January 29, 2008
January 24, 2008
By Stephen Dinan – LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Jake Files was a newly elected representative when all two dozen Arkansas House Republicans met for their first caucus in 1999. They had doubled their numbers in elections two months earlier, and were ready to join Republican Gov. Mike Huckabee in pushing for conservative government.
That was when Brenda Turner, the governor’s chief of staff, entered.
“Just walked in, shut the door and said, ‘There’s two kinds of people in the world: those who are for Mike Huckabee and those who are against Mike Huckabee. I’ll do everything I can to help the first group. I’ll do everything I can to hurt the second,’ ” said Mr. Files, who left the legislature after two terms.
And that’s the way it was.
“Not only would he not help you, he would go out of his way to do things in opposition to you,” Mr. Files said.
For the 10 years he was governor of Arkansas, Mr. Huckabee was at war with much of his party.
Now that Mr. Huckabee is seeking the presidential nomination, many Arkansas Republicans warn that he could wage a bruising battle with the national party, too.
“One can hardly argue that the Republican Party has thrived,” said former Rep. Jim Hendren, who was House minority leader and ran for state party chairman in a bitter 2001 race won by a Huckabee surrogate. “We thrived as we were an opposition party and standing on principles as the Republican Party. But unfortunately, when we got some power, particularly at the state level, we began to fight among ourselves.”
The former Southern Baptist pastor-turned-politician took control of the governor’s mansion in 1996 with expectations that he would lead the kind of Republican ascension in other states of the Deep South. But he left office last year by turning over the governorship to a Democrat and with Republicans bitterly divided over his legacy for his party.
“He destroyed it,” said Randy Minton, a former state representative whom Mr. Huckabee worked to help get elected but who later clashed repeatedly with the governor. “We had one U.S. senator, we had two congressmen, at the tops we had 37 out of 135 legislators in the House and Senate. Now I think there’s 32 in the legislature, we have no U.S. senators and we have one congressman.”
In both on-the-record and private conversations with Republicans in Arkansas, the picture that emerges is a governor who succeeded at advancing his causes and was willing to fight anyone who didn’t agree.
That matters because the next Republican presidential nominee will be tasked with trying to rebuild a congressional majority and stoke a Republican Party after eight volatile years under President Bush.
Like Mr. Bush, Mr. Huckabee achieved some early successes. By the beginning of 1999, when he was sworn in for his first full term, his party had gained nearly a quarter of the state’s House, added state Senate seats and held the lieutenant governorship, one of the two U.S. Senate seats and half of the four congressional seats.
But also like Mr. Bush, who battled congressional Republicans on immigration reform and prescription drug coverage, Mr. Huckabee found himself fighting members of his own party.
‘Shi’ites,’ ’socialists’
Almost immediately after taking office from Gov. Jim Guy Tucker, a Democrat who resigned after federal fraud and corruption convictions, Mr. Huckabee campaigned for his first tax increase — one-eighth cent on the sales tax to dedicate to conservation projects. He followed up with both budget cuts and increases, but the net effect was nearly $500 million in new taxes and an accompanying rise in spending.
What followed were clashes over the growth of government and, as the issue heated up nationally, over immigration policy. Republicans and conservative Democrats wanted a crackdown on illegal aliens, but Mr. Huckabee resisted.
The war of words was just as harsh. In 1998, when he faced a primary challenger who said Mr. Huckabee lacked certain conservative principles, the governor replied that his opponents weren’t really Republicans, but rather libertarians or independents.
By the end of his tenure, Mr. Huckabee was calling his Republican opponents the “Shi’ites” and they called him a “Christian socialist.”
Mr. Huckabee’s defenders said the governor was simply firing back at frustrated Republicans who were waging a battle against him.
Jim Harris, a campaign spokesman who also worked for Mr. Huckabee in the governor’s office, said Mr. Huckabee was deeply involved in helping state Republicans.
“He raised a lot of money regularly; he campaigned tirelessly for GOP candidates up and down the ballot; he gave from [his political action committee] to GOP candidates,” Mr. Harris said, adding that Mr. Huckabee appointed years’ worth of Republicans to boards and commissions.
“This created a strong network of individuals who will run for office in the future under the Republican banner,” he said.
Arkansas Republicans, though, said Mr. Huckabee was building an organization for himself, not a farm team for the party. He left many appointments of former Govs. Bill Clinton and Jim Guy Tucker in office, including some department heads who stayed through Mr. Huckabee’s tenure.
They said no Republicans hold any of the statewide constitutional offices, and the state party chairman told the Associated Press last week that he doesn’t expect to field a candidate this year to run against Sen. Mark Pryor, a Democrat.
