Dallas Morning News Backs Huckabee Over McCain Again
Texas’ largest newspaper, The Dallas Morning News, has once again endorsed Mike Huckabee over presumptive Republican presidential nominee John McCain, saying that even though “it is mathematically impossible” for Huckabee to capture the nomination, he is “the GOP’s future.”
The newspaper’s editors wrote in Sunday’s editions that as a result of his social and religious conservatism, the former Arkasnas governor is on “the wrong side of abortion, gay rights and other key issues” but Huckabee still is committed to helping the poor and middle class, is “good on the environment” and not bound by ideological litmus tests.
The endorsement is not new — the newspaper actually made its endorsement of Huckabee on Dec. 23 — but the decision to re-emphasize its position suggests the paper hopes Texas will still have some impact on the Republican race.
The editors wrote that despite McCain’s “long experience and personal courage,” as well as his “solid record of fiscal responsibility” and his being on the “right side” of campaign finance reform, environmental issues and comprehensive immigration reform, “his age - 71 - and his choleric temperament gave us pause, particularly when contrasted to Mr. Huckabee’s sunny-side-up brand of conservatism.”
The newspaper noted that the Republican Party is going through some ideological troubles, and must redefine itself for a new era rather than looking back at President Reagan for its inspiration.
“Reaganism, which made the GOP the dominant political party of the last generation, no longer resonates as it once did with the American public. The world has changed since Ronald Reagan’s election nearly 30 years ago, and the great man’s political heirs will have to adjust the GOP’s strategy and tactics to new realities.”
The endorsement, which precedes Tuesday’s primary in the state, concluded that Huckabee will not win the nomination, but could help shape the GOP in years to come.
“True, a Huckabee vote today won’t do much to determine the 2008 GOP presidential candidate. But it’s a good investment in the Republican Party’s future.”
Asked about the editorial, Huckabee said he was very pleased.
“Let me just say that I think The Dallas Morning News is probably the greatest newspaper in America and everybody ought to get a lifetime subscription,” he said.
Click here to read The Dallas Morning News endorsement.
FOX News’ Serafin Gomez contributed to this report.
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Imagine that your wife’s parents could never understand why their daughter, whom they considered beautiful and intelligent, married a man like you, whom they refer to as “that mental midget”. (At those times your wife laughs and says “He’s not a mental midget, he’s just really, really short.”) Your in-laws, in spite of their obvious intelligence and ability to accurately perceive the character of their fellow men, are, regrettably, Democrats. You have discussed politics with them on occasion, but your insipid blithering of slogans like “the spirit of Reagan breaks wind in his sails” has only served to confirm their existing opinion of you. You love your wife and hope that someday you will love your in-laws. Your wife has been telling them that she is looking forward to having children with you, and you have seen them visibly shudder at the thought. With the looming possibility of having grandchildren with your genes, they decide to give your intelligence one more chance before they kidnap their daughter and carry her away to parts unknown. They are proud of the fact that their party is running two lawyers, each of acknowledged intelligence and ability. They have noted that your party is running two candidates, each with the humility to admit his intellectual weaknesses. They ask you which candidate will be your choice in the coming election and why. What will you tell them?
I have tried to make you think by appealing to your sense of self respect, but my efforts have met with little success. Ok, you blithering, Kool-Aid drinking, cult members, let’s try something that maybe strikes a little closer to home:
Imagine that your wife’s parents could never understand why their daughter, whom they considered beautiful and intelligent, married a man like you, whom they refer to as “that mental midget”. (At those times your wife laughs and says “He’s not a mental midget, he’s just really, really short.”) Your in-laws, in spite of their obvious intelligence and ability to accurately perceive the character of their fellow men, are, regrettably, Democrats. You have discussed politics with them on occasion, but your insipid blithering of slogans like “the spirit of Reagan breaks wind in his sails” have only served to confirm their existing opinion of you. You love your wife and hope that someday you will love your in-laws. Your wife has been telling them that she is looking forward to having children with you, and you have seen them visibly shudder at the thought. With the looming possibility of having grandchildren with your genes, they decide to give your intelligence one more chance before they kidnap their daughter and carry her away to parts unknown. They are proud of the fact that their party is running two lawyers, each of acknowledged intelligence and ability. They have noted that your party is running two candidates, each with the humility to admit his intellectual weaknesses. They ask you which candidate will be your choice in the coming election and why. What will you tell them?