another weak-minded fool who is parrotting the same crap that was crammed down his throat by the baby-boomer idiot generation: Christianity is bad, Christianity is icky, people who profess their faith are weirdos. What is it that you believe in that makes you so high and mighty?

likroper.com | 12/28/2007, 12:30 am EST

doncha think it’s kinda funny that shortly after the italian prime minister said 911 was an inside job done by the CIA and mossad, cheney’s office goes up in smoke?

Jay Goodness | 12/27/2007, 8:54 pm EST

Does anyone really believe a jesus Freak can still become President in this day in age? I hope not for all of our sakes!!

no tomorow | 12/27/2007, 3:29 pm EST

The problem has been studied and as it turns out sterilization is more effective.

Delta Wild Man | 12/21/2007, 3:12 pm EST

That Cross could not have been more obvious if Senator Byrd would have burned it in front of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s grave sight!!

blood for oil of olay | 12/21/2007, 1:48 pm EST

I think that cross was so obvious that it would have been damn near impossible for an ad-man to miss it. I think he was probably just waiting for some secularist with a chip on his shoulder to pick a fight. With the ‘Paul is dead’ one-liner, he comes off looking very slick and above the whole stupid discussion of how much religion is too much religion.

Delta Wild Man | 12/20/2007, 12:48 pm EST

It’s true, He was talking about Ron Paul being dead,, but not in a dead and rotting way, but dead as far as his chances to win 2008.
John F. Kennedy Sr. has more of a chance of winning the white house in 2008 as Hillary + Bill = HillBilly Clinton Inc or Ron Paul Do!!
But Praise Allah we got Obamajama!!
Obamajama is da man!!
Obamajama just be setting back, watching the game,, having a bud,, you know, just chillin.. gonna ride the wave to the white house in 2008! Movin on Up! to that Deluxe apartment in the sky!!
Maybe he’ll take a running mate with the name of Hitler Nagasaki!!
That’s going to bring in the World War 2 Votes!!
Jane Fonda as our next Sec of State would bring in a lot of those Vietnam War Vet Votes too!!

RGeorgeDunn | 12/20/2007, 7:24 am EST

Very Good article and quite true. The heading is bad, but it got the ‘attention. Mike Huckabee is not a shooting star without gravitas. The retention rate of his supporters is the highest in the field of candidates. His vast knowledge will astound you. MIke will make a Great President. Check him out at his website.

Ian from Ann Arbor | 12/20/2007, 6:22 am EST

You mean’t, “DAAAAANG, Dat Boy’s Guud!” (And, he is. Go MIKE. Go FairTax!) snipr.com/fthuckabeeonirs

fanboy | 12/19/2007, 7:58 pm EST

Hey Noam! I love your work on linguistics. Sure the completeness/correctness issue is still there, but its better than what we had! Kudos!

Noam Comsky | 12/19/2007, 7:25 pm EST

I do not smoke crack.

Bender | 12/19/2007, 5:24 pm EST

Victor: And you’re a semantical statement wrapped up in a nice big dose of LSD. Your statements sound like Chomsky on crack. Or, Greenspan on shrooms. Or, Clinton on a nice big, fat speedball. Giddyup

Chicswank | 12/19/2007, 5:03 pm EST

Huckabee is all style and no substance. When it’s all said and done, McCain will take the Republican nomination, because the rest of them, with the exception of Ron Paul, are FREAKS!

Sam Morse | 12/19/2007, 3:07 pm EST

There are 2 kinds of people in this country, people who will count Huckabee’s blinks and people who spend 20 years making Don Quixote films and voice-overs for cartoon robots.

to huckabee supporters | 12/19/2007, 3:03 pm EST

How much do you know about your candidate? I suspect many of you would change your mind after reading his book “Kids who Kill”. He does a great job looking good, but we all know that isn’t substance. What he says in that book is. Please check it out, or at least this critique of it: motherjones.com/washington_dis patch/2007/12/huckabee-homosex uality-environmentalism-book.h tml

Jeff | 12/19/2007, 2:39 pm EST

The uproar isn’t over the fact that Huckabee wishes everyone a Merry Christmas. It’s not over the fact that Huckabee is Christain. The rub is that he’s pandering based on his faith. Now, I’m Catholic, but if I were running for President, and aired an ad that was paid for by my presidential campaign, I wouldn’t be discussing religion. I’d be discussing the issues…you know, the stuff of importance that make up the presidency.
Does he have the right to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars for a TV ad that “only” wishes everyone a Merry Christmas? Of course. Was it appropriate as a obvious goal to garner more votes? No.