“In the 10 years where the governor was the title head of the party, we actually took steps backwards,” Mr. Files said, noting that Republicans were advancing in other Southern states. “The overall morale of the party did not take any of those same stages it did in the other states. It started plateauing and took a dive.”
On the campaign trail
The campaign finance records for Conservative Leadership for Arkansas PAC, Mr. Huckabee’s political action committee, also seem to bear out the charge that he was building his own organization.
Records kept with the secretary of state in Little Rock show that CLAPAC spent only a third of its money on candidates between 2001 and 2006, with the rest going to consulting, accounting and, in later years, travel and fundraising for Mr. Huckabee.
Mr. Huckabee gave contributions as well during those years to at least three Democrats. Given that $5,000 of CLAPAC’s money came in a 2003 donation from the state Republican Party, that means some Republican money was used indirectly to aid the party’s own opponents.
“Go out and ask those ladies at bake sales or out raising money if they thought that money would end up in the hands of Democratic candidates,” Mr. Hendren said. “That’s what drove us up a wall.”
One Democrat who received CLAPAC money was Barbara Horn. Mr. Huckabee supported her even though a Republican planned to run for the same seat in 2000. The Associated Press reported that Mr. Huckabee’s support for the Democrat chased the Republican from the race, delivering an open seat to the Democratic Party.
State Republicans repeatedly called that race demoralizing.
Mr. Huckabee’s campaign denied charges from a host of Republicans that he aided Democrats over Republicans in other races.
“Governor Huckabee never gave money to a Democrat who had a Republican opponent,” Mr. Harris said. “He did give to some conservative Democrats money in the primaries when there were no Republicans running in the general election.”
Records for CLAPAC’s activity in 2000 are missing from the secretary of state’s office. The accounting firm Mr. Huckabee used said it couldn’t provide records without the client’s approval, and Mr. Huckabee’s campaign didn’t respond to requests to produce them.
In 2005, Mr. Huckabee registered another political action committee in Virginia, which has less stringent limits on campaign activity.
The stated goal of that PAC, Hope for America, was to aid state and local candidates nationwide. But records show it hasn’t donated to a single candidate but instead has paid for Mr. Huckabee’s consultants, travel and fundraising.
Dealing with Democrats
When he first became governor, Mr. Huckabee took fire from state Democrats because he campaigned for Republicans. Democratic legislative leaders accused him of bringing partisanship to the governor’s office, and said he had broken a promise not to campaign against Democratic incumbents.
The Democrat-Gazette reported that Mr. Huckabee’s spokesman first denied, but later acknowledged, that the governor was campaigning for Republicans. Mr. Huckabee stressed, though, that he campaigned only for Republicans and never attacked their Democratic opponents.
State Sen. Gilbert Baker, a Republican and a defender of Mr. Huckabee, said Mr. Huckabee learned from those early clashes with Democrats, particularly during his first legislative session. They overrode many of his vetoes and even took away traditional governor’s prerogatives such as directing spending from the state General Improvement Fund.
“Huckabee said, ‘Look, if I’m going to be governor I have got to build coalitions here, and reach out. I do not have a legislature full of conservative Republicans,’ ” Mr. Baker said. “At that point he decided, ‘Look, I’m going to do the best I can from a conservative standpoint for my state.’ ”
The point, Mr. Baker said, was that Mr. Huckabee had to govern.
“He did some incredibly conservative things within the context of a Democratic legislature. Every possible pro-life piece of legislation was passed, defending marriage,” he said.
“Some of our guys couldn’t understand that he was governor and we weren’t. We were legislators,” he said.
Mr. Baker, who also served as state party chairman in Mr. Huckabee’s final years in office, said he didn’t recall any races in which Mr. Huckabee campaigned against a Republican in favor of a Democrat, but that Mr. Huckabee was right to choose which campaigns he would help.
“He only had so much political capital to spend, and if you were a legislator, Republican or Democrat, throwing bombs at him because of these policies, well guess what, he didn’t have time to go help you with that campaign,” Mr. Baker said. “When the party was willing to support him, as a governor, he was right there.”
Mr. Huckabee maintains a good standing with Republican voters in the state. A December poll commissioned by Talk Business found that 59 percent of Arkansas Republicans supported Mr. Huckabee over the other Republican presidential candidates.
But when Mr. Huckabee sought surrogates to counter the opposition from Republicans in his state, fewer than half of the Republicans in the state legislature signed up.
