Mike Huckabee

Conservative Republican Mike Huckabee was the governor of Arkansas from July 1996 to January 2007. Huckabee assumed the office after his predecessor resigned, and with his reelection in 2002, he became the third-longest serving governor in the state's history. Often called the "accidental" or "reverend" governor, Huckabee was simultaneously active in both politics and ministry. His preoccupation with "character" in public and private life colors his views on education, juvenile violence, and other social issues, and his strong religious convictions often led some to argue that he blurred the line when it came to the separation of church and state in Arkansas.

Early Life and Career

Mike Huckabee was born August 24, 1955, in Hope, Arkansas. He graduated from Hope High School in 1973, and went on to attend Ouachita Baptist University in Arkadelphia, where he graduated magna cum laude after only 2 1/2 years of study. Huckabee also attended Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas from 1976 to 1977.

After completing his education, Huckabee embarked on a career in broadcasting. He worked as a sports broadcaster before becoming involved with two community television stations, and acted as president of KBSC-TV, a UHF channel in Texarkana, from 1987 until 1992.

Beginning in 1989, Huckabee served two terms as president of the Arkansas Baptist State Convention. He was the youngest president in the organization's 150-year history. An ordained minister, Huckabee also worked as a pastor for several churches in Arkadelphia, Pine Bluff, and Texarkana. He and his wife, Janet McCain, have three children together: John Mark, David, and Sarah.

Arkansas Politics

In 1992, Huckabee altered his career path and entered the political sphere. Although he lost his bid for the lieutenant governor's office that year, he was elected to the post in a special election in 1993. He served alongside Governor Jim Guy Tucker until 1996, when Tucker resigned and Huckabee was thrust into the governorship.

Huckabee was elected to a four-year term in 1996 and won reelection in 2002. During the course of his political campaigning, Huckabee was repeatedly accused of ethical misconduct in the management of his campaign finances and was the subject of investigation by the state ethics commission.

During his tenure as governor, Huckabee helped the Arkansas legislature pass the state's first broad-based tax cut. Not only were standard deductions increased, but the tax benefits also ensured that families below the poverty line would not pay income taxes. The tax package also eliminated income tax on capital gains generated from home sales. Huckabee also helped make health care for uninsured children more accessible. The governor created the "ARKids First" program, which provides health insurance to children of working parents who cannot afford private coverage and do not qualify for Medicaid.

Political Agenda

As governor, Huckabee focused on education reforms and enhancing school curricula. His "Smart Start" initiative encouraged children in kindergarten through fourth grade to improve math and reading skills. Huckabee also supported a similar program called "Smart Step," which encouraged the same skill development in older students. Huckabee also backed a controversial religion-based character and citizen training program as part of the curriculum in the Arkansas public school system.

On March 24, 1998, a shooting occurred at Westside Middle School in Jonesboro. Two boys opened fire on a crowd at the school, killing four students and one teacher. Although many observers pointed to the popularity of hunting and the lack of gun control in southern states as potential causes of the tragedy, Huckabee rejected these arguments. Instead, the governor maintained that stricter criminal prosecution rather than tougher gun laws, safety measures, and manufacturer accountability, was the solution to the problem of gun violence in schools.

An avid outdoorsman, Huckabee enjoys hunting and fishing. In 2000, Huckabee was given personalized 12-gauge shotgun shells manufactured in Arkansas by Remington Arms. He has been known to distribute the shells as souvenirs to various guests and duck hunting companions.

In an effort to draw more tourists and retirees to the state, Huckabee created economic incentive programs benefiting retirees as well as entrepreneurs who create tourist attractions. Huckabee's highway improvement program, which was approved in 1999, initiated the largest construction project in Arkansas' history. This program was devoted to upgrading and maintaining highways across the state.

Huckabee courted controversy in 2001, when he proposed cutting all state library funding in an effort to balance the state budget. Eventually, he reached a compromise with the legislature, but library funding was still cut by a devastating 70 percent. Responding to criticism of his budget, Huckabee made the shocking statement that his administration was "not required under the constitution to provide any money for local projects like libraries."

Two years later, in 2003, Huckabee introduced another controversial plan to consolidate the state's 310 school districts. His plan, designed to "relieve inefficiencies" between districts, reduced the number of public schools in Arkansas by more than half and taxed already strained public school resources to the limit.

In early 2003, Huckabee was rumored to be a potential challenger for the seat of Democratic Senator Blanche Lincoln. Despite the fact that he was serving his second and final four-year term, he chose not to enter the race for Senate.

National and Regional Focus

As governor, Huckabee was active in several organizations both regionally and nationally. He was an executive member of the National Governor's Association (NGA), which focuses on welfare reform nationwide.

Huckabee co-chaired the Delta Regional Authority (DRA) for Arkansas. He was selected by the governors of the eight states (Arkansas, Mississippi, Louisiana, Tennessee, Alabama, Missouri, Kentucky and Illinois) that make up the authority. Congress established the DRA to stimulate economic growth and help alleviate poverty in the member states.