Now That's Refreshing | 12/19/2007, 1:54 pm EST

Indeed, there is no such thing as seperation of church and state, but there most certainly is such thing as separation of church and state - perhaps not, a Separation of Church and State, but that is a separate matter and not wurthy of Our consideration.

Viktor Schauberger | 12/19/2007, 1:00 pm EST

Jed, regarding fungal mindwarp, in my authoritative discourse on the matter, I proved through deductive induction that the magnitude of the automata of erannt thinking/behavior is inversely proportional to the square of its distance from the source of ANY unseen entity or force (fungal or otherwise, that is). Your analysis is incomplete and lacks all grounds for application to the compendia of rationality.

Dr. Yes | 12/19/2007, 12:44 pm EST

Jed, you should take airborne for that.

David Cousins | 12/19/2007, 12:09 pm EST

If Rolling Stone calls someone evil, I believe that would be considered a double negative. Given the positive result, I just might consider a President Huckabee.

Jed Clampett | 12/19/2007, 11:59 am EST

I believe that there are invisible lifeforms that have the power to make us ill and even kill the weakest among us. Does it make me irrational? Are viruses and bacteria the only invisible lifforms capable of manipulating our consciousness and thereby our lives? What about fungi? There’s a fungus that infects snails which forces them to expose themselves to birds so the birds will eat them and the fungus can infect it’s preferred host. HMMMMM!!! could something as simple as a fungus manipulate humans into destroying themselves and the planet in the bargain?

David... | 12/19/2007, 11:44 am EST

Just the thought of saying the words, “President Huckabee” scares the crap out of me.

This guy won’t be around long. His “hot” campaign has the elevator effect: Straight up, and straight back down. (just like most of the other “also-rans”)

Jake | 12/19/2007, 11:35 am EST

If you look closely in that window you can see the ghost of Wayne Dumond (of Christmas Past) smiling down upon his benefactor.

It won’t be a merry Christmas in the houses of his victims.

out of joint? | 12/19/2007, 10:52 am EST

None of the religious conservatives that I know have their noses out of joint about the commercial; frankly, it is refreshing to see someone with enough conviction to show that part of themselves openly without fear of the uproar. Mike is going to make a fine president; he says what he means, and comes across as genuine. He has my support.

out of joint? | 12/19/2007, 10:52 am EST

None of the religious conservatives that I know have their noses out of joint about the commercial; frankly, it is refreshing to see someone with enough conviction to show that part of themselves openly without fear of the uproar. Mike is going to make a fine president; he says what he means, and comes across as genuine. He has my support.

out of joint? | 12/19/2007, 10:52 am EST

None of the religious conservatives that I know have their noses out of joint about the commercial; frankly, it is refreshing to see someone with enough conviction to show that part of themselves openly without fear of the uproar. Mike is going to make a fine president; he says what he means, and comes across as genuine. He has my support.

Echination | 12/19/2007, 10:48 am EST

Huckabee is the candidate for people who take airborne and think it will protect them from catching a cold.

SoootiredofstatingtheObvious | 12/19/2007, 10:38 am EST

The Huckster is just that: another huckster thrown up by the vast depravity of the corporatocracy. The scam is jingoism. Nothing less. Pure jingoism. Shameless and not good for our country’s hope of democracy returned.

openslather | 12/19/2007, 10:02 am EST

I’m a Huckabee supporter and I can’t tell you how delighted I continue to be that my candidate has once again flummoxed the MSM with a brilliant ad.

On Morning Joe, Mika–the self-described “leftist”–even came away saying, ‘He is good.’

Look, Huck is saying, ‘You all are sayin I’m a Jesus freak, but in reality I’m the most politically saavy, clever candidate in the race.’

DEAL WITH IT.

Dean Martin | 12/19/2007, 7:48 am EST

Would Jesus approve of his desire to continue killing in the name of ____?
(Insert newest cause/threat there.)

If our news and reporters weren’t censored, er, embedded, we’d really see what our taxpayer money does to gods kids.

Not Ron Paul | 12/19/2007, 7:07 am EST

I thought Huckabee’s comment “paul is dead” was very funny. Turns out this comment has stirred up Ron Pauls young supporters, they think Huckabee was talking about Ron Paul.

The Huckster is an all around great guy, think he would make a decent President…

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