Mr. Huckabee’s fellow Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney also was succeeded by a Democrat, Deval Patrick, when he left office last year.
Mr. Romney’s political action committee, Commonwealth PAC, gave less than 10 percent of its money in the 2006 election cycle to federal candidates, with the rest going to travel and administrative costs.
January 18, 2008
Bay Area Minutemen
When: Saturday Jan. 26th, 2008! 10am-6pm
Where: Alameda Naval Air Museum Alameda Point, Bldg. 77 Alameda, CA 94501, second floor
see map here: http://www.alamedanavalairmuseum.org/index.asp
If possible, RSVP Golden Gate Minutemen Phone Center so we know how many will need lunch
510 – 355 – 0357
Doors Open 10am ~ Conference Begins at 11am & ends at 5pm~
Speakers, Networking, Workshops, Lunch and Raffle
Raffle tickets: 1 for $1, 8 for $5, 20 for $10, first drawn gets first choice
suggested at door, $10.00–part of donation goes to Ramos and Compean Legal Defense
Speakers
Georgiana Preskar (Eagle Forum) “Addicted to Diversity”. Georgiana will discuss problems of multiculturalism.
Rick Oltman (Californians for Population Stablization) “the GOP’s Illegal Immigration Disaster”
Anthony Earle (Alliance Defense Fund) “Fighting the ACLU in the Courts”. Anthony is a civil rights attorney. Anthony will share his experience in the court for the protection of families with us.
Workshops MinuteMen Organizing, Relating to
Biased Media, and 2008 local election Strategy
~Michael Erikson will be discussing how to run for GOP and Democrat Central Committees~
Free Literature, Shirts, and lots of networking!
Itinerary
10:00-11:00 — doors open/sign-in/Gumball Video
11:00-12:15 — Introductions, Minutemen Organization, Communications
12:15- 1:00 — Lunch, snacks
1:00- 1:15 — Raffle
1:15- 1:45 — Speaker (Anthony Earle)
1:45- 2:00 — break
2:00- 2:30 — Speaker (Georgiana Preskar)
2:30- 2:45 — break
2:45- 3:00 — Recruitment
3:00- 3:30 — Speaker (Rick Oltman)
3:30- 3:45 — break
3:45- 4:45 — workshops
4:45- 5:00 — Goodbyes/Closing
5:00- 6:00 — Clean up/talk
sponsored by:
Golden Gate Minutemen www.goldengateminutemen.com
Castro Valley Minutemen www.cvminutemen.com
Redwood City Coalition www.eastbaycoaltionforbordersecurity.com
Northbay Minutemen www.northbayminutemen.com
Northern California Minutemen Civil Defense www.minutemenhq.com
Eagle Forum of California State President, Orlean Koehle, received word from Damon Conklin, aid to California State Senator Tom Harmon that Senator Harmon has already signed the Eagle Forum “Protect American Sovereignty” resolution, and will be urging other members of the Republican Senatorial Caucus to sign it as well.
The resolution was presented to Senator Harman and to all the California state legislators in individual packets by attendees and leaders of various grass-roots groups who were part of a two-hour “Protect American Sovereignty” Rally Monday, January 14, on the west steps of the Sacramento Capitol Building. The rally was organized and led by Eagle Forum of California.
The packets contained information about the Security and Prosperity Partnership, the NAFTA Superhighway, and the movement towards forming a North American Union, similar to the European Union, all being done under the wire by the executive branches of the United States, Canada, and Mexico with no U.S. congressional oversight or oversight by the parliaments of Canada or Mexico.
After giving information about all of the above, the resolution states “…the Legislature of the state of California urges the United States Congress and California’s Congressional Delegation to use all of their efforts, energies, and diligence to withdraw the United States from any further participation in the Security and Prosperity Partnership…and to withdraw the United States from any other …activity with seeks to advance, authorize, fund, or in any way promote the creation of any structure to accomplish any form of North American Union.”
State President, Orlean Koehle, expressed her gratitude to Senator Harman who has taken the lead in the Senate on the resolution and in standing up for border protection in California. Mrs. Koehle stated, “It is wonderful to have a state senator who has the courage to take a stand for what he knows to be true, even though it may not be popular or deemed to be ‘politically correct.’ We need more elected officials like him.”
Other Eagle Forum leaders who spoke at the rally and did the lobbying that afternoon were: Georgiana Preskar, Director Sacramento Eagle Forum and author of a newly published book, Diversity Addiction; Jeanne Goodin, Vice President and Long Beach Chapter Leader and Anthony Moreno, 17-year old President of Teen Eagles of Sonoma County and first place state debate winner.