Huckabee also served as president of the Council of State Governments (CSG), which has been in place since 1933. It is a council formed by state leaders who share resources and work with other regional leaders to solve their states' problems. In addition, Huckabee was chairman of the Southern Governors' Association, the Southern Growth Policies Board, the Southern Technology Council and the Southern International Trade Council.

Huckabee has also authored several books. The first, Character Is the Issue, published in 1997, emphasizes strength of character as paramount in both politics and home life. Kids Who Kill, published in 1998, addresses juvenile violence. His third book, Living Beyond Your Lifetime (2000), is a guide for leaving a personal legacy. His book Quit Digging Your Grave with a Knife and Fork (2005), is a health and exercise guide based on his personal experience with the health risks of obesity and the challenges of weight loss.

During the end of his second and final term as governor of Arkansas, Huckabee made known that he supported the teaching of both evolution and creationism in public schools. The Arkansas Times criticized the fact that Huckabee and his wife set up wedding registries at local retailers before holding a housewarming party at their newly constructed home.

Huckabee was succeeded as governor on January 9, 2007, by Democrat Mike Beebe, who defeated Republican Asa Hutchinson in the 2006 election. In late January 2007, Huckabee officially announced his candidacy for the Republican Party nomination in the 2008 US presidential election. Although his campaign staff was considerably small in comparison to challengers John McCain and Mitt Romney, Huckabee's conservative message and experience as a Baptist minister resonated with voters in early polls. Surprisingly, Huckabee became widely popular in Iowa despite having only a fraction of the campaign dollars available to Romney, who privately funded a portion of his campaign.

Huckabee won the 2008 Iowa Republican caucus, receiving 34 percent of the overall vote. In the 2008 New Hampshire Republican primary, Huckabee finished third, with 11 percent of the overall vote. He finished third in the Michigan primary with 16 percent of the vote and he finished fourth in the Nevada caucus with eight percent of the vote. Huckabee placed second in the South Carolina primary with nearly 30 percent of the vote. In the Florida primary, held on January 30, Huckabee finished fourth, with 14 percent of the total vote.

In the 2008 "Super Tuesday" primaries and caucuses held on February 5, twenty-two states voted. Huckabee won Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Iowa, Tennessee, and West Virginia. He placed third in most states, behind Romney and McCain. In fact, the McCain campaign pulled significantly ahead in the overall delegate count after Super Tuesday voting. Many analysts have been critical of Huckabee for choosing to continue his campaign despite the large delegate count garnered by McCain.

Huckabee won the Louisiana primary on February 9th. He placed second in the February 12th primaries in Washington, DC, Maryland and Virginia. McCain placed first in these three primaries, further increasing his lead in the overall delegate count.

On March 4, McCain won the Republican primaries held in Ohio, Rhode Island, Texas, and Vermont. These victories and the delegates they allotted confirmed McCain's nomination as the 2008 GOP Presidential candidate, thus ending Huckabee's campaign. Huckabee congratulated McCain, and vowed to support his Republican Party colleague in the general election. In addition, Huckabee has worked as a television news commentator. In 2008, Huckabee began hosting the cable program Huckabee. While many speculated that he might run again for the presidency in 2012, by 2011 he had announced that he would not be a candidate.

However, in early 2015, Huckabee ended his television program and officially announced from his hometown in Arkansas that he would be campaigning for the Republican presidential nomination for the 2016 election. In addition to the challenge of expanding his support among voters, he initially faced the largest group of Republican candidates vying for the nomination in the history of presidential primaries; these candidates included several well-financed and well-known figures, such as Texas senator Ted Cruz, former Florida governor Jeb Bush, New Jersey governor Chris Christie, Florida senator Marco Rubio, Ohio governor John Kasich, and business tycoon Donald Trump. Though a few of these candidates dropped out before the Iowa caucuses even began in February 2016, Huckabee still performed poorly among Iowa voters, with Cruz and Trump getting the most votes. Deciding, therefore, to stop his campaign there, Huckabee shortly began publicizing his support for Trump, who eventually went on to win the nomination and the election.

Bibliography

"About." Mike Huckabee, www.mikehuckabee.com/about. Accessed 30 Mar. 2017.

Bradner, Eric. "Mike Huckabee Drops Out of 2016 Presidential Race." CNN, 2 Feb. 2016, www.cnn.com/2016/02/01/politics/mike-huckabee-drops-out-of-2016-presidential-race/. Accessed 30 Mar. 2017.

"Mike Huckabee: Fast Facts." CNN, 4 Aug. 2016, www.cnn.com/2013/08/06/us/mike-huckabee-fast-facts/. Accessed 30 Mar. 2017.

Miller, Jake. "Five Things to Know about Mike Huckabee." CBS News, 5 May 2015, www.cbsnews.com/news/election-2016-five-things-to-know-about-mike-huckabee/. Accessed 30 Mar. 2017.

Tumulty, Karen. "Mike Huckabee Launches 2016 Presidential Campaign." The Washington Post, 5 May 2015, www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2015/05/05/huckabee-set-to-announce-presidential-run-tuesday/?utm‗term=.215663f301f4. Accessed 30 Mar. 2017.