When will the media ever get the fact that they can’t understand the general public? Better yet, when will the voters ever get the fact that the media is playing them like a fiddle during this presidential election? It was just a few short months ago that everyone in the media was hyping a Giuliani vs. Clinton presidential race. However, the most recent Gallup Poll that was released on January 7th shows that Mike Huckabee now has a 5% advantage among the Republican candidates and Barack Obama is tied with Hillary Clinton. Regardless of these latest poll numbers or a realization of what the masses truly want, the media continues to talk about Giuliani, Romney, or McCain facing Obama (whom I think will end up wiping the floor with Hillary).
Fred Thompson said during the most recent Fox News debate that campaigns have ran on change for a very long time. This is true, but as one who avidly studies history, I can’t remember the last time that the approval ratings for a Republican led Whitehouse and a Democratic led Congress were so low. For this reason alone, I believe that this presidential race will be one for the history books. This is a race that will bring a truly different kind of president with different kinds of policies. And, I do believe this is why we have the current front runners that we do.
While I disagree with Barack Obama on nearly every issue, there is no denying that he has the greatest ability to connect with the voters. He is someone who doesn’t have a history of pandering to special interest groups or fattening his pockets as a result. But, most importantly (especially as a Democrat contender) he knows how to touch the heart of the Democrat voter and stir up their emotions. He is a young presidential candidate in a predominately young America.
Mike Huckabee, on the other hand, is the only Republican candidate that proposes real change. In fact, I believe that he proposes more of a change than any of the Democrats. It is the media that has painted Mike Huckabee as a person that is relying on his faith to stay in the Republican primary race. While it is true that Mike Huckabee has a very large base of Christian supporters, I believe that he also has a large number of supporters who could care less what his religious convictions are and whether he uses them in his campaign or not. These are the supporters who are all aboard that “Fair Tax” train. The train that will run right over the IRS and create a tax system in which EVERYONE pays into. That’s right! Drug dealers, mob bosses, and politicians can’t escape it. In addition, he has an aggressive illegal immigration policy, a health care policy that gives consumers more control at a much cheaper cost, and a strategy to lead our nation towards energy independence within the next 10 years, not within the next 20 or 40 years as proposed by other candidates.
I truly hope and pray that voters will disregard the media spin during this election and keep their ears and eyes open using many different sources. Only then, will we have a president that brings real change to Washington.
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
Huckabee probably doesn't garner much support outside of the evangelical population. He has been very liberal economically, which will hurt him. He is also pro-war, which will hurt him in the general elections, or places where independents can vote in primaries, without a large evangelical population.
"A casual stroll through the lunatic asylum shows that faith does not prove anything."
Friedrich Nietzsche
Huckabee makes me cringe. His own people in Arkansas don't like him, he's a self-proclaimed poor fundraiser, while he was governor the budget went from 7 to 17 billion dollars.
http://www.progressiveu.org/user/bamers
I'm not a big huckabee fan, but to set the record straight, during that time that the state budget increased, it also increased in other states and federally by a higher margin.
Also, the numbers themselves.... 7 to 17 billion... not accurate.
http://www.factcheck.org/elections-2008/huckabees_fiscal_record.html
so under his administration, the shortfall was reversed to the tune of 1 billion dollars, AND the increase in spending was not as large as his critics say.
Also note that the increase in spending was approximately 1.3 or so billion dollars a year for the entire state. That is fairly low as far as state budgets go, with an increase of around 8% or so. (at least a dozen states are higher than that, some currently being projected as a 28.4% increase currently expected in Montana per http://www.pennbpc.org/pdf/states_budgets07_table.pdf )
There are several points in this post that I think need addressed.
First, the poll numbers for the White House and Congress are so low because people in today's technological society have more access to what the government is doing, not necessarily because government is doing worse.
Second, the only reason that Obama doesn't have a history of pandering to special interests is that he has virtually no history! He's a new Senator, and his only real political experiance is being a state legislator.
Third , America is not predominantly young. The largest growing demographic group is the elderly group, the Baby Boomers.
I do, however, agree with you that the media does put a huge spin on what they report, and I also hope that people see through that, but I doubt that it will happen.
"A government big enough to give you everything you want is big enough to take everything you have." - Barry Goldwater
"... the ostensible means [diversity] of acheiving a desired end [equality] had become the end itself." - Clarence Thomas
I'm still kind of hoping it'll come down to Obama and Guiliani. I like both candidates.