Other speakers at the rally and leaders of the grass-root groups that were part of the coalition were: Barbara Coe – Director California Coalition for Immigration Reform; Duane Wildie – Northern CA Leader for the John Birch Society; Brad Dacus – Director and Founder of Pacific Justice Institute; Lyman Stucky – Director of Sovereignty USA; Charles Bartlett – East Bay Immigration Reform and Golden Gate Minutemen; Art Bush – Redwood City Coalition for Immigration Reform; and Chelene Nightingale – Media Director of Southern California Save our State.Com.
All of the speakers were outstanding. Those in attendance felt it was well worth being there even though many of them had to travel several to attend. Several flew in from Southern California. Beautiful patriotic music and the sound system was provided free of charge by a great patriot disc jockey, Joe Oliver. Many attendees had never done lobbying before but were committed to protecting our nation’s sovereignty and actually ended up enjoying speaking to and passing out the packets to the legislators or their aids. All 130 packets were delivered to the various legislators’ offices.
The purpose of the rally was to do exactly what is now happening, to encourage state legislators to sign on to the resolution. It is based on a similar one that have been passed by at least one house of 19 state legislations and officially passed in both the house and the senate of three states: Idaho, Montana, and Oklahoma. Once the resolutions are signed by both branches of the state legislation they will be sent to the Majority Leader of the U.S. Senate and the Speaker of the House and to members of the California congressional delegation urging them to do what the resolution says – take a stand and stop the movement towards a North American Union!
January 7, 2008
Alabama 1901, Preamble We the people of the State of Alabama , invoking t he favor and guidance of Almighty God, do ordain and establish the following Constitution.
Alaska 1956, Preamble We, the people of Alaska , grateful to God and to those who founded our nation and pioneered this great land.
Arizona 1911, Preamble We, the people of the State of Arizona , grateful to Almighty God for our liberties, do ordain this Constitution…
Arkansas 1874, Preamble We, the people of the State of Arkansas , grateful to Almighty God for the privilege of choosing our own form of government…
California 1879, Preamble We, the People of the State of California , grateful to Almighty God for our freedom…
Colorado 1876, Preamble We, the people of Colorado , with profound reverence for the Supreme Ruler of Universe…
Connecticut 1818, Preamble. The People of Connecticut, acknow ledging with gratitude the good Providence of God in permitting them to enjoy.
Delaware 1897, Preamble Through Divine Goodness all men have, by nature, the rights of worshipping and serving their Creator according to the dictates of their consciences.
Florida 1885, Preamble We, the people of the State of Florida , grateful to Almighty God for our constitutional liberty, establish this Constitution…
Georgia 1777, Preamble We, the people of Georgia , relying upon protection and guidance of Almighty God, do ordain and establish this Constitution…
Hawaii 1959, Preamble We , the people of Hawaii , Grateful for Divine Guidance … Establish this Constitution.
Idaho 1889, Preamble We, the people of the State of Idaho , grateful to Almighty God for our freedom, to secure its blessings.
Illinois 1870, Preamble We, the people of the State of Illinois, grateful to Almighty God for the civil , political and religious liberty which He hath so long permitted us to enjoy and looking to Him for a blessing on our endeavors.
Indiana 1851, Preamble We, the People of the State of Indiana , grateful to Almighty God for the free exercise of the right to choose our form of government.
Iowa 1857, Preamble We, the People of the State of Iowa , grateful to the Supreme Being for the blessings hitherto enj oyed, and feeling our dependence on Him for a continuation of these blessings, establish this Constitution.
Kansas 1859, Preamble We, the people of Kansas , grateful to Almighty God for our civil and religious privileges establish this Constitution.
< FONT face=Georgia color=black size=5>
Kentucky 1891, Preamble. We, the people of the Commonwealth are grateful to Almighty God for the civil, political and religious liberties…
Louisiana 1921, Preamble We, the people of the State of Louisiana , grateful to Almighty God for the civil, political and religious liberties we enjoy.
Maine 1820, Preamble We the People of Maine acknowledging with grateful hearts the goodness of the Sovereign Ruler of the Universe in affording us an opportunity .. And imploring His aid and direction.
Maryland 1776, Preamble We, the people of the state of Maryland , grateful to Almighty God for our civil and religious liberty…
Massachusetts 1780, Preamble We…the people of Massachusetts, acknowledging with grateful hearts, the goodness of the Great Legislator of the Universe In the course of H is Providence, an opportunity and devoutly imploring His direction .
Michigan 1908, Preamble le. We, the people of the State of Michigan , grateful to Almighty God for the blessings of freedom establish this Constitution.
Minnesota, 1857, Preamble We, the people of the State of Minnesota, grateful to God for our civil and religious liberty, and desiring to perpetuate its blessings:
Mississippi 1890, Preamble We, the people of Mississippi in convention assembled, grateful to Al mighty God, and invoking His blessing on our work.
Missouri 1845, Preamble We, the people of Missouri , with profound reverence for the Supreme Ruler of the Universe, and grateful for His goodness . Establish this Constitution…
Montana 1889, Preamble. We, the people of Montana , grateful to Almighty God for theblessings of liberty establish this Constitution .
Nebraska 1875, Preamble We, the people, grateful to Almighty God for our freedom . Establish this Constitution.
Nevada 1864, Preamble We the people of the State of Ne vada , grateful to Almighty God for our freedom, establish this Constitution…
New Hampshire 1792, Part I. Art. I. Sec. V Every individual has a natural and unalienable right to worship God according to the dictates of his own conscience.
New Jersey 1844, Preamble We, the people of the State of New Jersey, grateful to Almighty God for civil and religious liberty which He hath so long permitted us to enjoy, and looking to Him for a blessing on our endeavors.
New Mexico 1911, Preamble We, the People of New Mexico, grateful to Almighty God for the blessings of liberty..
New York 1846, Preamble We, the people of the State of New York , grateful to Almighty God for our freedom, in order to secure its blessings.
North Carolina 1868, Preamble We the people of the State of North Carolina, grateful to Almighty God, the Sovereign Ruler of Nations, for our civil, political, and religious liberties, and acknowledging our dependence upon Him for the continuance of those…
North Dakota 1889, Preamble We , the people of North Dakota , grateful to Almighty God for the blessings of civil and religious liberty, do ordain…
Ohio 1852, Preamble We the people of the state of Ohio , grateful to Almighty God for our freedom, to secure its blessings and to promote our common…
Oklahoma 1907, Preamble Invoking the guidance of Almighty God, in order to secure and perpetuate the blessings of liberty, e stablish this
Oregon 1857, Bill of Rights, Article I Section 2. All men shall be secure in the Natural right, to worship Almighty God according to the dictates of their consciences
Pennsylvania 1776, Preamble We, the people of Pennsylvania , grateful to Almighty God for the blessings of civil and religious liberty, and humbly invoking His guidance…
Rhode Island 1842, Preamble. We the People of the State of Rhode Island grateful to Almighty God for the civil and religious liberty which He hath so long permitted us to enjoy, and looking to Him for a blessing…
South Carolina, 1778, Preamble We, the people of he State of South Carolina gratefu l to God for our liberties, do ordain and establish this Constitution.
South Dakota 1889, Preamble We, the people of South Dakota , grateful to Almighty God for our civil and religious liberties .
Tennessee 1796, Art. XI.III. That all men have a natural and indefeasible right to worship Almighty God according to the dictates of their conscience…
Texas 1845, Preamble We the People of the Republic of Texas , acknowledging, with gratitude, the grace and beneficence of God.
Utah 1896, Preamble Grateful to Almighty God for life and liberty, we establish this Constitution.
Vermont 1777, Preamble Whereas all government ought to enable the individuals who compose it to enjoy their natural rights, and other blessings which the Author of Existence has bestowed on man .
Virginia 1776, Bill of Rights, XVI Religion, or the Duty which we owe our Creator can be directed only by Reason and that it is the mutual duty of all to practice Christian Forbearance, Love and Charity towards each other
Washington 1889, Preamble We the People of the State of Washington, grateful to the Supreme Ruler of the Universe for our liberties, do ordain this Constitution
West Virginia 1872, Preamble Since through Divine Providence we enjoy the blessings of civil, political and religious liberty, we, the people of West Virginia reaffirm our faith in and constant reliance upon God …
Wisconsin 1848, Preamble We, the people of Wisconsin , grateful to Almighty God for our freedom, domestic tranquility…
Wyoming 1890, Preamble We, the people of the State of Wyoming , grateful to God for our civil, political, and religious liberties, establish this Constitution..
After reviewing acknowledgments of God from all 50 state constitutions, one is faced with the prospect that maybe, the ACLU and the out -of-control federal courts are wrong! If you found this to be “Food for thought” copy and send to as many as you think will be enlightened as I hope you were.
(Please note that at no time is anyone told that they MUST worship God BUT YOU CAN PLEASE FEEL FREE TO DO SO.)
“Those people who will not be governed by God will be ruled by tyrants.” – William Penn
GOD BLESS AMERICA